Burj Khalifa and Universal Studios tickets now payable by UPI, but Bangladeshis cannot use it directly
India has launched a new facility to reduce the hassle of booking tickets while travelling abroad. Tickets for several popular tourist attractions, including the Burj Khalifa in the United Arab Emirates and Universal Studios in Singapore, can now be bought online using India's UPI (Unified Payments Interface).
The facility has, however, been launched for Indian tourists for now. Bangladeshi tourists therefore cannot use it directly through their bKash, Nagad or Bangladeshi bank accounts.
According to an October 30 announcement by India's finance ministry, the system has been launched in partnership with NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL), the international arm of the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI). Through it, Indian tourists will be able to pay for tickets online using their own UPI apps.
In the UAE, UPI has been introduced for booking tickets to the Burj Khalifa's 'At The Top' observation deck. NIPL has partnered with Neopay and Emaar Entertainment for this. It is the first time UPI payment has been introduced for online ticket booking at a tourist attraction in the country.
In Singapore, the same facility has been launched in partnership between Resorts World Sentosa and FOMO Pay. Under it, tickets for Universal Studios Singapore, the Singapore Oceanarium and Adventure Cove Waterpark can be bought through UPI.
Travelling from Bangladesh to the UAE or Singapore, visitors will need to use an international card accepted on the relevant website, or another payment method, to buy tickets. Having only a Bangladeshi mobile banking account is not enough to use UPI.
If a Bangladeshi tourist does have an eligible UPI account linked to a valid and active Indian bank account, they will need to check the payment terms on the relevant booking platform.
According to India's finance ministry, UPI is currently in use in 10 countries: Singapore, the UAE, France, Mauritius, Nepal, Bhutan, Qatar, Sri Lanka, Cambodia and Greece. Uzbekistan may join the list as the 11th country; a commercial agreement on this was announced on August 30, 2026, during the Indian prime minister's visit to Uzbekistan. Earlier, on January 26, 2024, the facility to buy Eiffel Tower tickets online through UPI was launched in France.
