Face ID for UPI payments? NPCI planning a biometric upgrade for UPI payments

UPI payments in India may soon get a major upgrade, with Face ID and fingerprint authentication potentially replacing traditional PINs. The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) is reportedly working on enabling biometric verification for UPI transactions, which would allow users to authenticate payments using facial recognition or fingerprints, much like unlocking a smartphone.

Currently, UPI apps such as Google Pay, PhonePe, Paytm, and BHIM require users to enter a 4-digit or 6-digit PIN to approve payments. While this provides an essential security layer, the upcoming biometric option aims to make transactions faster and more user-friendly, particularly for senior citizens or users in rural areas who may find PIN-based systems difficult to navigate.

The feature is still under development and will likely be introduced as an optional setting, giving users the choice between biometric and PIN-based verification. If implemented, the system would rely on device-level biometric capabilities, such as Face ID or fingerprint sensors, which are already widely used for unlocking phones and authorising app access.

This move comes amid growing concerns about PIN theft and digital payment fraud, as well as the need to streamline UPI use as it continues to dominate India’s digital payments space, accounting for over 80% of all digital transactions.

In addition to biometric advancements, NPCI will roll out new UPI rules starting 1 August:

• Balance display: After every successful transaction, users will automatically see their updated account balance.
• Balance check limit: Manual balance inquiries will now be limited to 50 per day per app.
• Scheduled payments: Auto-debits such as EMIs, OTT subscriptions, and SIPs will now be processed during off-peak hours—before 10 AM or after 9:30 PM—to reduce server load.
• Bank detail retrieval: Users will only be able to fetch linked bank account details 25 times a day.
• Pending transaction checks: Status checks for pending transactions will be limited to three attempts, with a 90-second gap between each.

Together, these changes mark a significant shift in how digital payments are managed and authenticated in India, potentially making UPI not just more secure, but also more accessible.