Parliament clears Taxation Bill; no UPI charge for consumers

New Delhi: Parliament on Monday passed the Taxation and other Laws (Amendment) Bill, with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman making clear that the legislation does not impose any tax on UPI and the digital payment system will remain free.

The Bill, which was passed by the Lok Sabha last week, was returned by the Rajya Sabha with a voice vote after a brief discussion and reply by the Finance Minister.

The Bill does not propose any tax or transaction charge on UPI, she asserted.

“Will consumer pay any UPI charge – No. UPI has remained free for consumers since its launch and every Indian will continue to make this instant digital without paying any transaction charge,” Sitharaman said. The Bill also proposed to remove the linkage between the Payment and Settlement Systems Act and the Income Tax Act, and provide legal backing to the government to modify the zero-MDR framework of UPI and RuPay card transactions. At present, banks and payment system providers cannot directly or indirectly charge users for payments made through UPI and RuPay debit cards. The Bill proposes allowing the central government to decide, through notification, which electronic payment modes or transactions must remain free.