For most of its life, UPI stopped at the border. That's no longer true. You can now scan and pay with your Indian UPI app at shops in a growing list of countries, NRIs can use UPI with a foreign mobile number, some visitors to India can pay Indian merchants from their own country's apps, and UPI is being used for money sent across borders between people.
NPCI groups all of this under the name UPI International. The four parts work differently, have different country lists and suit different people, so this guide takes them one at a time, using NPCI's own lists.
The four parts of UPI International
NPCI's consolidated UPI circular sets out each one:
| Part | Who it's for | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Global Acceptance | Indian UPI users travelling abroad | Pay at merchants in other countries by scanning a QR code |
| Reverse Acceptance | Visitors to India | Pay Indian merchants' UPI QR codes from their own country's payment apps |
| International mobile numbers | NRIs and others with eligible accounts and a foreign number | Register and use UPI without an Indian mobile number |
| Inward and outward remittances | People sending money across borders | Receive money from abroad, or send it, through UPI |
Paying abroad with your Indian UPI app
Global Acceptance lets you pay at merchants outside India from your usual UPI app, debiting your Indian bank account. It isn't limited to UPI's own QR codes: NPCI's rules cover UPI QR codes, proprietary QR codes used by local payment systems, and ISO-standard QR codes, with NPCI handling the routing and translation into UPI. Where a country's own QR network has been linked to UPI, you scan the local code as you would at home.
- 1Switch it onGive your app explicit consent to international payments, once
- 2Scan the merchant's QRScan it live with your camera
- 3Check the amountsThe local amount, and what will be debited in rupees
- 4Enter your UPI PINAs for any UPI payment
- 5Debited in rupeesFrom your Indian account, at your bank's rate and charges
Two rules shape how this works. Your app and bank must get your explicit consent before they enable or process international payments, which is why there's a separate switch for it. And NPCI doesn't allow "QR share and pay" for international payments: you can't pay by uploading a photo or screenshot of a QR code from your gallery. Scan the code in front of you.
How to switch it on
The exact menus differ between apps, but the pattern is the same:
- Open your UPI app's settings or your bank account's UPI settings and look for an option such as "UPI International" or "international payments".
- Choose the bank account to use, and check which countries the app shows as supported.
- Confirm with your UPI PIN, and any other details your app asks for.
Not every bank and app supports Global Acceptance, and those that do may not support every country on NPCI's list. Check before you travel, not at the till.
Which countries NPCI lists
Annexure B of NPCI's consolidated UPI circular (version 1.0, September 2026) lists 48 countries enabled for UPI Global Acceptance:
| Region | Countries |
|---|---|
| South Asia | Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka |
| South-East and East Asia | Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Philippines, South Korea, Japan, Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia |
| Middle East | United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman |
| Europe | United Kingdom, Switzerland, Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain |
| Americas | United States of America, Canada |
| Africa | Egypt, Mauritius, South Africa |
| Oceania | Australia, New Zealand |
What it costs
You pay in rupees from your Indian account, so a currency conversion happens somewhere. The exchange rate and any markup or fee are set by your bank and the providers involved, not by a single published UPI rate. Before you enter your PIN, the confirmation screen is the place to check what will actually be debited in rupees. If the app shows only the local amount, compare it against your bank's statement after a small first payment.
When a payment abroad doesn't work
If a payment at a shop abroad fails, the cause is usually one of these:
- International payments aren't switched on in your app, or not for the bank account you chose.
- Your bank or app doesn't support that country yet, even though it's on NPCI's list.
- The merchant's QR code belongs to a local network that isn't linked to UPI, or the merchant doesn't accept UPI at all.
- You tried to pay from a photo or screenshot of the code rather than scanning it live.
- Your phone has no data connection. You'll need roaming data or local Wi-Fi to pay.
If you were debited but the merchant didn't receive the payment, treat it like any failed UPI payment: keep the reference and raise it in your app. Our guide to UPI disputes and chargebacks explains the process.
For NRIs: UPI with an international mobile number
UPI was built around Indian mobile numbers, which kept many NRIs out. NPCI now lets eligible accounts, such as non-resident accounts, be linked to international mobile numbers from listed countries, so you can register and transact on UPI without an Indian SIM. In October 2026, NPCI added 19 countries, taking the list to 31.
| Region | Countries and codes |
|---|---|
| Middle East | United Arab Emirates (+971), Saudi Arabia (+966), Qatar (+974), Oman (+968), Bahrain (+973), Kuwait (+965) |
| Asia | Singapore (+65), Malaysia (+60), Hong Kong (+852), Japan (+81), Philippines (+63), Thailand (+66), Nepal (+977), Bhutan (+975), Maldives (+960) |
| Europe | United Kingdom (+44), France (+33), Germany (+49), Greece (+30), Ireland (+353), Italy (+39), Netherlands (+31), Portugal (+351), Spain (+34), Sweden (+46) |
| Americas | United States of America (+1), Canada (+1), Brazil (+55) |
| Oceania and Africa | Australia (+61), New Zealand (+64), South Africa (+27) |
The same onboarding and transaction checks apply as for any UPI user, including risk controls and cooling periods, so expect some restrictions on a newly registered account. Whether your bank supports this, and for which of your accounts, is your bank's decision: ask it which account types can be linked to your foreign number.
Once registered, UPI works much as it does for anyone else. Our guides to UPI IDs and UPI transaction limits apply in the same way.
For visitors to India: Reverse Acceptance
Reverse Acceptance runs the other way: a visitor uses their own country's mobile payment app to scan an Indian merchant's UPI QR code and pay. NPCI's annexure lists four countries enabled for it: Bhutan, Mauritius, Nepal and the United Kingdom.
For this to work, the merchant's payment provider must enable its UPI QR codes to accept payments started from international apps. A merchant doesn't need a separate QR code; the same code takes both. Visitors from other countries still pay in the usual ways: cards, cash, or a prepaid instrument they can use in India.
Remittances through UPI
UPI can also carry cross-border payments between people: foreign inward remittances (money received from abroad) and foreign outward remittances (money sent abroad). As with the other parts, your app and bank need your explicit consent before processing them.
There's also a domestic leg. When money sent from abroad reaches India through a remittance provider, it can be credited to the recipient's Indian account through an ordinary UPI transaction, by UPI ID or by account number and IFSC. NPCI's rules allow this only to KYC-compliant accounts, and require the bank to keep a complete audit trail of the remittance chain.
Which corridors and providers support UPI remittances changes often, and any foreign exchange rules for your situation are a matter for your bank. For how cross-border payment corridors work more generally, see our explainer on payment corridors.
Before you travel: a checklist
Five minutes before a trip saves an awkward moment at a till:
- Check that your bank and app support UPI International for the country you're visiting, and switch it on before you leave.
- Make one small payment early in the trip and check the rupee debit in your bank statement, so you know the real rate and charges.
- Carry a backup: a card that works internationally, or some local currency. Acceptance can be patchy.
- Keep your phone locked and your UPI PIN private. If your phone is lost abroad, block UPI through your bank's official channels straight away.
- Scan codes live. A QR code sent to you on a messaging app is a reason to be careful anywhere in the world; our guide to UPI fraud covers the common tricks.
What it means for businesses
For Indian merchants, Reverse Acceptance means some international visitors can pay at your existing UPI QR, if your payment provider has enabled it. Ask your provider whether your codes accept payments from international apps. Our guide to UPI QR codes for business covers the codes themselves.
Selling to customers abroad online is a different problem, covered by cross-border payment rules rather than UPI International. Our international payment gateway guide explains accepting foreign cards and currencies and how the money reaches you in India.
Frequently asked questions
In which countries can I use UPI?
NPCI's consolidated UPI circular lists 48 countries enabled for Indian users paying abroad, including the UAE, Singapore, the UK, France, Japan, Nepal and the USA. Acceptance in each depends on the merchant, and your bank and app may support fewer countries, so check your app before you travel.
Can I pay abroad with a QR code screenshot?
No. NPCI doesn't allow QR share and pay for international payments, so you can't pay by uploading a QR image from your gallery. Scan the merchant's code live with your app.
Are there charges for using UPI abroad?
Your Indian account is debited in rupees, and the exchange rate and any markup or fee are set by your bank and the providers involved. Check the rupee amount on the confirmation screen before entering your PIN.
Can NRIs use UPI without an Indian SIM?
Yes, with eligible accounts such as non-resident accounts and a mobile number from one of the 31 countries NPCI has listed, including the UAE, USA, UK, Singapore, Canada and Australia. Your bank decides which of its accounts and apps support it.
Can foreign tourists pay with UPI in India?
Visitors using payment apps from countries enabled for Reverse Acceptance (Bhutan, Mauritius, Nepal and the UK, in NPCI's current list) can scan Indian merchants' UPI QR codes, where the merchant's provider has enabled it.
Official sources
- NPCI — UPI Consolidated Circular, Version 1.0, NPCI/UPI/CC/01 (18 Sep 2026)Section 23: Global Acceptance (UPI, proprietary and ISO QR; explicit consent; no QR share and pay), Reverse Acceptance, foreign inward and outward remittances, domestic processing to KYC-compliant accounts, international mobile numbers. Annexure B: 48 Global Acceptance countries, four Reverse Acceptance countries and international mobile number country codes.
- NPCI — Addition of new countries to the list of permitted international mobile numbers in UPI, NPCI/UPI/OC-161A/2026-27 (1 Oct 2026)19 countries added; consolidated list of 31 countries and codes; non-resident and other permissible accounts.
Last reviewed . Examples, amounts and screens marked illustrative are not LILPE figures.
