NPCI’s New API Guidelines May Limit UPI Transactions Starting August 1

UPI Policy Alterations: From August 1, 2025, the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) system is likely to undergo changes to reduce the risk of outages, and systems overload. According to an official circular, the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) will roll out fresh Application Programming Interface (API) usage rules for all banks and payment apps.

Reportedly, NPCI has directed banks and payment service providers (PSPs) to limit the use of 10 pertinent Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) on the UPI network by July 31 this year. These alterations are aimed at making the system more secure and efficient, however users might face certain restrictions.

Upcoming UPI Rule Changes: How Will It Effect Google Pay, Paytm Users? 

Balance Enquiry: This will be now capped at 50 checks per app for each user every day. What this translates into for someone active across UPI applications like Google Pay, and Paytm is that they'll have to undergo 50 balance enquires on each app.

Transaction status checks: Banks and applications will have to wait for a minimum of 90 seconds before transaction status after authentication. Meanwhile, 3 status checks are allowed within a 2-hour timeline per transaction. Under the new guidelines, PSPs should check transaction status only after a certain time delay.

Account list access limited to 25 times: The UPI users will be able to check which bank accounts are linked to their mobile number only 25 times a day per app. This request will work only if the user selects their bank and gives consent.

Banks and apps must adhere: The National Payments Corporation of India has directed all banks and payment service providers (PSPs)—like Paytm, PhonePe, and others—to monitor its API usage. Violators may face penalties, usage restrictions, or even a ban on onboarding new users. All PSPs must also submit a system audit undertaking by August 31, 2025.

These alterations are expected to improve system stability and security.