UPI 123PAY: Uses, Benefits and Methods of Payment

Not everyone has a smartphone or steady mobile data, yet everyone needs to pay bills and send money. UPI 123 Pay solves that by letting you make UPI payments from a basic feature phone. It needs only a bank account, a debit card and a normal phone signal, and no internet at all. Once you register, paying is as simple as making a call. Here you will find how to set it up, the four ways to pay, its benefits and how to keep every payment safe.

What Is UPI 123PAY?

UPI 123PAY is a way to make UPI payments from a feature phone, without a smartphone and without an internet connection. NPCI launched UPI 123PAY in 2022 for feature phone owners and for people who struggle with patchy mobile data.

It works on the same Unified Payments Interface that smartphone apps use. The difference is the route your payment takes. Instead of an app talking to your bank over mobile data, you place a call, give a missed call, use a payment app built into the phone, or use a sound signal at the counter.

Your money still moves straight from your bank account to the other person or business. Every payment is approved with your UPI PIN, so nothing leaves your account without it.

Is UPI 123 Pay the Same as UPI123Pay?

Yes. UPI 123 Pay, UPI123Pay, UPI 123pay and UPI 123 are all names people use for the same NPCI service. The official spelling is UPI 123PAY, but your bank may write it differently on its notices.

Who Can Use UPI 123PAY and What Do You Need?

Anyone with a bank account and a feature phone can use UPI 123PAY. It also helps smartphone owners in areas where the data signal keeps dropping.

Before you start, keep these ready. Missing even one is the most common reason registration stops halfway.

• A bank account: It must be with a bank that supports UPI 123PAY.
• A mobile number registered with that bank: The bank sends your OTP to this number, so the SIM must be in the phone you are using.
• An active debit card: You need its last six digits and its expiry date to verify yourself.
• A normal voice and SMS signal: No mobile data is needed at any point.

Keep the debit card in hand rather than reading the digits from memory. A wrong expiry date simply ends the session, and you have to begin again.

How Do You Set Up UPI 123PAY on a Feature Phone?

You register once by creating your UPI ID and setting a UPI PIN. After that, every payment method on this page uses the same PIN.

1. Dial the USSD code star 99 hash on your phone, pressing the star key, then 99, then the hash key, and choose your bank from the menu.
2. Enter the last six digits of your debit card along with its expiry date.
3. Enter the OTP your bank sends by SMS and set a 4 to 6 digit UPI PIN.
4. Wait for the confirmation message. Your UPI account is active from that same day.

Choose a PIN you can remember without writing it down. You will be asked for it before every single payment.

Why Does the Bank Ask for Your Debit Card Details?

The last six digits and the expiry date prove that you own the account you are linking. Your bank checks them against its own records before it lets you set a UPI PIN.

If you have no debit card, or yours has expired, ask your bank branch for a new one first. Registration through these steps cannot finish without it.

How Do You Pay Using UPI 123PAY?

There are four ways to pay. Each one suits a different situation, and all four end with you entering your UPI PIN.

How Do You Pay Through an IVR Number?

This is the method most people start with. You call a fixed number and follow a voice menu to send money, recharge or pay a bill.

Step 1: Call one of the IVR numbers: 080 4516 3666, 080 4516 3581 or 6366 200 200.

Step 2: Choose the payment you want from the menu shown on your phone screen.

Step 3: Enter your UPI PIN to complete the payment.

How Does a Missed Call Payment Work?

Missed call payments are made at a shop counter. The merchant sets up the bill, and you approve it from your own phone.

Step 1: Share your mobile number with the merchant, who creates a token with your number, the amount and the bill number.

Step 2: Give a missed call on the number the merchant provides.

Step 3: Answer the call back you receive from the merchant straight after.

Step 4: Enter your UPI PIN to complete the payment.

What Is a Payment App Built Into a Feature Phone?

Some feature phone makers work with a third party so that a UPI payment app comes built into the phone. It works much like a regular UPI app, with one gap. There is no scan and pay option, because a feature phone cannot scan a QR code.

How Do You Pay Using Sound-Based Technology?

Sound-based payments use a short tone between your phone and the merchant’s device. It is handy at counters that have this device installed.

Step 1: Call the IVR number 6366 200 200 to start the payment.

Step 2: Tap your phone on the merchant’s device and press the hash key once the device plays its unique tone.

Step 3: Enter the amount and your UPI PIN to complete the payment.

Can You Use UPI on the Paytm App When You Move to a Smartphone?

Yes. When you or someone in your family switches to a smartphone, the Paytm app gives you full UPI on the same bank account. You can send money to a bank account, a UPI ID or a mobile number, and use Scan and Pay on any QR code in a shop or online.

Paying with UPI on the Paytm app needs no KYC. The app also shows your account balance and payment history, and it comes with built-in safety features. If you also want a record of past spending, you can download your UPI statement from the app.

How Do You Link Your Bank Account on the Paytm App?

Step 1: Open the Paytm app and tap your Profile icon.

Step 2: Go to UPI & Payment Settings and select Add Bank Account.

Step 3: Choose your bank. The Paytm app fetches the accounts linked to your registered mobile number.

Step 4: Select the account you want to use for UPI.

Step 5: Set your UPI PIN with your debit card details or Aadhaar.

If you link more than one account, you can change your primary account later from UPI & Payment Settings. Your UPI PIN works the same way here as on your feature phone, so keep it private.

What Else Can You Pay on the Paytm App?

• Recharges: Mobile, DTH, FASTag and metro card recharges.
• Bills: Electricity, water, gas, municipal bills, loan EMI and insurance premium payments.
• Travel: Flight, train and bus tickets with Paytm Travel.
• Savings and credit: Paytm Gold, credit cards, personal loans and your free credit report.

What Can You Pay For With UPI 123PAY?

UPI 123PAY covers most everyday payments. You can send money to family, recharge your mobile, top up your FASTag and book an LPG gas refill.

Bill payments and shop counter payments are covered too. Which options appear depends on the menu your bank and the IVR service offer, so listen to the full menu once before choosing.

Small shop owners benefit as well. A customer without mobile data can still pay at the counter through a missed call or a sound-based payment, so the sale does not slip away.

What Are the Benefits of UPI 123PAY?

The biggest benefit is simple. People who were left out of digital payments can now pay through UPI from the phone they already own.

• Easy access: It was built for feature phone owners, so you do not need to buy a smartphone to use UPI.
• No internet needed: Regular UPI apps need a smartphone and data, while UPI 123PAY needs neither to complete a payment.
• Many languages: Along with Hindi and English, it supports regional languages such as Kannada, Tamil, Bengali, Malayalam and Telugu.
• Secure payments: Two-factor authentication, using your registered phone and your UPI PIN, makes fraud harder.

It also saves time. You skip the trip to a bank branch or an ATM for small payments and transfers.

Payments can still fail now and then when a bank’s systems are busy. When that happens, it helps to know why UPI faces downtimes so you can wait a little and retry instead of paying twice.

Is There a UPI 123 Pay Limit?

Yes. UPI 123PAY payments have a cap on how much you can send, set by NPCI, and your bank can set a lower limit for its own customers.

Limits are revised from time to time, so the amount you can send today may differ from what a neighbour saw last year. Ask your bank, or check its official notices, for the exact limit that applies to your account before a large payment.

If a payment is refused for crossing the limit, split it across days or use another method from your bank, such as a branch transfer.

How Do You Keep UPI 123PAY Payments Safe?

Your UPI PIN is the key to your account. Keep it to yourself, always.

• Never share your PIN: No bank, merchant or caller needs your UPI PIN, and anyone who asks for it is trying to cheat you.
• Check the amount: Listen to or read the amount carefully before you enter your PIN.
• Use the official numbers: Call only the IVR numbers given on this page or by your bank.
• Watch your SMS alerts: Report any payment you did not make to your bank straight away.

Be extra careful with missed call payments. Approve only a bill you have just agreed to at the counter, never a call that arrives out of the blue.

Ready to Make Your First Payment Without Internet?

UPI 123PAY puts UPI within reach of anyone with a bank account and a basic phone. Register once, keep your UPI PIN private, and pick the payment method that suits you. When you move to a smartphone, the Paytm app lets you carry on with UPI on the same bank account, with just a few taps.