By Naraway
In this article
On an average day in September 2026, Indians made about 802 million UPI payments. For an overseas business, collecting even one of them is a different exercise from collecting a card payment in London or Dubai.
Three rules decide how it works: who is allowed to move the money across the border, how much one transaction can carry, and what a recurring payment needs before a bank will honour it.
Sources: NPCI via DD India; RBI via JSA and IANS.
Who Can Move the Money
Since RBI's framework of 31 October 2023, any company that processes cross-border payments for imports and exports, called a payment aggregator-cross border or PA-CB, needs RBI authorisation. Existing providers had to apply by 30 April 2024 and must hold a net worth of Rs 25 crore by 31 March 2026.
Razorpay and Cashfree have received PA-CB licences, and Payoneer India in-principle approval. For an overseas seller, the practical effect is a shorter list of providers that can legally settle Indian payments abroad, each with its own onboarding checks.
The Rs 25 Lakh Cap
Payments through a PA-CB are capped at Rs 25 lakh per unit of goods or services. Most consumer apps never come near it. Enterprise software licences, equipment and annual contracts sometimes do, and for those the route usually changes from an aggregator to a bank transfer with its own paperwork.
Why Indian Subscriptions Fail
In 2021, RBI's e-mandate rules required cardholders to approve the first recurring payment with an extra authentication step, and capped automatic later debits at Rs 5,000. Subscriptions not set up as registered mandates were declined, and international services were among the worst hit. RBI raised the limit to Rs 15,000 in June 2022.
The consolidated rules RBI issued in April 2026 keep that structure and bring cross-border recurring payments explicitly within it:
| Recurring card payment | Rule |
|---|---|
| First payment under a mandate | Always needs additional authentication |
| Later payments up to Rs 15,000 | Automatic, no OTP |
| Later payments above Rs 15,000 | Authentication each time |
| Insurance, mutual funds, credit card bills | Automatic up to Rs 1 lakh |
Sources: Moneylife (June 2022); IANS (April 2026).
For a subscription business, these rules decide the renewal rate as much as the product does. A checkout that does not register the mandate properly loses customers silently at the first renewal.
Payments Are Now Linked to Tax
In 2025, India's GST intelligence directorate was reported to be pressing Razorpay, Cashfree and Pine Labs to block payments to foreign companies selling online services in India without GST registration, and gathering transaction data from banks and RBI. A payment route that works today can be cut off if the tax registration behind it is missing.
Why It Is Worth Solving
UPI volumes grew from about 6.8 billion transactions in September 2022 to 24.07 billion in September 2026. Indian customers are already used to paying for digital services every month. The friction sits on the seller's side of the border.
Which provider fits, whether to collect in rupees or dollars, how mandates should be set up for each plan, and when an Indian entity starts to pay for itself depend on the product, the ticket size and the customer mix. Getting that wrong rarely shows up as an error. It shows up as payments that never arrive.
Part of Naraway's research series India Market Entry in 2026.
In short
Overseas businesses collect payments from Indian customers through RBI-authorised cross-border payment aggregators (PA-CB), which can process up to Rs 25 lakh per unit of goods or services. Card subscriptions follow RBI's e-mandate rules: the first payment needs extra authentication, and later automatic debits run without an OTP only up to Rs 15,000. Payments to sellers that should be registered for Indian GST but are not are increasingly being scrutinised at the processor level.
- UPI processed 24.07 billion payments in September 2026, about 802 million a day.
- Cross-border payment aggregators must be RBI-authorised; the cap is Rs 25 lakh per unit of goods or services.
- Recurring card payments above Rs 15,000 need authentication each time; the first one always does.
- The 2021 version of the rule capped automatic debits at Rs 5,000 and disrupted international subscriptions.
- Razorpay, Cashfree and Payoneer India are among providers with cross-border approvals.
Sources
- UPI transactions surge 23% to 24.07 billion in September: NPCI, DD India
- RBI's new guidelines to govern payment aggregators in cross-border transactions, JSA
- RBI tightens e-mandate rules, makes extra authentication mandatory for recurring payments above Rs 15,000, IANS
- RBI hikes e-mandate limit for recurring payments to Rs 15,000, Moneylife
- Cashfree Payments gets payment aggregator-cross border licence from RBI, Business Standard
- India targets global digital firms for GST compliance, Angel One
Frequently Asked Questions
How can a foreign business accept payments from customers in India?
Through an RBI-authorised cross-border payment aggregator (PA-CB), or by setting up an Indian entity that collects in rupees through a domestic payment aggregator.
Is there a limit on payments collected from India by foreign sellers?
Payments processed through cross-border payment aggregators are capped at Rs 25 lakh per unit of goods or services.
Why do Indian card subscriptions fail?
RBI's e-mandate rules require extra authentication for the first recurring payment and for any later automatic debit above Rs 15,000. Subscriptions not set up as registered e-mandates are declined.
Can foreign businesses accept UPI?
UPI acceptance usually needs an Indian payment aggregator or cross-border provider that supports it; availability for overseas merchants depends on the provider.
What is the e-mandate limit for recurring payments in India?
Rs 15,000 per transaction without additional authentication, and Rs 1 lakh for categories such as insurance premiums, mutual fund investments and credit card bills.
