Supreme Court Refuses To Stay Decision On Imposing Charges On UPI Transactions
The Supreme Court has refused to stay the decision to levy MDR (Merchant Discount Rate) on merchants for UPI payments exceeding ₹2,000. A petition filed in the Supreme Court challenges the gazette notification that imposes charges on UPI transactions.
The Supreme Court has issued notices to the Central Government, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), and the UPI Steering Committee regarding this matter, seeking a response within four weeks.
While hearing the petition filed by lawyer Anjan Datta, the Supreme Court asked the Central Government whether the MDR charged to merchants on UPI transactions constitutes a fee, a tax, or something else.
Notably, the Central Government… regarding UPI payments exceeding ₹2,000 made to merchants… An MDR of 0.4 percent was approved for UPI transactions. However, all UPI transactions up to ₹2,000 will remain completely free. Additionally, transactions between the standard UPI accounts of two individuals will also be entirely free. This new system is set to come into effect on October 15.
