NIPL to strengthen Nepal-India payments with UPI-NPI real-time transfers

KATHMANDU: NPCI International Payments (NIPL), the international arm of the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), has reiterated its commitment to strengthening digital payment connectivity between India and Nepal through cross-border payment systems. The announcement highlights a recent remittance linkage that enables real-time person-to-person (P2P) transfers.

The remittance linkage between India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and Nepal’s National Payments Interface (NPI) allows two-way, real-time P2P transfers and complements growing adoption of QR-code-based UPI payments in Nepal by Indian travellers.

UPI, India’s real-time, account-to-account payment system, processes over 23 billion financial transactions monthly and accounts for nearly 50% of global real-time payments, according to the International Monetary Fund. Its open and interoperable architecture allows integration with Nepal’s domestic payment infrastructure for both merchant QR acceptance and P2P remittances.

The UPI–NPI linkage, implemented with Nepal Clearing House Ltd. (NCHL), supports transfers using a recipient’s mobile number or virtual payment address (VPA) from India to Nepal, while Indian users in Nepal can transfer money back to India using UPI IDs. The process removes the need to share sensitive bank account details, offering a simplified and secure payment experience for families relying on cross-border remittances.

India remains a major source of tourist arrivals into Nepal, recording over 290,000 visitors in 2025 travelling for leisure, pilgrimage, trade and family visits. UPI acceptance enables travellers to complete instant payments at merchant outlets across Nepal, including tourist destinations and pilgrimage sites such as Chandragiri Hills, Manakamana Temple and Pashupatinath Temple, reducing reliance on physical currency. Merchants acquired through the Fonepay network are equipped to accept UPI payments across retail, hospitality and everyday commerce.

In addition to convenience for travellers, UPI integration offers merchants in Nepal access to a digital customer base, facilitating faster payment processing, improved cash flow management, and reduced reliance on cash.

Ritesh Shukla, MD and CEO of NPCI International, said, “At NPCI International, we are focused on enabling seamless cross-border payment experiences that enhance connectivity and convenience for people and businesses. In Nepal, our efforts aim to expand digital payment acceptance, simplify transactions for Indian travellers, and enable faster, more affordable remittances for families across the India–Nepal corridor. Together with Fonepay and NCHL, we are driving secure, real-time payment solutions that strengthen economic linkages and deepen the longstanding people-to-people ties between India and Nepal.”

NIPL plans to continue collaborating with regulators and ecosystem partners in Nepal to expand UPI usage, enhance cross-border payment experiences and extend the P2P remittance linkage to more banks.