The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has announced a significant change to the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) system. Starting October 1, 2025, the peer-to-peer (P2P) “collect request” feature will be removed from all UPI apps, including PhonePe, Google Pay, and Paytm.
Why the Change?
The “collect request” feature allowed users to send money requests to friends, family, or peers—often used for reminders, bill splits, or repayments. However, fraudsters increasingly exploited this option by posing as legitimate users or creating fake emergencies. Once victims accepted these requests, money was debited from their accounts instantly.
NPCI stated in its July 29 circular that discontinuing P2P collect transactions aims to strengthen user security and curb rising financial fraud cases. Although a cap of ₹2,000 per transaction was imposed earlier, it did not completely prevent scams.
How Users Will Pay Going Forward
After October 1, 2025, UPI users will no longer be able to send or receive money through the “collect” feature. Instead, transactions will have to be initiated manually by:
- Scanning a QR code
- Entering the recipient’s UPI ID or selecting their contact number
- Authorizing the transfer using a UPI PIN
This ensures that users have full control over outgoing payments and minimizes the risk of unauthorized debits.
What About Merchant Transactions?
The new rules will not affect merchant payments on platforms like Amazon, Flipkart, Swiggy, Zomato, and IRCTC. Businesses will still be able to generate collect requests for customers. However, users will need to explicitly approve these by entering their UPI PIN, keeping the final control in their hands.
Impact on Users
While the change may inconvenience some users accustomed to quick “collect” requests, it significantly reduces fraud risks. With UPI processing billions of transactions monthly, even small loopholes can have large-scale consequences. By tightening security, NPCI hopes to increase trust and safeguard digital payments further.
