SBI To Impose Charges On IMPS Transactions From Feb 1: Details Inside

The country's largest lender, State Bank of India (SBI), has levied charges on money transfers made through the Immediate Payment Service (IMPS). According to the SBI website, a new IMPS service charge of Rs. 20 would be charged from 1st February 2022 on IMPS transactions slab of Rs 2 lakh to Rs 5 lakh. As of now, SBI does not charge any service charges on IMPS Fund transfer for the amount Rs.1000 up to Rs. 2 lakh. However, from next month, SBI would charge the stated service charges on IMPS fund transfers of more than Rs 2 lakh but less than Rs 5 lakh per transaction.

Instant Payment Service (IMPS) is an interbank online fund transfer mechanism that can be done using a bank's digital and offline channels. Internet banking, mobile banking applications, bank branches, ATMs, SMS, and IVRS are all possible alternatives to make IMPS fund transfers. Individuals can transfer money immediately throughout India anytime and any day using banks and RBI-approved Prepaid Payment Instrument Issuers (PPIs). IMPS inward and outward transactions are now available 24 hours a day, seven days a week at SBI, and there are no holiday limits on IMPS inward and outward transactions.

SBI, on the other hand, enables transfers to IMPS beneficiaries of up to Rs. 2,00,000 for IMPS outward transactions. One of the most significant advantages of IMPS is that money is quickly credited to the beneficiary's account. SBI customers can use SBI Anywhere Personal app to conduct IMPS fund transfers. To conduct an IMPS fund transfer using SBI Anywhere Personal, registered users must provide the beneficiary's details, including name, mobile number, and Mobile Money Identification Number (MMID).

Last year, in the month of October, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) hiked the IMPS fund transfer transaction limit from Rs 2 lakh to Rs 5 lakh. In an official statement issued on 8th October 2021, RBI had said that "Immediate Payment Service (IMPS) of National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) is an important payment system providing 24x7 instant domestic funds transfer facility and is accessible through various channels like internet banking, mobile banking apps, bank branches, ATMs, SMS and IVRS. 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 a 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."

Customers of SBI who wish to make an instant fund transfer can click on this link to know the step-by-step method of making an IMPS fund transfer via SBI Mobile Banking.