IMPS is a popular payment service provided by banks to allow real-time inter-bank fund transfer which is available 24 X 7 including on Sundays and holidays.
Also read:
SBI to not levy charges on IMPS transactions up to Rs 5 lakh done via Net banking, mobile banking
SBI’s IMPS charges made at bank branches
What is IMPS?
The IMPS of the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) is an important payment system providing 24×7 instant domestic funds transfer facility and is accessible through various channels like internet banking, mobile banking apps, bank branches, ATMs, SMS and IVRS. It allows customers to transfer money instantly through banks and RBI authorised Prepaid Payment Instrument Issuers (PPI) across India.
IMPS transactions are channel independent and can be initiated from Mobile/ Internet / ATM channels. Customers get the debit & credit confirmation by SMS. It is a service which is available 24 X 7 including on Sundays and holidays. One needs a mobile number and mobile money identifier or bank account and IFSC code or Aadhaar to make payments through IMPS. Payments can be made using internet banking, mobile banking or ATMs.
In October 2021, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced a hike in the amount of money that can be transferred via IMPS. It increased the transaction limit from Rs 2 lakh to Rs 5 lakh.
“The per-transaction limit in IMPS, effective from January 2014, is currently capped at Rs 2 lakh for channels other than SMS and IVRS. The per-transaction limit for SMS and IVRS channels is Rs 5000. With RTGS now operational round the clock, there has been a corresponding increase in settlement cycles of IMPS, thereby reducing the credit and settlement risks. In view of the importance of the IMPS system in processing of domestic payment transactions, it is proposed to increase the per-transaction limit from Rs 2 lakh to Rs 5 lakh for channels other than SMS and IVRS. This will lead to further increase in digital payments and will provide an additional facility to customers for making digital payments beyond Rs 2 lakh. Necessary instructions in this regard would be issued separately,” as per As per the RBI’s Statement on Development and Regulatory Policies.
Banks levy the charge for customers using IMPS transactions. However, certain banks offer IMPS free of cost depending on the type of account held by the customers or using IMPS via Internet banking.
