NPCI Introduces New UPI Guidelines Effective From February 1 | Details Inside

The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), a public sector entity managing retail payments and settlement systems, has issued fresh guidelines for Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions, set to take effect from 1st February 2025.

Special Characters to Be Blacklisted in UPI IDs

Under the new regulation, UPI IDs containing special characters such as #, @, $, or *** will be blacklisted. Users must ensure their UPI IDs comply with these new rules to avoid disruptions.

A circular issued by NPCI on 9th January instructed UPI ecosystem participants to restrict transaction IDs to alphanumeric characters only. This measure aims to ensure compliance with UPI's technical specifications.

"Considering the criticality of compliance with the specifications, it has been decided not to allow any special characters in the UPI transaction ID. Any transaction with an ID containing special characters shall be declined by the central system. This shall be effective 1st February 2025," the circular stated.

"All participating entities are advised to take note of the above and ensure compliance. The information herein may please be disseminated to all the concerned for necessary action."

What Are Special Characters?

Special characters refer to any symbols outside the standard English alphabet (A-Z) and numerals (0-9). These include punctuation marks, accent marks, and other symbols.

UPI's Dominance in India's Digital Payment Ecosystem

UPI has witnessed tremendous growth in India's digital payments landscape, with its share surging from 34% in 2019 to an impressive 83% in 2024. This equates to a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 74% over five years, according to the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) payment system report.

Conversely, the share of other payment systems such as RTGS, NEFT, IMPS, credit cards, and debit cards has declined from 66% to 17% in the same period.

UPI's convenience and widespread adoption have been key drivers of this surge, as highlighted in the report.

On a macroeconomic level, UPI transaction volumes have skyrocketed from 375 crore in 2018 to 17,221 crore in 2024, while the total transaction value has surged from ₹5.86 lakh crore in 2018 to ₹246.83 lakh crore in 2024.