Payment gateway fees and UPI exemption at Zerodha
Overview
Zerodha clients who add funds to their trading account via net banking or debit card pay a payment gateway fee, which is a charge levied by the payment service provider for processing the transaction. UPI (Unified Payments Interface) fund transfers are free of any gateway charge. The payment gateway fee varies depending on the funding method used and the amount transferred.
Zerodha does not profit from the payment gateway fee – it is charged by the third-party payment gateway and passed through to the client at cost. UPI transfers are zero-cost for both Zerodha and the client because the NPCI (National Payments Corporation of India) bears the interchange costs on UPI transactions to promote digital payments adoption.
Funding methods and associated fees
| Funding method | Charge |
|---|---|
| UPI (BHIM, Google Pay, PhonePe, Paytm, bank UPI apps) | Free |
| Net banking (IMPS/NEFT from bank account) | Rs 9 per transaction (approximately) |
| Debit card | 0.9% of transaction value (varies by card network) |
| RTGS/NEFT bank transfer | Free (bank transfer, not gateway dependent) |
The exact gateway fee for net banking varies by bank and gateway processor. As of mid-2026, Zerodha’s third-party payment gateway charges approximately Rs 9 per net banking transaction. Debit card charges are higher on a percentage basis.
Withdrawals from Zerodha to the linked bank account are always free.
UPI as the preferred method
Zerodha actively promotes UPI as the preferred funding method because it is instant, free, and available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week (subject to NPCI UPI infrastructure uptime). A UPI transfer initiated through the Zerodha Kite app redirects the client to their bank’s UPI app for authentication, and funds are credited to the Zerodha trading ledger within minutes.
The UPI payment limit for individual transactions is Rs 1 lakh per transaction (as set by NPCI). Clients who need to transfer amounts larger than Rs 1 lakh must either make multiple UPI transactions or use NEFT/RTGS from their bank account, which is also free but may carry a processing time (NEFT processes in batches; RTGS is for transfers above Rs 2 lakh).
Net banking via IMPS
IMPS (Immediate Payment Service) through net banking is available through Zerodha’s payment gateway and allows transfers up to Rs 5 lakh in a single transaction (NPCI IMPS limit). The processing is instant. The gateway fee of approximately Rs 9 applies.
NEFT and RTGS direct bank transfers
Clients can also transfer funds directly to Zerodha’s bank account via NEFT or RTGS without going through the payment gateway. These transfers do not carry a Zerodha fee, though the client’s bank may charge NEFT/RTGS fees depending on the account type. Funds transferred via NEFT are credited to the Zerodha trading ledger upon receipt by Zerodha’s bank, which follows the NEFT settlement cycle (every 30 minutes from 00:30 to 00:00, 24x7 since December 2019).
GST on payment gateway fee
The payment gateway fee charged by Zerodha is subject to GST at 18 percent as a payment processing service. For a net banking transaction carrying a Rs 9 gateway fee, the total charge including GST is Rs 9 + Rs 1.62 = Rs 10.62.
Comparison with other brokers
Most discount brokers have adopted similar fee structures for payment methods:
- Groww: UPI free; net banking fee Rs 9 approximately
- Upstox: UPI free; net banking fee varies
- Angel One: UPI free; net banking fee applicable
The structure is broadly identical across discount brokers because the underlying gateway costs are the same. The differentiation in funding convenience lies in the quality of the payment flow integration (how seamlessly the app handles the UPI redirect, for example).
Withdrawals
Withdrawing funds from the Zerodha trading ledger to the client’s linked bank account is free of any payment gateway charge. Withdrawals are processed once per day (for requests submitted before a cut-off time). Funds typically reach the bank account within one working day. Zerodha does not charge for any number of withdrawals.
See also
References
- Zerodha Charges page, support.zerodha.com/category/charges (accessed May 2026)
- NPCI UPI Product Overview, npci.org.in (transaction limits and zero MDR policy)
- RBI Circular on Payment System Charges, RBI/2021-22/105 (zero MDR on UPI and RuPay)
- CGST Act 2017, Section 9 – GST on payment processing services