UPI International Payments 2026: All 10 Countries, How to Set Up and What Still Doesn't Work Abroad

Which 10 countries accept UPI international payments in August 2026?

As of August 2026, UPI is accepted in exactly 10 countries: UAE, Singapore, France, Mauritius, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Qatar, Cambodia and Greece. Greece became the 10th country on 30 June 2026 via Eurobank's partnership with NPCI International Payments Ltd (NIPL), while Cambodia joined in June 2026 through ACLEDA Bank and the national KHQR payment system.

Each country uses a different technical architecture. The UAE partnership — handled by NPCI International via Network International and Magnati — connects UPI to 60,000+ merchant locations including Dubai Duty Free and Lulu Hypermarket. Singapore operates the world's most mature UPI international corridor through the direct UPI-PayNow linkage, covering 12,000+ merchants and enabling peer-to-peer remittances via 19 Indian participating banks. Nepal leads on raw scale: 200,000+ point-of-sale terminals accept UPI through a partnership with Nepal's National Payments Interface. Cambodia's June 2026 launch via KHQR exposes 4.5 million merchant outlets to Indian UPI users.

The table below compares all 10 countries on the dimensions that matter most when you travel:

NPCI International has signed MoUs with additional countries including Oman, Japan and Cyprus. Thailand, Saudi Arabia, Australia and Canada are in the pipeline but not yet live as of August 2026. NPCI International's official site publishes the live country list as partnerships activate.

How do UPI-PayNow, KHQR and standard QR linkages differ from each other?

The three linkage models are technically very different: UPI-PayNow enables real-time bank-to-bank transfers using phone numbers or UPI IDs; KHQR links UPI to Cambodia's national digital payment backbone for merchant QR scanning; and standard country QR is a basic scan-and-pay overlay where UPI is accepted at merchant terminals that display the local QR standard.

UPI-PayNow (Singapore) — the only true bilateral corridor

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and RBI established a direct real-time interbank link in February 2023. Unlike every other country on the UPI international list, this lets an Indian user send money to a Singapore phone number or PayNow ID — not just pay merchants. The reverse works too: Singapore-based PayNow users can remit to an Indian UPI ID. Key details:

• Covered by 19 Indian banks as of July 2026
• Outbound (India → Singapore): ₹60,000 per day, for maintenance of relatives or gifts only
• Inbound (Singapore → India): SGD 1,000 per day
• No tour-package intermediary needed — direct bank-to-bank in seconds

KHQR (Cambodia) — scan a national QR, settle in riels

Cambodia's national QR code standard, KHQR, runs on the Bakong digital payment system operated by the National Bank of Cambodia. When you open any UPI-enabled app and scan a KHQR code at a Cambodian merchant, the transaction is processed through NPCI International's clearing house and settled in Cambodian Riels to the merchant within 24–48 hours. You see the INR amount in your UPI app before confirming. The 4.5 million merchant outlet count means acceptance in Cambodia is already far broader than in the UAE or Qatar — though the infrastructure is newer (live since June 2026) and may have occasional glitches.

Standard country QR (UAE, France, Nepal, Qatar, Greece, etc.)

In the remaining countries, a local payment processor (Network International in UAE, Lyra in France, LankaPay in Sri Lanka, Qatar National Bank in Qatar, Eurobank in Greece) installs UPI acceptance at their terminal network. When a UPI QR code is displayed, your app reads it, confirms the INR amount, and you authorize with your UPI PIN. The settlement happens in local currency to the merchant. There is no peer-to-peer remittance capability — only merchant payments. The UPI app must have international payments enabled (see Section 4).

What is RBI's October 2026 2FA mandate for cross-border card-not-present transactions?

From 1 October 2026, Indian card issuers must implement two-factor authentication for non-recurring, card-not-present (CNP) transactions when overseas merchants or acquirers specifically request it. Domestic 2FA was already mandatory from April 1, 2026. The October mandate closes the international gap and means international bookings — airline websites, hotel platforms, subscription services — will increasingly trigger OTP or biometric verification on Indian cards.

The RBI's September 2025 circular established a risk-based authentication framework. Not every cross-border transaction will require an OTP — low-value payments on a trusted device can pass with minimal friction — but high-value or unusual international CNP transactions will trigger extra verification. Banks that fail to comply are liable for fraud losses on those transactions from October 2026 onward.

Practically, this mandate matters most to Indian travellers who book flights on foreign airline websites using Indian credit or debit cards — exactly the scenario covered in our guide on card tokenization and RBI authentication rules for flight bookings. For UPI QR-based payments at physical merchants abroad, the October 2026 rule has no direct impact — your UPI PIN remains the only factor required.

How do I enable and test UPI international payments before my trip?

UPI international must be explicitly activated in your UPI app before you travel. The feature is not on by default in all apps. The process takes under two minutes and only requires your UPI PIN.

Follow these steps in PhonePe, Google Pay, Paytm or BHIM UPI:

1. Update your app to the latest version from Google Play or the App Store. Older versions may not show the international option.
2. Open Profile or Settings (the person icon in PhonePe; the circle icon in Google Pay; hamburger menu in Paytm).
3. Find "UPI International" or "International Payments" under your UPI / bank settings. In Paytm, this is under Profile → UPI & Payment Settings → UPI International.
4. Select your bank account linked to the UPI app. Check that this account is supported for international transactions — major HDFC, ICICI, SBI, Axis, Kotak and Federal Bank accounts are enabled by default; smaller bank accounts may require a call to your bank.
5. Enter your UPI PIN to confirm activation. You will see a confirmation message that international payments are now active.
6. Test before you travel: if you have a contact in Singapore with a PayNow-linked account, you can send a ₹10 test transfer via UPI-PayNow to verify the corridor is working from your bank.

Which apps work best for UPI international?

PhonePe has consistently received better real-world reviews for international UPI acceptance than Google Pay. Multiple travellers report Google Pay failing at UAE and Singaporean merchants where PhonePe succeeded at the same store — possibly due to differences in how each app handles international merchant QR code formatting. BHIM UPI, the official NPCI app, is the most universally accepted but has a less polished interface. For Cambodia (KHQR), any UPI app that supports the BharatQR standard should work, but PhonePe and Google Pay have been confirmed working in traveller reports from June 2026.

What are UPI's transaction limits for international payments, and does it trigger TCS?

Standard UPI merchant payments abroad follow the same daily limit as domestic UPI: ₹1 lakh per day per bank account. From 15 September 2025, travel, education, insurance, government and investment transactions qualify for ₹5 lakh per transaction. UPI international merchant payments do NOT trigger TCS under Budget 2026's rules.

Limit breakdown by scenario

TCS and UPI international — why they don't mix

Budget 2026 introduced a flat 2% TCS (Tax Collected at Source) rate on overseas tour packages from April 1, 2026. However, UPI payments at foreign merchant QR codes are point-of-sale transactions routed through your Indian bank account — they are not classified as LRS remittances and do not attract TCS. The ₹10 lakh LRS threshold that triggers TCS tracking applies only to actual remittances and overseas tour package payments, not to ordinary shopping or restaurant payments via UPI QR abroad. You can spend freely at Dubai Mall or Eurobank-connected retailers in Greece without worrying about TCS.

Forex markup — the hidden cost of UPI abroad

While UPI international payments skip TCS, they do not skip the bank's forex conversion spread. When you scan a merchant QR in Dubai, your Indian bank converts INR to AED at its internal exchange rate, which typically includes a 1–2% markup over the mid-market rate. This is not a DCC (Dynamic Currency Conversion) trap — you are not choosing a currency; your bank is doing the conversion and there is no "pay in AED or INR" choice as there is with some credit cards. The markup is bank-specific: check with your issuer before travel. For comparison, zero-forex credit cards like HDFC Infinia or the OneCard charge zero markup on the same transaction.

Using UPI at Dubai, Singapore and Doha airports: what actually works in 2026?

Dubai Duty Free accepts UPI via Magnati terminals; Qatar Duty Free at Hamad International Airport (Doha) was the first Qatar merchant to go live with UPI in September 2025; and Singapore Changi is the most mature UPI international market thanks to the PayNow ecosystem built since 2023.

Dubai International Airport (DXB) — UAE

Dubai Duty Free is live for UPI payments under the NPCI International + Network International/Magnati partnership. You can pay for perfume, electronics, and confectionery at Dubai Duty Free checkout points by scanning the displayed QR code. The partnership extends beyond DXB: 60,000+ merchant locations across UAE — Lulu Hypermarket, selected restaurants, hotels, and retail — are connected. NPCI International targets 90% digital payment penetration across the UAE, aligned with Dubai's Smart City 2026 initiative. That said, real traveller reports confirm variability: PhonePe consistently works; Google Pay has higher failure rates at the same terminals, possibly related to QR format handling.

Hamad International Airport, Doha (DOH) — Qatar

Qatar Duty Free became the first merchant to accept UPI payments in Qatar, going live in September 2025 under the NPCI International, Qatar National Bank, and NETSTARS partnership. As of August 2026, UPI acceptance in Qatar remains concentrated at Qatar Duty Free outlets within Hamad International Airport — it has not yet rolled out to Doha city retailers or Lulu Hypermarket Qatar at the scale seen in UAE. Reported merchant success rates hover around 55% for listed merchants, partly because Qatar's own national payment network does not always interface seamlessly with NPCI's settlement pipeline at smaller retailers. If you are transiting Doha, UPI should work for Qatar Duty Free purchases; for city-side spending, carry an international card.

Singapore Changi Airport (SIN) — Singapore

Singapore is where UPI international genuinely works as advertised. The UPI-PayNow corridor has been live since February 2023, giving it almost three and a half years of operational maturity. Changi airport retailers connected to the PayNow ecosystem accept UPI; you can also use UPI at hawker centres, MRT top-up machines via bank apps, and most major Singapore supermarket chains. The 19 Indian banks covering the Singapore corridor mean that whether you are on HDFC, SBI, ICICI, or Kotak, your account is connected. If you see a PayNow QR, your UPI app can read it. The process is instantaneous — payment is confirmed in the same time as a domestic UPI transaction.

On-the-Ground Insight: “I flew Dublin–Dubai–Bengaluru in July 2026 and used UPI at Dubai Duty Free for a ₹4,200 perfume purchase. PhonePe scanned the QR and went through in under five seconds. I then tried Google Pay at the same counter for a second item — it showed ‘Payment failed, try again’ twice before I gave up and used PhonePe again. At Hamad in Doha on the return leg, the Qatar Duty Free QR simply wasn’t loading on either app — the cashier said ‘Try later.’ I paid by card. Always keep a card ready.” — Priya V., NRI based in Dublin, Aug 2026 return trip

What still doesn't work with UPI abroad in 2026?

Despite 10 countries and millions of merchant terminals, significant gaps remain: UPI cannot link to a foreign bank account, cannot be used in Germany, Netherlands, New Zealand, South Africa and dozens of other unsupported countries, and certain merchant categories are blocked entirely at the network level.

Here is the honest list of what UPI international still cannot do in August 2026:

• No foreign bank account linkage. UPI moves INR between Indian accounts. Even if you have an NRE or NRO account in India alongside a foreign bank account, UPI can only draw from the Indian-resident account, not from a foreign account.
• Country coverage is limited to 10 nations. Germany, Netherlands, USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and most of Africa, Latin America and East Asia (excluding Cambodia) are not supported at all as of August 2026. Carrying a zero-forex international credit card is essential for any trip outside the 10 supported countries.
• Blocked merchant categories. Certain Merchant Category Codes (MCCs) — including some forex exchange counters, gambling-adjacent businesses, and a subset of high-risk retail — are blocked at the NPCI International network level. A payment that looks like ordinary shopping can fail because of the merchant's category code, with no on-screen explanation.
• App-to-terminal compatibility issues. Not all UPI apps handle all foreign QR standards equally. Google Pay, PhonePe, Paytm and BHIM use different QR parsing logic. PhonePe has the most consistent reported performance internationally; Google Pay has more failures in UAE and Qatar specifically.
• Qatar merchant success rate ~55%. Even at merchants listed as UPI-accepting on NPCI's official Qatar list, approximately 55% of transactions succeed. This is likely due to intermittent gateway connectivity issues between QNB and NPCI International — an infrastructure problem that NPCI is working to resolve.
• No cross-border inbound general UPI. If a foreign business owes you a payment, they cannot send it to your UPI ID unless they are in Singapore (via PayNow) or in a country that has a specific inbound payment corridor, which only Singapore has as of August 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions