Indians can now use UPI for payments in Uzbekistan

The NPCI International (NPIL) has paved the way for Indian tourists, business travellers and students to use UPI for making instant cross-border merchant payments by scanning Uzbekistan’s national interoperable QR code, UZQR, according to a Finance Ministry statement issued on Aug 31.

The NIPL, the international arm of the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), entered into a commercial agreement with the National Interbank Processing Centre JSC (NIPC), operator of Uzbekistan’s national payment system, HUMO, on Aug 30, marking a significant step in expanding UPI’s international footprint, the statement said.

The partnership enables Indian travellers to scan Uzbekistan’s national interoperable QR code UZQR using their familiar UPI-enabled applications to make instant merchant payments across the country.

The announcement was made during the bilateral visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Uzbekistan. The execution of the agreement follows formal approvals from financial regulators, including the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Central Bank of Uzbekistan (CBU), which designated HUMO as the NIPL’s authorised partner for cross-border merchant acceptance.

By integrating with CBU’s mandated Unified National QR infrastructure, UPI users gain near-universal acceptance across retail, hospitality, and service merchants in Uzbekistan.

Indian tourists, business travellers, and students can make direct person-to-merchant (P2M) payments from their Indian bank accounts, eliminating foreign exchange markup friction and reducing reliance on international cards or cash.

The initiative advances digital public infrastructure cooperation and aligns with both nations' broader strategic and economic goals.

The Maldives became the ninth country last month to announce the successful go-live of the integration between the Maldives Instant Payment System, ‘Favara’, and India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI).

The new service has kicked in, enabling individuals in the Maldives to transfer funds using Favara to beneficiaries in India in real time. Transactions are initiated in Maldivian Rufiyaa (MVR) and credited to recipients in Indian Rupees (INR) through UPI.

UPI is now accepted in 10 countries including Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, France, Mauritius, Nepal, Bhutan, Qatar, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, and Greece, enabling Indian travellers to make seamless payments abroad, the statement added.

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