{"id":27828,"date":"2026-09-10T19:10:25","date_gmt":"2026-09-10T13:40:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.razorpay.in\/blog\/?p=27828"},"modified":"2026-09-10T19:10:25","modified_gmt":"2026-09-10T13:40:25","slug":"apple-pay-in-india","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/blog\/apple-pay-in-india\/","title":{"rendered":"Apple Pay in India: Launch Timeline, How It Works, and What Businesses Need to Know"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_80 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6aa2ec09361be\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6aa2ec09361be\"  aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/blog\/apple-pay-in-india\/#Does_Apple_Pay_work_in_India\" >Does Apple Pay work in India?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/blog\/apple-pay-in-india\/#Behind_the_Scenes_Whats_Holding_Up_Apple_Pay_in_Indias_Domestic_Launch\" >Behind the Scenes: What&#8217;s Holding Up Apple Pay in India&#8217;s Domestic Launch<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/blog\/apple-pay-in-india\/#What_is_Apple_Pay\" >What is Apple Pay?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/blog\/apple-pay-in-india\/#How_Does_Apple_Pay_Work\" >How Does Apple Pay Work?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/blog\/apple-pay-in-india\/#What_Changes_When_Apple_Pay_in_India_Launches_Domestically\" >What Changes When Apple Pay in India Launches Domestically?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/blog\/apple-pay-in-india\/#Businesses_Dont_Have_to_Wait_Apple_Pay_Is_Already_Live_for_International_Payments\" >Businesses Don&#8217;t Have to Wait: Apple Pay Is Already Live for International Payments<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/blog\/apple-pay-in-india\/#Which_Indian_Businesses_Should_Prepare_Most\" >Which Indian Businesses Should Prepare Most?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/blog\/apple-pay-in-india\/#Should_Your_Business_Prepare_for_Apple_Pay\" >Should Your Business Prepare for Apple Pay?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-9\" href=\"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/blog\/apple-pay-in-india\/#FAQs\" >FAQs<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Does_Apple_Pay_work_in_India\"><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Does Apple Pay work in India?<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Apple Pay does not yet work for domestic payments with Indian bank cards. A domestic launch is coming soon, but Apple has not officially confirmed a date or feature set. According to reporting by <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.business-standard.com\/finance\/news\/dropping-this-oct-apple-pay-services-set-for-india-launch-no-upi-yet-126080900805_1.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Business Standard, Apple is targeting a late September\/October 2026 rollout<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, starting with Visa and Mastercard credit cards, with UPI excluded initially. Treat this as an expected timeline based on industry reports, not a confirmed launch.<\/span><\/p>\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><b>Payment Type<\/b><\/td>\n<td><b>Status<\/b><\/td>\n<td><b>Details<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Domestic Payments (INR)<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u23f3 Expected soon in 2026<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Awaiting bank deals + NPCI approval for future UPI support<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cross-Border Payments<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2705 Live<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Works on NFC POS terminals and online checkout today<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Behind_the_Scenes_Whats_Holding_Up_Apple_Pay_in_Indias_Domestic_Launch\"><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Behind the Scenes: What&#8217;s Holding Up Apple Pay in India&#8217;s Domestic Launch<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Per <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.etvbharat.com\/en\/technology\/apple-pay-india-launch-visa-mastercard-upi-enn26081006793\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ETV Bharat<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, Apple is negotiating with HDFC, ICICI, and Axis Bank over a transaction fee on every domestic Apple Pay payment. Apple is reportedly asking for a fee of about 0.15% to 0.20% of each transaction&#8217;s value, known in banking terms as 15 to 20 &#8220;basis points&#8221; (100 basis points equal 1%), while banks are pushing back toward a lower 0.10%.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Separately, UPI support needs its own approval from the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), plus a sponsor bank to route transactions, a process Apple hasn&#8217;t completed yet, which is why the initial rollout is expected to be cards-only.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_is_Apple_Pay\"><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What is Apple Pay?<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Apple Pay is a payment method built exclusively for Apple devices: iPhones, iPads, Macs, and Apple Watches. Users store their card details once in the Apple Wallet, and from then on can pay conveniently across any of their Apple devices.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Key benefits it offers:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Skips manual entry<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: no need to type in card numbers, billing address, or CVV each time.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Biometric security<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: payments are authenticated via Face ID, fingerprint, or device passcode instead of a CVV.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>No extra cost<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: merchants and users aren&#8217;t charged any additional fee for using it.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Cross-device access<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: once a card is saved, it&#8217;s available on any Apple device tied to that account.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Smooth checkout<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: transactions complete on the same screen, and the polished UX tends to boost conversion.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>PCI DSS compliant<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: actual card numbers aren&#8217;t stored, instead secure device-based tokens are used, keeping it compliant with card industry security standards.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_Does_Apple_Pay_Work\"><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">How Does Apple Pay Work?<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Apple Pay stores a tokenised version of an eligible card in Apple Wallet instead of exposing the real card number at checkout. The customer selects Apple Pay, reviews the amount, and authenticates with Face ID, Touch ID, or a passcode. The business&#8217;s payment provider receives the payment without the customer typing in card details. So no manual entry and no OTP for card-based flows.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Today in India, domestic iPhone users still rely on UPI or bank apps for local purchases because Indian cards can&#8217;t be added to Wallet. Foreign visitors and NRIs with international cards, however, can already tap to pay at any NFC terminal in India. Once card-based support goes live, this is exactly how Apple Pay in India will work at checkout.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_Changes_When_Apple_Pay_in_India_Launches_Domestically\"><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What Changes When Apple Pay in India Launches Domestically?<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><b>Today<\/b><\/td>\n<td><b>With Domestic Apple Pay<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Enter or select a card manually<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Choose Apple Pay at checkout<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Enter card details for new cards<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Card already stored in Wallet<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">OTP or other supported authentication<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Device-native Face ID\/Touch ID<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Multiple checkout steps<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">One-tap completion<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Card experience varies by merchant<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Consistent Apple Pay experience<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For businesses, this mainly changes authentication and speed, not the underlying card rails.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Businesses_Dont_Have_to_Wait_Apple_Pay_Is_Already_Live_for_International_Payments\"><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Businesses Don&#8217;t Have to Wait: Apple Pay Is Already Live for International Payments<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While domestic cards are still pending bank deals, Indian businesses selling abroad can turn on Apple Pay today. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Razorpay<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> became the first Indian payment aggregator to launch <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/blog\/razorpay-launches-apple-pay\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Apple Pay for international payments<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and its early pilot data shows real impact:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Up to 58%<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> lift in conversion rates<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>45%<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> faster checkout<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>12%<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> increase in average order value<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Up to 95%<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> payment success rate<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Brands including <strong>Mokobara, Akasa Air, Sabyasachi, House of Masaba, Pernia&#8217;s Pop Up Shop, <\/strong>and<strong> Nish Hair<\/strong> are already using it. It&#8217;s a practical way to prepare for Apple Pay in India before the domestic rollout arrives, turning the &#8220;wait for domestic Apple Pay&#8221; narrative into &#8220;why wait at all if you sell internationally.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\ud83d\udc49 <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/accept-international-payments\/?utm_source=website&amp;utm_medium=International+payment+Ticker+&amp;utm_campaign=Homepage+banner+ticker&amp;utm_id=Homepage+Ticker\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Explore Razorpay&#8217;s International Apple Pay Integration<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Which_Indian_Businesses_Should_Prepare_Most\"><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Which Indian Businesses Should Prepare Most?<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>E-commerce &amp; D2C<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; cut friction on high-intent checkouts<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Travel<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; relevant for international travellers and bigger-ticket bookings<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>SaaS &amp; digital services<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; a familiar checkout for overseas buyers<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Export-led brands<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; offer global customers a payment method they already trust<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Should_Your_Business_Prepare_for_Apple_Pay\"><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Should Your Business Prepare for Apple Pay?<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Before domestic Apple Pay arrives, check:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Does your payment provider support network tokenisation and modern authentication?<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Can Apple Pay be switched on without rebuilding checkout?<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Does checkout auto-detect eligible devices and payment methods?<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Are your web, app, and mobile checkouts all ready?<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you sell internationally, are you already offering Apple Pay or still waiting on the domestic launch?<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"FAQs\"><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">FAQs<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<ol>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><strong>Is Apple Pay in India available with Indian credit cards?<\/strong> Not yet. Indian-issued cards can&#8217;t be added to Apple Wallet until the domestic launch, expected around October 2026.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><strong>When is Apple Pay in India launching?<\/strong> Apple hasn&#8217;t confirmed a date. Reports point to late September\/October 2026 for card-based support.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><strong>Does Apple Pay support UPI in India?<\/strong> Not at launch. UPI needs separate NPCI approval and a sponsor bank, so it&#8217;s expected to come later, if at all initially.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><strong>How can Indian businesses accept Apple Pay?<\/strong> For international customers, right now via Razorpay&#8217;s International Payments suite with Standard Checkout. Domestic acceptance will follow once Apple&#8217;s bank partnerships go live.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Discover the status of Apple Pay in India, expected launch timelines, fee discussions, and how businesses can accept international payments today.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":87,"featured_media":27830,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-27828","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-payments"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27828","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/87"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27828"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27828\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27832,"href":"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27828\/revisions\/27832"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27830"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27828"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27828"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/razorpay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27828"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}