Mumbai: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Tuesday issued Consolidated Digital Payments e-mandate framework setting a threshold of ₹15,000 per transaction for recurring payments without the need for additional factor authentication (AFA) such as One Time Password (OTP). However, payment of insurance premiums, subscription to mutual funds, and credit card bill payments may be made without AFA up to ₹ one lakh per transaction.
A customer desirous of opting for e-mandate facility for routine expenses such as OTT subscriptions, utility bills, EMIs, and memberships has to undertake a one-time registration process. The mandate shall be registered only after successful validation of AFA, in addition to the normal process required by the issuer. Once approved, subsequent recurring payments up to ₹15,000 can be processed automatically without requiring OTP each time. Transactions above this limit will however continue to require authentication.
These directions called the “Digital Payments – E-mandate Framework, 2026” shall be effective immediately and its provisions shall be applicable to all Payment System Providers and Payment System Participants in respect of processing of recurring transactions, domestic or cross-border, using cards / Prepaid payment Instruments (PPI) / Unified payment Interface (UPI). The changes in instructions on e-mandates were based on feedback from stakeholders, the RBI said.
Every e-mandate registered by the issuer shall specify the validity period of the e-mandate, issuers have to provide customers with a facility to modify the validity period or withdraw the e-mandate at any point of time. The e-mandate may be for either a pre-specified fixed amount or for a variable amount subject to the overall cap fixed by the RBI. In the case of variable e-mandates, the issuer shall provide the customer with a facility to specify the maximum value of any recurring transaction. Any modification in, or withdrawal of, an existing e-mandate shall require AFA validation by the issuer.
The norms require pre-transaction notifications at least 24 hours before debit and post-transaction alerts with detailed information. The directions also ensure free e-mandate registration, robust grievance redressal, and customer liability protection. Existing guidelines stand repealed, creating a unified regulatory framework for recurring digital payments.
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