UPI Transaction Limits in India: Per Payment, Per Day and by Category
Peneu Editorial Team · 28 September 2026 · 11 min read
Ask "what is the UPI limit?" and you'll get three different answers depending on who you ask, because there are really several limits stacked on top of each other. NPCI sets the ceilings for the UPI network as a whole. Your bank sets its own limits within those ceilings. And a few categories of merchant payment get a higher ceiling than everyone else.
The short version: most UPI payments, including money sent to another person, are capped at ₹1 lakh per transaction. Payments to verified merchants in certain categories, such as insurance, investments, tax, hospitals and education, can go up to ₹5 lakh. Recurring AutoPay debits have separate caps. The rest of this guide explains each limit, where it comes from, and what to do when a payment fails below the number you expected.
The limits at a glance
These are NPCI's network ceilings as of September 2026. Your bank can apply lower limits, and many do.
| Type of payment | Per transaction | Where the rule comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Sending money to a person (P2P) | ₹1 lakh | NPCI; unchanged by the 2025 revision for merchant categories |
| Ordinary merchant payment | ₹1 lakh | NPCI |
| Hospitals and educational institutions | ₹5 lakh | NPCI circular OC-185 (December 2023) |
| Tax payments | ₹5 lakh | NPCI circular OC-185A (August 2024) |
| Verified merchants in listed categories (insurance, capital markets, travel, collections and others) | ₹5 lakh, with a 24-hour cap | NPCI circular OC-185B (August 2025) |
| UPI AutoPay without authentication each time | ₹15,000 | RBI e-mandate directions |
| AutoPay for insurance premiums, mutual funds and credit card bills | ₹1 lakh | RBI e-mandate directions |
Four layers decide whether your payment goes through
When a UPI payment is declined for its amount, it's usually one of four checks, applied in roughly this order. Knowing which one stopped you tells you what to do next.
NPCI's August 2025 circular says this plainly: banks may set their own internal limits within the ceilings NPCI prescribes, and the issuing bank keeps control of cumulative limits for its customers. That's why two people paying the same amount to the same merchant can see different results. One bank allows the full ₹5 lakh; another stops at a lower figure.
- 1NPCI ceiling₹1 lakh by default; higher for set merchant categories
- 2Category rulesThe payee's merchant code and verified status unlock the higher ceiling
- 3Your bank's limitPer payment and per day, set within NPCI's ceiling
- 4Your appShows the error; it rarely sets the limit itself
The ₹1 lakh standard limit
For most UPI payments, NPCI's ceiling is ₹1 lakh per transaction. That covers sending money to friends and family, paying most shops and online merchants, and scanning a QR code at a counter.
The ₹1 lakh figure is a per-transaction ceiling. How much you can send in a day is a separate number set by your bank, and it covers all your UPI apps together, not each one separately. Moving to a different UPI app linked to the same bank account won't give you a fresh daily allowance.
Person-to-person payments stayed at ₹1 lakh even after NPCI raised limits for merchant categories in 2025. The circular that raised them says the P2P limit continues under the existing guidelines.
Where ₹5 lakh applies
NPCI raised the ceiling for particular kinds of payment in three steps.
In December 2023, circular OC-185 raised the limit for payments to hospitals and educational institutions to ₹5 lakh per transaction. In August 2024, circular OC-185A did the same for tax payments. Then in August 2025, circular OC-185B raised limits for a longer list of categories, for payments to merchants that the payee's bank has verified. Banks had to comply by 15 September 2025.
| Category | Per transaction | Total in 24 hours |
|---|---|---|
| Capital markets | ₹5 lakh | ₹10 lakh |
| Insurance | ₹5 lakh | ₹10 lakh |
| Government e-Marketplace: earnest money deposits | ₹5 lakh | ₹10 lakh |
| Travel | ₹5 lakh | ₹10 lakh |
| Credit card bill payments | ₹5 lakh | ₹6 lakh |
| Collections | ₹5 lakh | ₹10 lakh |
| Business and merchant payments, including pre-approved ones | ₹5 lakh | Not specified in the circular |
| Jewellery | ₹2 lakh | ₹6 lakh |
| Foreign exchange retail, through BBPS | ₹5 lakh | ₹5 lakh |
| Digital account opening: term deposits | ₹5 lakh | ₹5 lakh |
| Digital account opening: initial funding | ₹2 lakh | ₹2 lakh |
UPI AutoPay has its own caps
Recurring payments through UPI AutoPay follow RBI's rules for e-mandates, not the one-off limits above. The Reserve Bank's e-mandate directions of April 2026 let a recurring debit go through without you entering your UPI PIN each time up to ₹15,000 per transaction. For insurance premiums, mutual fund subscriptions and credit card bills, that figure is ₹1 lakh.
Above those amounts, you'll be asked to authenticate each debit. Either way, you get a notice at least 24 hours before each debit and can opt out of that particular payment. If you want to stop a mandate altogether, our guide on how to cancel UPI AutoPay walks through it.
Why a payment fails below the limit
If your payment is well under ₹1 lakh and still declined for its amount, look at these first:
- Your bank's daily limit. It counts every UPI payment you've made that day, from every app. A ₹40,000 payment fails if you've already sent ₹70,000 today and your bank's daily limit is ₹1 lakh.
- Your bank's per-payment limit is lower than NPCI's. Some banks set lower limits for certain account types. Your bank's website or app lists its UPI limits.
- The merchant isn't set up for the higher category. You're paying a hospital ₹2 lakh, but its UPI ID was onboarded under a generic code, so the ₹1 lakh ceiling applies.
- The recipient's bank declined it. Limits and risk checks apply on the receiving side too, and the error you see may not say which side declined it.
- It isn't a limit at all. A technical decline or a timeout can look like a limit error in some apps. If money left your account and the payment shows failed, our guide on money debited but transaction failed covers the reversal timelines.
Three worked examples
The same rules give different answers depending on who you're paying and how.
- Paying a college fee of ₹2.4 lakh to a university's UPI ID. Educational institutions have a ₹5 lakh ceiling, so NPCI allows it. Whether it goes through depends on your bank's own limit and on the university being set up with the right merchant code. If it fails, ask the university for its bank transfer details instead.
- Sending ₹1.5 lakh to a relative. Person-to-person UPI is capped at ₹1 lakh per payment, and your bank's daily limit may stop a second payment on the same day. For this amount, a NEFT or IMPS transfer from your bank is the practical choice.
- Paying a ₹5.5 lakh insurance premium. That's above the ₹5 lakh ceiling for a single transaction even with a verified insurer. You could split it into two payments within the insurer's ₹10 lakh daily cap, if the insurer accepts part-payments and your bank's daily limit allows it. Otherwise, pay by net banking or a bank transfer.
When UPI isn't the right rail
UPI is built for everyday amounts. For larger payments, bank transfers have wider limits, and RBI publishes them.
NEFT and RTGS both run round the clock, all year. For a side-by-side view of speed, cost and limits across rails, see India's payment rails compared.
| Amount | Usually the simplest option | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Up to ₹1 lakh | UPI | Instant, and within the standard ceiling |
| ₹1 lakh to ₹5 lakh, to a verified merchant in a listed category | UPI, if your bank allows it | The higher category ceiling applies |
| ₹1 lakh to ₹2 lakh, to a person | NEFT or IMPS | Above UPI's P2P ceiling, below RTGS's minimum |
| ₹2 lakh and above | RTGS or NEFT | RTGS has a ₹2 lakh minimum and no maximum; RBI sets no NEFT limit |
If you're a merchant taking large UPI payments
If your customers regularly pay more than ₹1 lakh, the limits above become your problem as well as theirs. Three things are worth checking with your bank or payment provider:
Cost changes too. From 15 October 2026, UPI merchant payments above ₹2,000 carry an MDR of 0.4%, capped at ₹300 per payment. Our MDR explainer has the details, and the UPI and QR guide covers how UPI collection works on the merchant side.
- Your merchant category code. The higher limits are tied to the category, so an insurer, hospital, school or broker onboarded under a generic code loses them.
- Your verified status. NPCI's 2025 limits apply to verified merchants. Ask your provider whether your UPI ID qualifies.
- A fallback for amounts above the limit. Offer net banking, cards or a bank transfer to a virtual account for payments UPI can't carry, so the customer doesn't hit a dead end at checkout.
Quick answers
A few questions come up again and again:
- Is the UPI limit per app or per bank account? Per bank account, set by your bank. Using two apps doesn't double it.
- Does the ₹5 lakh limit apply when I pay a friend? No. Payments to a person stay at ₹1 lakh.
- Can my bank set a limit lower than ₹1 lakh? Yes. NPCI's figures are ceilings, and banks can set internal limits within them.
- Where do I find my bank's limit? On your bank's website or in its app, usually under UPI or digital payment limits. Your UPI app's help section may also show it.
Go deeper
Official sources
- NPCI — Revision of transaction limits for specific categories in UPI, NPCI/UPI/2025-26/OC/185B (28 Aug 2025)Category-wise per-transaction and 24-hour limits for verified merchants; compliance by 15 Sep 2025; banks may set internal limits within the ceilings; P2P unchanged.
- NPCI — UPI circulars OC-185 (Dec 2023) and OC-185A (Aug 2024)₹5 lakh per transaction for hospitals and educational institutions, and for tax payments.
- RBI — Digital Payments – E-mandate Framework, 2026 (21 Apr 2026)₹15,000 per recurring transaction without AFA; ₹1 lakh for insurance premiums, mutual funds and credit card bills; 24-hour pre-debit notice.
- RBI — FAQs on RTGS₹2 lakh minimum, no maximum; available 24x7x365 since 14 Dec 2020.
- RBI — FAQs on NEFTNo limit imposed by RBI; banks may set their own; available 24x7x365.
- NPCI — Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) on Select UPI (P2M) Transactions: FAQs (15 Sep 2026)0.4% MDR above ₹2,000 from 15 Oct 2026, capped at ₹300.
Last reviewed . Examples, amounts and screens marked illustrative are not Peneu figures.
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