Best Payment Gateways for Foreign Companies Collecting from India

The best payment gateways for foreign companies collecting from India are 1. Xflow, 2. Razorpay, 3. Cashfree, 4. PayU, 5. EximPe and 6. Paddle.

Each takes cross-border payments from Indian customers with no Indian entity on your side and pays the money out to your bank account abroad.

With Xflow, your Indian customers pay in rupees by UPI, cards, netbanking or bank transfer inside your own branded checkout, and you receive the money in your bank account abroad in USD, GBP, EUR, CAD, AUD and more.

You get a collection rail that works like a gateway, and you need no Indian company or Indian bank account to use it.

Five of the six hold a licence from India's central bank, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), called Payment Aggregator - Cross-Border (PA-CB).

Under that licence, a payment gateway for foreign companies to collect from India can sign you up from your own country, whereas Paddle sells to your customer itself.

We ranked them on four checks: an RBI licence covering outward payments (or a merchant-of-record route), sign-up with no Indian entity, the Indian payment methods on offer and payout abroad in your currency.

1. Xflow - Best for overseas SaaS, AI, edtech and marketplace companies that want Indian customers to pay by UPI, cards or netbanking inside their own branded checkout.
2. Razorpay - Best for subscription businesses that need UPI AutoPay, recurring card payments and e-mandates on one import product.
3. Cashfree - Best for merchants who want virtual accounts for bank payments alongside UPI, RuPay cards and a payout list of 100+ currencies.
4. PayU - Best for existing PayU merchants who want to switch on cross-border import collection through their account manager.
5. EximPe - Best for sellers whose Indian customers pay from digital wallets and who want payouts within 24 to 48 hours.
6. Paddle - Best for SaaS sellers who would rather a merchant of record sold to their Indian customers for them.

All six sign up foreign businesses with no Indian entity, so the differences sit in how each one collects and which Indian payment methods (especially UPI) your customers get.

Five are PA-CB providers that collect in India for you and settle through an authorised dealer bank, while Paddle works as a merchant of record and sells to your customer itself.

Weigh these six points before you shortlist a provider to accept payments from customers in India:

• Outward licence or merchant of record - An aggregator needs PA-CB covering outward payments on RBI's list, while a merchant of record such as Paddle sells to your customer itself instead.
• Sign-up from your own country - Confirm the provider signs up a company incorporated in your country with no Indian entity, through its cross-border import product rather than a domestic account.
• UPI first - UPI carried about 85% of India's digital payments in FY2025-26, according to PIB, so lead your checkout with UPI and back it with cards and netbanking.
• Recurring limits for subscriptions - UPI renewals run on UPI AutoPay mandates, which Paddle's docs cap at INR 15,000 per renewal, with the bank sending a pre-debit notice at least 24 hours before each charge.
• Per-transaction cap for B2B - RBI's Master Direction caps each PA-CB transaction at ₹25 lakh (para 11(d)) and lets a PA-CB contract with marketplaces abroad (para 11(b)), so plan larger invoices around it.
• Settlement currency and timing - Check the payout currency and cycle before you sign: EximPe states 24 to 48 hours and PayU T+2 or T+3, while our standard settlement is T+2.

Each of the six collects in INR from your Indian customers and pays you outside India, but the route differs. Xflow, Razorpay, Cashfree, PayU and EximPe collect as PA-CB providers and settle through an authorised dealer bank, while Paddle sells to your customer as merchant of record and pays you through its own payouts.

Among the five aggregators, the main differences are bank-payment options, recurring billing, payout currencies and whether the checkout sits inside your own brand.

1. Xflow

Best for: companies outside India that want Indian customers paying inside their own checkout.

Xflow is an RBI-licensed cross-border collection infrastructure provider that lets companies outside India accept rupee payments from Indian customers and settle the money abroad.

Your customer sees the price in INR and pays by UPI, card, netbanking or bank transfer inside your own checkout. Xflow collects in India as the licensed PA-CB and settles to your overseas account through an AD Category-I bank.

Key features

• Your customers pay in INR by UPI, Visa or Mastercard cards, netbanking or bank transfer, so they can use the payment methods they already rely on at home.
• Customers see the amount priced in INR at checkout, so they know exactly what they will pay in rupees before they confirm the payment.
• Xflow settles abroad in USD, GBP, EUR, CAD, AUD and more, straight into an overseas bank account you already hold, so there is no new account to open.
• Standard settlement is T+2, meaning funds normally reach your overseas account two business days after your customer pays, which keeps cash-flow planning simple.

Pros

• No company registration or local bank account is needed, so you can accept international payments from India without setting up a business there first.
• The checkout keeps your own brand and UI while Xflow's infrastructure runs underneath it, so the payment step looks and feels like the rest of your product.
• Bank transfer sits beside UPI and cards at checkout, so customers who prefer paying straight from their bank account keep that option when they buy from you.
• Xflow holds final PA-CB authorisation (the fully approved stage, past in-principle), which gives your compliance team a licence they can check on RBI's public list.

Cons

• Setup is sales-assisted, so you start with a "Get in touch" conversation with the Xflow team, and there is no self-serve sign-up.

Verdict: pick Xflow when you want Indian customers paying in your own checkout and the money settled abroad in your currency.

2. Razorpay

Best for: subscription businesses that need UPI AutoPay and recurring card payments.

Razorpay's Import Stack is its cross-border collection product for businesses outside India. Payments come in through Razorpay's checkout in INR and reach your overseas bank account in your currency, with no local entity needed.

You request the feature through a form before Razorpay activates it.

Key features

• Customers pay by UPI, netbanking across all banks, or Mastercard, Visa, RuPay and Diners cards, which covers the main ways Indian consumers pay online.
• UPI AutoPay, recurring card payments and e-mandates are all available on the import product, so subscription renewals can run on the method each customer chooses.
• Settlement reaches your overseas bank account in USD, EUR, GBP, CAD, SGD, AUD, JPY, AED or other listed currencies, so payouts can match your books.

Pros

• Three recurring options on one import product mean a subscription business does not need a second provider to handle renewals from Indian customers.
• The currency list runs well beyond USD, EUR and GBP, which suits a business whose books sit in SGD, JPY or AED rather than the majors.

Cons

• Razorpay sets the settlement cycle "as per applicable law" and shows it on your dashboard, so you only learn your payout timing after you sign up.
• Import collection is an on-demand feature you request through a form, so it is not switched on automatically the day you open an account.

Verdict: Razorpay fits subscription sellers who want recurring UPI and cards; settlement timing is something you confirm only after sign-up.

3. Cashfree

Best for: merchants who want virtual accounts and RuPay cards at checkout.

Cashfree's Collect from India is a cross-border collection product for foreign merchants based outside India, run under Cashfree's PA-CB licence.

It takes UPI, cards including RuPay, net banking and virtual-account payments, then settles them to your overseas bank account without you incorporating locally.

Key features

• Customers pay in INR by UPI, RuPay, Visa or Mastercard cards, or net banking, all through one product built for merchants based outside India.
• Virtual accounts give your customers a bank-transfer route into Cashfree's collection, alongside the card, net banking and UPI options at checkout.
• Settlement reaches your overseas account in USD, EUR, GBP, SGD, AUD, CAD, HKD or more than 100 other currencies, according to Cashfree's import product page.

Pros

• Virtual accounts add a bank-payment route next to UPI and cards, so customers who would rather pay by transfer are not pushed onto a card.
• A currency list that runs past 100 options suits a business whose books sit outside the major currencies, since payouts can land in its own.

Verdict: Cashfree works well when you want bank payments through virtual accounts and a long payout currency list.

4. PayU

Best for: businesses that already hold a PayU merchant account.

PayU's Cross-Border Import is a collection product for merchants outside India that have no establishment there.

Once a customer pays by card, net banking, UPI or NEFT/RTGS, PayU settles to your offshore account through authorised dealer banks in your native currency.

Key features

• Indian customers can pay by debit or credit card, net banking, UPI or NEFT/RTGS bank transfer, which covers card, bank and UPI payers in one product.
• Settlement goes to your offshore account through authorised dealer banks in your native currency, chosen from the more than 100 options PayU lists.
• Subscription payments can run on card, UPI and net banking mandates, so renewals are covered on the same cross-border account as one-off sales.

Pros

• More than 100 settlement currencies means you can take payouts in the currency your books run in, even when that sits outside the majors.
• Existing PayU merchants switch the service on through their key account manager, so a business already on PayU avoids a fresh provider sign-up.

Cons

• Settlement takes T+2 or T+3, so cash lands two to three business days after each payment, which is worth planning around for supplier runs.
• You pass an invoice ID on the day of payment and share the invoice file within 10 days, which adds a step for your finance team.

Verdict: PayU makes sense if you already work with PayU; the invoice steps add admin work to every payment.

5. EximPe

Best for: merchants whose Indian customers prefer paying from a digital wallet.

EximPe is a cross-border collection specialist for merchants abroad, and its PA-CB entry on RBI's list is dated 6 February 2026. Customers can pay by UPI, net banking, card or digital wallet, with the money settled to your international bank in your local currency.

EximPe says it needs no local entity.

Key features

• Customers pay by UPI, net banking, Visa, Mastercard or RuPay cards, or popular digital wallets, which covers shoppers who keep a wallet balance.
• Settlement reaches your international bank in your local currency, with more than 30 options including USD, EUR, GBP, SGD and AED.
• A separate Subscription & Autopay product runs renewals on UPI AutoPay and e-NACH mandates, so recurring billing does not have to rely on cards.

Pros

• EximPe states settlement within 24 to 48 hours, which puts cash in your account sooner after each payment than a longer payout cycle would.
• The Subscription & Autopay product gives SaaS and edtech sellers a dedicated route for renewals, including e-NACH bank mandates for customers who prefer them.

Verdict: EximPe is worth a look when your customers favour wallets and you want quick payouts.

6. Paddle

Best for: SaaS sellers who want someone else to act as the seller.

Paddle is a merchant of record: it sells your software to the customer itself and then pays you. For customers in India it adds UPI in INR, including UPI AutoPay, with no India entity or merchant account needed.

Paddle does not appear on RBI's list of payment aggregators, and our MoR vs PA-CB comparison explains how selling as the merchant differs from licensed collection.

Key features

• UPI is available to customers in India on prices in INR, for both one-off purchases and subscription sales, with no India entity needed on your side.
• Renewals run on UPI AutoPay e-mandates that authorise a fixed amount, so subscribers approve the charge once rather than paying each cycle by hand.
• Credit and debit cards are accepted in every country Paddle serves, so Indian customers without UPI can still pay by card at checkout.

Pros

• You need no India entity or UPI merchant account, so India runs like any other Paddle market once UPI is switched on in your account.
• UPI switches on from the Paddle dashboard in a couple of clicks, so there is no separate integration project for your engineering team.

Cons

• UPI is capped at INR 100,000 per transaction and INR 15,000 per renewal, which limits higher-priced annual subscriptions paid by UPI.
• Paddle's India methods cover UPI and cards, with no RuPay or netbanking named, so customers who rely on them need another card or UPI.
• Instalments and saved UPI details are not supported for UPI payments, so a customer cannot split a UPI purchase or reuse details next time.

Verdict: Paddle suits SaaS sellers happy to hand over the sale; the INR 15,000 per-renewal cap limits higher-priced UPI subscriptions.

RBI's Master Direction on payment aggregators (RBI/DPSS/2025-26/141, 15 September 2025) lets a PA-CB sign up merchants abroad for outward transactions (para 11(b)).

The licensed aggregator is the Indian company (para 5(c)), so import products sign you up without an Indian entity, while domestic PA-O accounts need one.

Money coming into India is the inward direction, which our guide to international payment gateways covers.

• "O" for outward - Lets a PA-CB collect from Indian customers for you and send the money abroad.
• "I" for inward only - Covers Indian businesses receiving from abroad, as with Wise and Trade Pe, not collection from your customers.
• Final or in-principle - A listing means final authorisation with a Certificate of Authorisation; in-principle is the earlier stage.

Cashfree, for example, collects Indian buyers' PAN (Permanent Account Number) and declarations under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) and for tax collected at source (TCS), tied to each buyer's LRS limit.

Collecting through a licensed provider gets you into India without the time and cost of an Indian company, and your customers pay the way they already pay at home instead of on international cards alone.

• No Indian company or bank account - The licensed aggregator is the Indian company under RBI's rules, so your existing entity abroad is enough to start.
• Local payment methods from abroad - UPI and netbanking come through the licensed provider, so staying abroad does not cost your customers their usual way to pay.
• Settlement in your own currency - The money arrives abroad in your currency, so there is no rupee balance for you to manage in India.
• Compliance carried by the provider - The provider holds the RBI authorisation and runs the checkout checks, so your team is not learning Indian payment rules from scratch.

Each of these can stall an India launch, and each can usually be avoided before you sign:

• Signing up for a domestic Indian account - Domestic accounts are for businesses registered in India, so the provider asks for an Indian company; ask for its cross-border import product instead.
• Assuming a global payment account covers Indian payment methods - Card-first and global accounts may take UPI yet miss netbanking or RuPay, so customers who rely on those need another way to pay.
• Choosing an inward-only licence holder - A PA-CB marked "I" alone serves Indian businesses receiving from abroad, so its listing does not cover collecting from your Indian customers.
• Missing the recurring UPI cap - Recurring UPI can be capped at INR 15,000 per renewal, so a higher-priced plan needs another route, such as an e-NACH mandate where the provider supports it.
• Hitting the per-payment ceiling on B2B deals - Each PA-CB payment has a fixed upper limit, so plan how larger invoices will be paid before you move B2B sales across.
• Leaving settlement terms verbal - Timing and currency vary by provider, so an unconfirmed payout cycle can leave a gap in your cash flow.

Six steps to verify a provider before you collect from India

1. Find the provider's Indian legal entity on RBI's list of authorised payment aggregators, and confirm its PA-CB covers "O" for outward.
2. Check that it signs up a company incorporated in your country with no Indian entity, through its cross-border product.
3. Map its Indian payment methods to your model: UPI AutoPay limits for subscriptions, UPI and cards for one-off sales, bank payments for B2B.
4. Confirm the settlement currency, the payout timing and the overseas account the money goes to, in writing.
5. Ask which buyer details the checkout collects, such as PAN or LRS and TCS declarations, and how your customer sees them.
6. Run test payments by UPI and by card before you move live traffic to the new checkout.

For overseas merchants who want to sell into India without running a company there, three things set Xflow apart:

• No India payments hire - Regulatory requirements are handled with our AD Category-I banking partner, so you do not staff up in India.
• Your checkout, your brand - Indian customers pay inside your own UI, with our infrastructure running underneath it.
• Your account, your currency - We settle funds directly to an offshore bank account you already hold, in your chosen currency.

We hold final PA-CB authorisation from the RBI, as of February 2026. We are ISO 27001 and SOC 2 certified, and backed by General Catalyst, Lightspeed, Square Peg, Stripe, PayPal Ventures and Moore Capital.

Choose Xflow if you want Indian customers paying by UPI, cards or netbanking inside your own branded checkout, with the money settled to your existing overseas account in your currency.

We hold final PA-CB authorisation, and you need no Indian entity to start.

For any provider, run the same checks. Confirm PA-CB covering outward payments on RBI's list, or choose a merchant of record that sells to the customer itself.

Then make sure it signs you up with no Indian entity, offers the methods your model needs and fits your limits, such as the INR 15,000 recurring UPI cap and the ₹25 lakh per-transaction ceiling.

After that, shortlist two or three providers, get settlement currency and timing confirmed in writing, and run test payments before you move live traffic.