Considering the online gambling industry is going strong in India when you start exploring sites to join, you see that there are several local payment solutions offered for deposits and withdrawals, among which UPI is the most popular. This is one of the safest and most used payment solutions in India, allowing Indians to make cost-efficient and easy transactions to and from all kinds of eCommerce sites on a daily basis. It was designed by a powerful financial brand in the country, with the aim of facilitating online transactions from one bank account to another. Before it emerged, Indians were facing a lack of such solutions, so the minute it launched, it became their favorite method for their everyday payments and purchases. With its popularity in mind, you should not be surprised that today, it is offered across a great number of online casinos catering to Indian players. Continue reading to find out more about it. What is UPI and why use it as your payment method at an Indian online casino?
Online Gambling Regulation in India
You might be surprised by the fact that, even though online gambling is quite popular among Indian players, the industry is banned in the country on a federal level. However, states have the right to legislate for themselves and some have regulated it, offering a legal online gambling market to their respective citizens. As such, we can fairly say that the online gambling regulation in India is quite peculiar and at times difficult for both operators and players to comprehend. That’s why in this article, we’ll try to clear things up for you.
The federal gambling ban, which forbids all forms of gambling, was introduced many years ago, back in 1867, when the world hadn't even heard about the internet. India was, at the time, under British rule, and when the Public Gambling Act was introduced, gambling was banned across all states. But, even back then, states were given the option to legalize it if they wanted. Many of the 27 states decided to legalize it, and afterward, when gambling went online, they decided to legalize it, too. As far as federal law is concerned, the ban remained for online gambling, even though not explicitly stated, as the country never introduced any new laws or amendments to the Act to include online gambling in the ban.
Lawmakers in India considered legislation at one point in 2022, but to this day, the ban has not been lifted. The situation remains the same: states like Maharashtra and Sikkim offer perfectly legal online gambling markets, allowing their respective citizens to enjoy many verticals, but the rest of them don't. However, citizens of states with banned online gambling choose to interpret the ban as it suits them. Since the words "online gambling" are not explicitly displayed in the 1867 Act, they choose to look at this as a legal loophole they can use to their advantage. So, they continue frequenting international online casino sites.
And even though the federal government is aware of this fact, it did not, to this day, enter online gambling to the ban explicitly. It did start blocking illegal gambling sites, but it never officially prosecuted or punished a player for gambling online illegally as it did for those players who were visiting brick-and-mortar gambling establishments illegally in the past. The only other move the government made to make online gambling less available to players was to block online transactions via credit cards like VISA and MasterCard that go to or from online gambling sites.
This, indeed, made things more difficult for players still interested in frequenting international online casino sites. That’s why they turned to local payment solutionslike UPI for their online casino deposits and withdrawals. This solution, launched by one of the country’s most powerful financial brands, solved all of the problems Indian players were facing before it appeared.
With it, you can fund your international online casino account but also withdraw winnings in Indian rupees. As soon as it appeared, it got offered across hundreds of casinos catering to Indian players, so you will surely have plenty of candidates to consider before you make your decision on the site to join. In fact, stay with us, as in the following sections we’ll tell you all about the terms and conditions you need to meet to get started with this amazing solution and guide you on how to use it for your online casino deposits and withdrawals.
Using UPI Across Indian Online Casinos
UPI is short for Unified Payments Interface and was designed with the purpose of addressing a serious problem Indian citizens were facing when it came to online transactions. NPCI (National Payment Corporation of India) took it upon itself to create the most perfect online payment solution that would allow Indians to perform multiple banking services in just a few taps on their mobile devices and use their bank account to transact online with ease. Via a single mobile app, users can make all kinds of purchases and payments and even receive money with this solution, and that’s thanks to the fact that NPCI designed it with the underlying infrastructure of another payment solution that was already a hit in India, which was launched six years prior, IMPS.
The UPI app, however, was rolled out in 2016. RBI, Governor Dr. G Rajan signed on it on the 1st of April that year, and a pilot program was launched in Mumbai, with 21 leading member banks participating in the project. By the 25th of August of the same year, after an instant success, the app was already available on the Google Play Store, ready for users to download and start using. Since then, Indian users have been downloading and using the app to initiate money transfers 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and have access to all the funds on all of the bank accounts they have with the member banks. They’ve been able to use all of the banking services the solution offers in just a few taps on their smartphones.
Speaking of, to start using it yourself, there are two conditions you must meet. First, of course, you must be an Indian resident, and second, you need to have at least one bank account with one of the member banks in order to be eligible to use the solution. Assuming you’re meeting these conditions, you’re good to download its app. You can check out the Product Overview page on NPCI’s official website to get the exact steps, but we’ll give you a shortcut here. After the app is installed on your device, register your account with the solution. You’ll simply need to enter your mobile phone number and full name, and you’ll immediately see your Virtual ID being created. This ID will be your credentials whenever you need to transact with the solution, so make sure you write it down somewhere and have it at arm's reach whenever you need it. The next step is creating a strong password, which, it goes without saying, you need to keep safe.
Next, you can proceed by linking all of the bank accounts you may want to use, that you hold with the member banks. Simply tap Link/Add/Manage Account and enter the respective bank account number. Then, enter the last 6 digits of your debit card number and the card's expiry date, and finally press Submit. With that, your account is immediately created and active for you to start using it right away, for any kind of transactions you may have in mind, including online casino deposits and withdrawals. That being said, follow our lead as in the following section we'll take you through the depositing and withdrawing procedures with UPI so that you know exactly what to do with it the minute you join an online casino that accepts it.
Casinos for Players from India that Offer UPI
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To save your time, we are only displaying casinos that are accepting players from India.
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It won’t be hard to find an online casino that accepts UPI. Just start looking for casinos that target Indian players and you’ll see that you will find the solution at every second, if not every single Indian-catering online casino site. MegaPari, 188Bet Casino, and King Billy certainly meet the criteria and are ranked high on our list of Indian online casinos to consider, but feel free to explore more options before you decide on the site to join.
The minute you find your winner, register a player account with it. To fund that account with UPI, you would need to go through the following procedure:
Log into your registered player account and head over to the Cashier/Banking page.
Find the Deposits section and locate UPI’s logo there.
Press it and then enter your app to select the Send Money/Payment option.
Set the amount you wish to transfer.
The casino’s Virtual ID should be pre-entered, but if not, get in touch with its Customer Support to get it.
An SMS confirmation will arrive, so use it to confirm your transaction.
Enter your PIN and watch the money arrive in your balance instantly.
Considering you can receive money with the solution, it goes without saying that you’ll be able to use it for withdrawals. You will need to locate its logo in the Withdrawals section, enter your app, select Collect Money/Request for Payment, and set the amount you wish to cash out. The operator will be notified of your request and will take their time to review and approve your request, in about 24 to 48 hours. As soon as you get the approval, you will be notified that you’ve successfully received the funds.
Conclusion
Indian online casino players are going with UPI instead of any other payment method for their deposits and withdrawals for many reasons. The solution is easy to get started with and use, it allows you to both send and receive transactions in your native currency, and it is offered across a great number of online casino sites, so the first chance you get, give it a try.
FAQs
Is it legal to gamble online in India?
On a federal level, online gambling is banned, however, on a state level, some Indian states allow online gambling legally. Therefore, some players from some states in India are legally allowed to gamble online, while others aren’t.
Are Indian online casino players allowed to frequent international online casino sites?
In theory, they are not, since online gambling is banned on a global level and the government blocks offshore sites and gambling transactions via credit cards. However, those players that somehow get access to international online casinos, are not prosecuted or punished for it.
How many Indian-catering online casinos offer UPI?
There are over 150 legit online casino sites listed at WoO that we’ve reviewed for you, that you can check out, as they are all catering to Indian players and offering UPI, so suit yourself and find your winner.
Is UPI an option to use for deposits and withdrawals during Indian holidays?
It, in fact, is! As mentioned previously, the solution is an option 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, holidays or no holidays. You can rest assured that no matter the hour, you will be able to use it to make seamless deposits and withdrawals with it.
Can I get an insight into my transaction history on my UPI app?
Sure thing. You would need to enter your app and look for the Transaction History section on the Home Screen. Press it and you'll see all the transactions you've ever made, either pending or completed.
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