Apple Inc. has stopped accepting Indian credit or debit card payments for subscriptions and app purchases using Apple ID. This change has come six months after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) came out with its new auto debit payment rules in October 2021.
What Will This Decision By Apple Mean For You?
If you are a user of iCloud+ storage, Apple Music, Apple TV+ or any other subscription-based service from the App Store, then from today onwards, you won’t be able to pay for it using your Indian credit or debit cards.
Apple said in a post on its support page: “Regulatory requirements in India apply to the processing of recurring transactions. If you hold an Indian debit or credit card, and you have a subscription, these changes impact your transactions. Some transactions might be declined by banks and card issuers.”
How Will You Make Payments On Apple Now?
Apple mentioned in its support page that you would be able to pay for subscriptions and other services using the Apple ID credit system. The Apple ID credit system supports Netbanking, UPI and Apple ID store codes.
Here is how to do that:
Step1: Go to the App Store.
Step2: Click on your profile icon on the top right corner.
Step3: Navigate below to find “Add funds to your Apple ID tab”.
Step4: Select the amount.
Step5: Pay for it using Netbanking, UPI, Apple ID code, others.
Why Apple Made This Change?
The new auto debit rules require Apple and other companies to set up an e-mandate for banking cards which consumers need to validate using a two-factor authentication method. The rules also require consumers to give their consent each time they need to pay a subsequent payment above Rs. 5,000. The process requires lots of changes to be made in the backend payments systems, which is somewhat difficult for Apple to implement. Hence they have stopped accepting debit and credit card payments issued by banks in India, altogether.
What About Others?
Netflix introduced a UPI Autopay feature a while ago to enable users to continue paying for their subscriptions. Grammarly has stopped recurring payments and has resorted to one-time payment instead. YouTube has also stopped recurring payments, and are accepting only one-time payment for subscription. Audible Amazon users are still facing difficulties in subscription payments using the Autopay feature.
