India's gold jewelers urge government to scrap MDR on UPI
Business
India's gold jewelry industry is asking the government to scrap Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) fees on big-ticket UPI payments.
S Abdul Nazar, State General Secretary of the Kerala Gold and Silver Merchants Association, says these extra charges, on top of GST and other costs, hit small and medium jewelers the hardest.
MDR ₹200, ₹300 for big-ticket UPI
An MDR of up to ₹200 would apply to a UPI transaction of ₹50,000, while transactions exceeding ₹75,000 could attract MDR of up to ₹300.
While buyers don't pay this directly, it raises shopkeepers' expenses, especially since high-value digital payments are common now.
Nazar points out that waiving these fees could help jewelers get an exemption from MDR.