To enhance digital payment security, the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) will deactivate UPI IDs that have remained inactive for over a year. This significant change impacts all banks and popular third-party apps like Google Pay and PhonePe. Starting January 1st, they will block any UPI ID that has not had a transaction in the past year.

What to know: Under the new NPCI guidelines, banks and third-party apps are tasked with identifying these dormant accounts. They will check both the UPI ID and the linked mobile number. If your account hasn’t recorded any credit or debit activity, it’s on the chopping block. Users of these IDs will find themselves unable to transact from the new year.

Banks and apps have a deadline of December 31 to spot these inactive IDs. Expect a heads-up from your bank, either via email or text message, before your UPI ID gets deactivated.

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Why it matters? This initiative by NPCI aims to curb the risk of money landing in the wrong hands. It’s a response to the rising incidents of misdirected transactions. Often, people change their mobile numbers and forget to update their UPI IDs.

The old number, now in someone else’s hands, still links to the previous owner’s UPI ID, raising the chances of transaction errors. NPCI’s latest guidelines are a step towards preventing such mix-ups and enhancing the security of digital transactions.

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