Beginning in February 2025, UPI payments that contain the characters "#, @, or $" in their IDs will be rejected.
This update coincides with UPI's rise to prominence as India's primary digital payment method. UPI's percentage of digital payments increased from 34% in 2019 to 83% in 2024, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 74% over the course of five years, according to the RBI's payment system report.
Starting February 1, 2025, a regular UPI payment may not be processed—not because there is not enough funds, but rather because of an unforeseen limit. The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has released new guidelines that will reject any transaction ID that contains special characters like #, @, $, or *. This modification will affect all UPI apps and require adherence to a more stringent transaction ID format.
