On Friday, the Reserve Bank of India issued rules enabling tourists traveling from nations part of the G20 to use the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) on their mobile devices to purchase in India.

The Unified Payments Interface (UPI) is a system that integrates a number of banking services, streamlined fund routing, and payments for merchants into a single mobile application.

The RBI stated on Wednesday regarding extending access to UPI to NRIs and foreign visitors to India.

Initially, G20 travelers could use the service at a few international airports for merchant payments (P2M). All national admission points will offer it later.

In accordance with a government circular, "Banks/ Non-banks allowed to issue PPIs can issue INR denominated full-KYC PPIs to foreign citizens / NRIs visiting India (to start with, this service would be offered to travelers from the G-20 countries, landing at certain international airports)."

The circular allows FEMA-authorized foreign exchange companies to issue these prepaid payment instruments (PPIs).

PPIs can be issued in UPI wallets and only be used for merchant payments (P2M). Directives take effect immediately.

It also said that PPIs would be provided after physical scrutiny of clients' passports and visas at issuance.

According to the RBI, the loading and reloading of these PPIs must be done in exchange for receiving foreign currency in cash or through another form of payment.

Also Read: On December 1, RBI will launch its first retail digital rupee pilot.

With these PPIs, funds can be sent "back to the source," or unused balances can be cashed out in foreign currencies.

The G20, or Group of 20, is an intergovernmental gathering of the world's top developed and emerging economies.

This organization is comprised of Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the European Union (EU).

UPI payment transactions in January increased by 1.3% month over month to a new high of over Rs. 13 lakh crore.