# 0.4% UPI merchant fee on transactions above Rs 2,000 from Oct 15 2026-09-16T05:07:15+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet Merchants accepting UPI payments above Rs 2,000 will pay a 0.4% fee from October 15, under a framework cleared by the UPI & services steering committee headed by the National Payments Corporation of India. Person-to-person transfers remain exempt, and select categories will attract a flat Rs 5 fee regardless of the transaction amount. Separately, Tamil Nadu chief minister C Joseph Vijay's London event was called off after the Metropolitan Police cited safety concerns, leaving fans disappointed. Ride-booking app Rapido has been told by the Central Consumer Protection Authority to stop prompts that urge consumers to pay more while waiting for a ride. The Supreme Court has directed its five-member high-powered enquiry committee to probe the July protests by the Cockroach Janta Party, with the court itself deciding broader constitutional questions. Saudi Arabia warned the Houthis of a red line after a drone was shot down near Mecca. Tech giant Oracle carried out layoffs impacting around 2,500 people. Lionel Messi will play a farewell game for Argentina in a friendly against Benin in Buenos Aires on October 6. ## Indian Opinion Analysis The charge of 0.4% on UPI merchant transactions above Rs 2,000 is the first monetisation of the otherwise free payment system that has processed over 14,000 crore transactions in 2024 alone. The NPCI, a subsidiary of RBI and the commercial banks, had built UPI as a free alternative to debit card swipe fees. With UPI now dominant for retail digital payments, the steering committee's October 15 start date shifts costs from banks to merchants, who can absorb or pass them on. The exemption for person-to-person transfers and a flat Rs 5 fee for certain categories aims to limit the hit on small vendors. The next signal to watch is how quickly the major payment apps update their merchant interfaces and whether the government reviews the fee structure after the first quarter of implementation. ## Coverage - hindustantimes.com Tags: CCPA, Lionel Messi, NPCI, RBI, Supreme Court of India, UPI Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/0-4-upi-merchant-fee-on-transactions-above-rs-2000-from-oct-15/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/0-4-upi-merchant-fee-on-transactions-above-rs-2000-from-oct-15/#story-in-brief