Empower your family and friends with UPI payments using UPI Circle

About UPI Circle

UPI Circle on Google Pay is an innovative feature designed to help your close trusted ones make digital payments without needing to link their own bank account. While UPI has undeniably simplified digital transactions for millions, there's still a segment of the population that relies on cash and/or is hesitant to use UPI, due to various reasons, including limited access to banking services.

Getting more Indians to pay safely for bills or shop offline and online by delegating to a trusted contact is the core ethos behind this innovation.

Reference list

  • Primary user: The person who pays on behalf of the Secondary user with their bank accounts
  • Secondary user: The person who requests the Primary user to make UPI payments on their behalf

How UPI Circle works

As an existing UPI user on Google Pay, a "Primary user" can now add family members or friends as "Secondary users" to their UPI Circle. A Primary user will now have an option for partial delegation where they'll have full control and will approve each payment request from their Secondary user.

How can Primary user add a Secondary user

To add a Secondary user:

  • Primary users must have an active bank account on Google Pay.
  • Secondary users must be in the Primary user’s saved contacts on their phone.
  • Secondary users must download the app and register on Google Pay with their phone number.
Step 1: Secondary user shows their QR code to Primary user to join UPI Circle
  1. Open the Google Pay app Google Pay.
  2. At the top right, tap Profile picture and then UPI Circle and then Join a UPI Circle.
    Dependant taps UPI Circle
    Secondary user taps Join a UPI Circle
  3. To join UPI Circle, show or share the QR code.
    Dependant shows or shares the QR code

A Secondary user can also show QR from their profile:

  1. Open the Google Pay app Google Pay.
  2. At the top right, tap Profile picture and then Your QR code and then Switch QR.

    Dependant taps Switch QR

    1. If the QR code isn’t eligible, you'll get a prompt to add a UPI ID.
    2. To add a QR code that works with delegation, tap Add UPI IDs & continue.
  3. To join UPI Circle, show or share the QR code with the Primary user.
    Dependant taps Add UPI IDs & continue Dependant shows QR code to Payer
Step 2: Open UPI Circle page
  1. Open the Google Pay app Google Pay.
  2. At the top right, tap Profile picture and then UPI Circle and then Add people to your UPI Circle.
    Dependant taps UPI Circle Tap Add people to your UPI Circle
Step 3: Scan the Secondary user’s QR code & verify contact
  1. Scan or upload Secondary user’s QR code that you received in the previous step.
    • To upload, tap Upload from Gallery.
      To upload a QR code, tap Upload from Gallery
  2. Confirm that the Secondary user is a trusted contact.
    1. Under "Phonebook," search for the Secondary user's name or number.
    2. Tap the Secondary user’s contact information.
    3. UPI confirms if the QR code and phone number are from the same person.
      Verify Dependant details
Step 4: Set up payment approval settings

After successful verification, the Primary user can choose partial delegation as an approval setting for the Secondary user. With this setting, the Primary user must approve each payment request from the Secondary user.

Setup approval settings Add as dependant

Step 5: Secondary user accepts invite

After you send an invite, the Secondary user must accept it within 30 minutes. They can accept it through an on-screen notification or in the Google Pay app.

Dependant must accept invite within 30 minutes

To accept the request, tap on the invite and then Join UPI Circle.

To accept the invite, tap Join UPI Circle Successful creation of the UPI Circle between between Payer and the Dependant
Payer shows under People paying for you

When the Secondary user accepts the invite, you'll get a notification about the successful creation of the UPI Circle between you and the Secondary user.

Notification about the successful creation of the UPI Circle on the phone's screen Notification about the successful creation of the UPI Circle in app's chat space
Dependant shows under People you pay for

Make payments with UPI Circle

Step 1: Secondary user sends payment request to the Primary user
  1. Scan the merchant’s QR code or search for a phone number.
    Scan QR code
  2. Enter the amount.
  3. Request the Primary user to pay.
    • Tip: To get faster approval from the Primary user, the Secondary user can leave a note about the details of the payment.
      Enter the amount and ask the Payer to pay
  4. In the UPI Circle page, after the request is sent, the Secondary user can track the status of the payment request.
    Payment status in Request sent Payment status in Request seen
Step 2: Primary user makes the payment on behalf of Secondary user

Important: The Primary user must accept the payment request within 10 minutes.

With a unique sound, the Primary user gets a notification for a payment request. To complete the payment:

  1. Open the request.
    • Unlock the screen with app lock.
      Payment notification shows on phone's screen Unlock the screen with app lock
  2. Tap Continue to pay.
    Tap Continue to pay
  3. Select a bank account.
  4. Tap Pay ₹{Amount}.
    Tap Pay
  5. Enter the UPI PIN.
    • If successful, the screen shows that the payment is complete.
      Enter UPI PIN Payment is successful

Remove a Secondary user from UPI Circle

  1. Open the Google Pay app Google Pay.
  2. At the top right, tap Profile picture and then UPI Circle.
  3. Under "You pay for," find the Secondary user to remove.
  4. Tap More More and then Remove.
    Remove a Dependant
  5. To confirm, tap Yes, Remove.
    Confirm removal of Dependant
  6. The screen shows that the Secondary user was removed from the Primary user’s UPI Circle.
    Dependant is successfully removed

Frequently asked questions

What is the payment limit for a Secondary user

The Primary user’s daily UPI limits also apply to the Secondary user's payments.

Is there a cool-off period after Primary user & Secondary user linked

When a new Secondary user is added, the cool-off period is 24 hours. Secondary users can only pay up to ₹5,000 in the first 24 hours. After that, the Primary user's daily UPI limit will apply to the Secondary users.

How many Secondary users can a Primary user add

A Primary user can add a maximum of 5 Secondary users.

Can a Secondary user be part of multiple UPI Circles

No, a Secondary user can only be part of one UPI Circle at a time.

How long is the validity of the Primary user’s invite

The invite is valid for 30 minutes. If the Secondary user doesn’t accept it within this time, the Primary user must start a new invite.

Who can remove a Primary user-Secondary user link from UPI Circle

Both the Primary user and Secondary users can remove each other or opt out from UPI Circle.

What are the supported payment methods for UPI Circle

To pay through QR scans, contacts, phone number, and UPI ID or number, UPI Circle can be used. Other types of payments like bill payments and mobile recharges will be available soon on UPI Circle.

How to track my UPI Circle payment

All UPI Circle payments are available on payment details, transaction history, and conversation pages.

What payment types aren’t supported by UPI Circle

Payments made on UPI Lite aren’t supported on UPI circle. Additionally, bill payments, recharges, and online merchant payments through shopping websites are also not yet supported. We will activate these payment options in the future.

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