Which Payment Aggregators Hold an RBI PA-CB Licence, and What Should Exporters Know?

An RBI PA-CB licence is a Certificate of Authorisation that lets a non-bank company work as a cross-border payment aggregator. RBI calls it authorisation, and people often call it a licence. It covers collecting cross-border e-commerce payments for onboarded merchants and settling them to those merchants.

• Definition: A PA-CB facilitates aggregation of cross-border payments for current account transactions not prohibited under FEMA, for its onboarded merchants, through e-commerce mode (Master Direction, paragraph 4(i)(ii)).
• Sub-categories: There are two sub-categories: PA-CB facilitating inward transactions and PA-CB facilitating outward transactions. An inward transaction involves an inflow of foreign exchange (paragraphs 4(d) and 4(i)(ii)).
• List codes: RBI's list uses PA-CB-I for inward, PA-CB-O for outward and PA-CB-I & O for both, as its footnote to the Payment Aggregators section explains.
• Banks: A bank does not require authorisation to carry out PA business (paragraph 5(a)), so banks do not appear in the payment aggregator section.
• Non-banks: A non-bank must be a company incorporated in India and apply through RBI's online portal (paragraphs 5(b) and 5(c)).
• Net worth: An applicant needs a net worth of Rs 15 crore when it applies and Rs 25 crore by the end of the third financial year after authorisation (paragraph 6(a)).
• Exclusions: A card transaction where the card network handles the foreign exchange settlement and the aggregator receives rupees is not PA-CB activity (Note 2 to paragraph 4(i)(ii)).

A PA-CB code tells you RBI has authorised that legal entity for that activity. It says nothing about fees, exchange rates, speed or service quality. For the full rule set, see the RBI PA-CB guidelines guide.

Any exporter or freelancer whose foreign payments pass through a non-bank aggregator should check the RBI PA-CB licence list. Exporters paid by direct bank wire into their own AD bank account usually have no aggregator to check, because a bank needs no PA authorisation.

You read RBI's PA-CB licence list by finding your provider's legal company name, searching it in the Payment Aggregators section of the Certificates of Authorisation list, and checking the code beside it. If the name is missing, look it up on RBI's status page for payment aggregator applications.

1. Find the legal entity that will collect your money. It is usually named in the provider's terms of service or merchant agreement, such as 'ABC Payments Private Limited'.
2. Open RBI's Certificates of Authorisation list and note the date at the top. When last checked it showed 'Sep 30, 2026'.
3. Go to the section headed 'Payment Aggregators (PA-O, PA-P & PA-CB)' and search for the legal name.
4. Read the 'Payment System Authorised' column. For export receipts you need PA-CB-I or PA-CB-I & O. PA-CB-O alone covers outward payments only.
5. If the name is not there, open RBI's status of applications from payment aggregators and check Tables D, E and F, which cover PA-CB applicants.
6. Check sections B and C at the end of the Certificates of Authorisation list, which show revoked authorisations and entities that ceased operations.
7. Save a dated screenshot and repeat the check before signing or renewing, since RBI updates both pages.

RBI's Certificates of Authorisation list dated 30 September 2026 shows more than 30 companies with a PA-CB code. Most hold PA-CB-I & O. A few hold PA-CB-I only, and three hold PA-CB-O only, which does not cover export receipts. The table below is a reading aid, and RBI's own list is the authoritative and complete version.

If an exporter collects payments through a provider missing from the PA-CB licence list, and the provider is neither a bank nor an existing applicant allowed to continue, the money sits outside RBI's PA-CB safeguards. The exporter's own FEMA duties to realise and document the export still apply.

• Escrow: Authorised non-bank PAs keep merchant funds in a separate escrow account with a scheduled commercial bank, called an Inward Collection Account for PA-CB inward payments (paragraph 16(a)).
• EDPMS help: An authorised PA-CB must give your AD bank the documents or information needed to close your EDPMS entry (paragraph 11(h)).
• Realisation: Services export value must be realised and repatriated within nine months from the invoice date, or twelve months if invoiced or settled in rupees (FEMA Regulation 5(1)).
• Wind-up history: Existing non-bank PA-CBs that did not apply by 30 April 2024 or could not meet the net worth rule had to wind up PA-CB activity by 31 July 2024 (2023 PA-CB circular, Annex paragraphs 2.2 and 3.4).
• Future exports: If export proceeds stay unrealised for more than one year after the due or extended date, further exports need full advance or an irrevocable letter of credit (FEMA Regulation 13).

Stop routing new invoices through a provider you cannot find on either RBI page, ask it to settle any balance, and keep every payment advice for past receipts. Then ask your AD bank how to close open EDPMS entries. Our guide on how to check if a payment aggregator is RBI authorised covers red flags in more detail.

The timeline for RBI's PA-CB licensing runs from the October 2023 circular to the September 2025 Master Direction. Exporter duties linked to it come from the FEMA regulations in force since 1 October 2026, which set dates for the EDF, EDPMS closure and realisation.

• Brand names: Searching only an app or brand name. RBI lists legal company names, with a brand name in quotes for some entries.
• Wrong code: Treating a PA-CB-O or PA-O code as cover for export receipts. Inward foreign payments need PA-CB-I or PA-CB-I & O.
• In-principle: Reading 'In-Principle Authorisation Granted' as final authorisation. RBI's note (iii) says it is not authorisation.
• Group entities: Assuming a group company's listing covers the entity in your contract. Each authorised company is listed separately.
• Old copies: Relying on a third-party list or an old screenshot. Check the date on RBI's own pages.
• Licence as rating: Treating authorisation as a sign of low cost or fast settlement. Settlement timing follows your agreement with the PA (Master Direction, Table 1).
• Ignoring the cap: Sending an invoice above Rs 25 lakh through a PA-CB. The per transaction limit is Rs 25 lakh (paragraph 11(d)). See PA-CB transaction limits.

Every rule, deadline and form on this page is linked to its official source, checked on the dates below.

1. RBI: Certificates of Authorisation issued under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007 (dated 30 September 2026), Section A, Payment Aggregators (PA-O, PA-P & PA-CB) and footnote; Sections B and C (checked 9 Oct 2026)
2. RBI: Status of Applications received under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007 (as on 01.10.2026), Section I, Tables D, E and F; Notes (i) to (iii) (checked 9 Oct 2026)
3. RBI Master Direction on Regulation of Payment Aggregator (PA), RBI/DPSS/2025-26/141, 15 September 2025, Paragraphs 4(d), 4(i), 5, 6(a), 11, 13, 16(a), Table 1 and 19 (checked 9 Oct 2026)
4. RBI circular: Regulation of Payment Aggregator - Cross Border (PA - Cross Border), RBI/2023-24/80, 31 October 2023, Annex paragraphs 2.2, 3.4 and 3.5 (checked 9 Oct 2026)
5. Foreign Exchange Management (Export and Import of Goods and Services) Regulations, 2026 (amended up to 22 September 2026), Regulations 3(2), 4(2), 5(1) and 13 (checked 9 Oct 2026)