Imagine being able to make a UPI payment even when your phone has no internet connection.
Whether you’re on a flight, travelling in an underground metro, or in a remote area with poor network, you may soon be able to pay with just a tap.
The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) is working on a new offline ‘Tap to Pay’ UPI feature that uses NFC (Near Field Communication) technology.
The feature is expected to make digital payments faster and more convenient, even without internet access.
How Will the New Tap to Pay Feature Work?
To use the offline payment feature, users will first need to add money to their UPI Lite wallet while connected to the internet.
After that, making a payment will be simple:
Visit a shop with an NFC-enabled PoS (swipe) machine.
Enter the payment amount on your phone.
Tap your NFC-enabled phone on the payment machine.
No internet connection or UPI PIN will be required.
The payment machine will temporarily store the transaction details.
Once the phone or the PoS machine reconnects to the internet, the payment information will be sent to the bank, and the transaction will be completed.
Maximum Payment Limit Set at ₹2,000
According to reports, NPCI could begin certifying offline UPI-compatible PoS machines from 2026.
To ensure security, the maximum payment allowed through this feature will be ₹2,000 per transaction.
Currently, offline UPI payments are limited to ₹500, so the new system will significantly increase the spending limit.
Banks and popular UPI apps such as Paytm and Google Pay are also working on adding this feature to their platforms.
Who Will Benefit the Most?
This feature is expected to be especially useful for people who frequently face network issues.
It can help users make payments in places such as:
Airplanes
Underground metro stations
Remote villages or hilly regions
Areas with weak or no mobile network
It may also serve as a useful alternative in situations where credit or debit card usage is restricted during flights.
With UPI recording more than 22.72 billion transactions in June 2026, this new feature could make digital payments even more convenient for millions of users.
How Is It Different from Regular UPI?
The new Tap to Pay feature works differently from the UPI system people use today.
With regular UPI, users need to:
Scan a QR code or enter a UPI ID.
Have an active internet connection.
Enter a UPI PIN or use biometric authentication to complete the payment.
With the new offline feature:
Money must already be available in the UPI Lite wallet.
Your smartphone must support NFC technology.
There is no need to scan a QR code, use the internet, or enter a UPI PIN for each transaction.
Instead, users simply enter the payment amount, tap their phone on the PoS machine, and the payment is processed.
If launched as planned, NPCI’s offline Tap to Pay feature could make UPI payments possible even in places where internet connectivity is unavailable, making digital transactions faster, simpler, and more reliable.
