MDR Charges on UPI Transactions Deemed ‘Completely False, Baseless, and Misleading’ by the Finance Ministry
Via an X post, the Ministry of Finance, Government of India, has dismissed all speculations concerning MDR or Merchant Discount Rate charges on UPI transactions. The update also adds that the Government of India encourages its citizens to make digital payments via UPI.
Read more about it in detail below.
No MDR Charge on UPI Transactions
As per an ANI report, it was claimed that the Central Government of India has been thinking of reintroducing MDR on UPI transactions that are over INR 3,000 and the report states that this for supporting payment service providers as well as banks. Additionally, it was also reported that instead of merchant turnover, MDR as per transaction value was also being talked about.
The Ministry of Finance on the 11th of June 2025 has dismissed all these as not more than speculations and that no MDR will be charged on UPI transactions. On X, it was revealed that these speculations are ‘completely false, baseless, and misleading’.
Furthermore, the X post notes that it is natural that such speculations could ’cause needless uncertainty, fear, and suspicion among citizens’, however unlike what was said via these speculations, the Government of India is still committed to promote digital payments in the country and encourages its citizens to make payments and transactions via UPI.
Just to add, according to available official data, in the month of January 2025 alone, 16.99+ billion UPI transactions were made in the country and it amounted to INR 23.48 lakh crore. This is recorded to be the highest number till date. Also, during FY 2023 ~ 24, UPI payments itself contributed 80% of the retail payments and it numbered to 131+ billion with a value of INR 200 lakh crore.
