Apple Reinstates Card Payments for Account Purchases in India

After a four-year suspension, Apple has begun a phased reintroduction of credit and debit card payments for Apple Account purchases in India, marking a significant strategic shift for the tech giant in one of its fastest-growing markets. This move comes after Apple successfully adapted its payment infrastructure to comply with the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) evolving regulatory framework for recurring transactions.

The Cupertino company had halted card payments in May 2022, following the RBI's updated guidelines that mandated stricter authentication, tokenized card credentials, and restrictions on merchants storing sensitive card details. During this interim period, Indian users were largely limited to Unified Payments Interface (UPI), net banking, or manually topping up their Apple Account balances, often leading to friction, particularly for automatic subscription renewals. Now, eligible Visa and Mastercard credit and debit cards can be linked to Apple Accounts, enabling smoother transactions for services like iCloud+, Apple Music, and App Store purchases. However, direct App Store purchases via card are not yet supported, requiring users to add funds to their Apple Account wallet first.

This compliance with India's robust payment framework, including the consolidated Digital Payments – E-mandate Framework, 2026, which outlines requirements for pre-transaction notifications and additional authentication for transactions above INR 15,000, is a crucial step. For Apple, re-enabling card payments is expected to bolster user retention and reduce churn on its high-margin services revenue, supporting the double-digit growth its services business has seen in India despite previous limitations. The enhanced convenience for millions of Indian users could also pave the way for broader payment initiatives, including renewed speculation about the long-anticipated launch of Apple Pay in the country. The upcoming support for RuPay cards further underscores Apple's commitment to localizing its payment ecosystem.