# UPI MDR Decision Pending, Merchants May Face Charges Above Rs 2,000 2026-08-06T21:51:01+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said any Merchant Discount Rate on UPI would apply to merchants, not customers. She added that no final decision has been taken. The proposed legal change would allow the government to notify charges on designated electronic payment systems, but would not itself impose MDR. RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra said the costs of sustaining payment infrastructure must be paid by someone and called discussions premature. Reports differ on the Bill’s status. ETBFSI says the UPI steering committee will decide after Parliament passes it, while Business Today reports that the Lok Sabha has already passed it. A proposal under discussion could charge 0.25% to 0.5% on payments above Rs 2,000 by large merchants. Times Now reports that such transactions may account for 5% of volume but 65% of value. UPI has operated under zero MDR since January 2020. ## Coverage - bfsi.economictimes.indiatimes.com - timesnownews.com - businesstoday.in - medianama.com Tags: digital payments, MDR, NPCI, RBI, UPI Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/sitharaman-says-any-upi-mdr-would-apply-only-to-merchants/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/sitharaman-says-any-upi-mdr-would-apply-only-to-merchants/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes.