UPI Now Accepted in Qatar, Qatar Duty Free Becomes First Merchant
Unified Payments Interface (UPI), India’s fastest-growing digital payment system, has officially entered Qatar, marking a significant milestone in cross-border financial transactions. Qatar Duty Free has become the first merchant to enable UPI acceptance, a move set to revolutionize how Indian tourists shop and travel in the Gulf nation.
This initiative has been made possible by the collaboration between NPCI International Payments Ltd (a subsidiary of the National Payments Corporation of India), Qatar National Bank (QNB), and NETSTARS’ payment solution. Through this partnership, Indian travellers can now make instant QR code-based UPI payments at point-of-sale terminals across Qatar.
According to NPCI, Indians are the second-largest group of international visitors to Qatar, making this development particularly beneficial. Travellers can now enjoy cashless convenience, avoiding the hassle of carrying physical currency or dealing with exchange rates.
For Qatar’s economy, this move is equally promising. By integrating UPI, merchants across the retail and tourism sectors stand to gain from increased transaction volumes and customer satisfaction. As more outlets adopt UPI, local businesses can scale their operations while attracting Indian travellers with seamless digital payment options.
Ritesh Shukla, MD & CEO of NPCI International, emphasized that this step is part of a larger vision to build a truly interoperable global payment ecosystem. “We aim to enhance the acceptance of UPI globally and create a seamless cross-border payment experience,” he said.
Echoing this sentiment, Yousef Mahmoud Al-Neama, Group Chief Business Officer of QNB, highlighted the mutual benefits of the move. “This milestone enhances convenience for Indian travellers while promoting cashless transactions, boosting retail and tourism sectors, and strengthening interoperability in the payments ecosystem,” he said.
The introduction of UPI in Qatar aligns with India’s broader goal of expanding its digital footprint globally. For millions of Indian tourists who visit Qatar annually, this development ensures safe, fast, and secure digital payments, reinforcing UPI as a leader in financial innovation.
As UPI acceptance expands further in Qatar, it is expected to become a preferred payment method for Indian travellers, strengthening economic ties while advancing digital transformation worldwide.
