Key Highlights

• NPCI halves UPI response times: status checks/reversals now 10 s, address validation 10 s—speed up payments.
• System update completes today; further August rollout to enforce balance-check limits, autopay retry rules during peak hours.

The popular UPI (Unified Payments Interface) platform is about to become much faster and more efficient. Starting today, June 16, users can expect their transactions to be processed in nearly half the time, with additional system upgrades planned for August to improve security and reduce congestion during peak hours.

The speed upgrade starts today

To cut down on the amount of time needed to finish UPI transactions, the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has started a system-wide upgrade. All member banks and payment platforms, such as PhonePe, Google Pay, and Paytm, have been asked to update their systems in order to meet stricter response times, per a circular dated April 26, 2025.

Fund transfers, status checks, and reversals—transactions that previously took 30 seconds or longer—now only take 10 to 15 seconds. Additionally, it will now only take 10 seconds instead of the previous 15 seconds to verify UPI handles like mobile numbers or UPI IDs.

It is anticipated that these improvements will greatly cut down on digital payment delays, especially during periods of high traffic.

More User-Friendly Changes Coming in August

The improvements do not end with faster transactions. According to a second NPCI circular issued on May 21, several new features will be released in August to improve the user experience and reduce system load.

Balance Enquiries: Users can check their bank account balances up to 50 times per day using UPI.

Linked Account View: A daily limit of 25 linked accounts will be enforced.

Autopay Mandate Rules: Only one attempt and up to three retries are permitted per automatic payment mandate. Notably, retries will be limited to off-peak hours.

These changes are intended to improve system performance and reduce unnecessary network strain during busy transaction periods.

Also Read: SEBI Introduces New Tool to Authenticate UPI Addresses for Payments

Managing Peak Hour Pressures

The official peak hours for UPI, as determined by NPCI, are from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and from 5:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. The changes must be implemented by July 31, 2025, according to instructions given to all participating banks and payment platforms.

The objective is to create a digital payment infrastructure that is quicker, more intelligent, and more dependable. The NPCI wants to give India's rapidly growing digital user base a more seamless and dependable UPI experience by implementing stricter controls and response benchmarks.

These improvements are seen as essential measures to future-proof the UPI ecosystem as digital transactions continue to increase.