How tourists can use their home country’s mobile wallets for easy payments in the UAE

Dubai: Travelling to the UAE from India, China, Korea, or the Philippines? Forget the hassle of international credit cards and currency conversions. You can now use your familiar mobile wallet app from home, just like you would back in your own country.

Many shops and Point-of-Sale (POS) machines in the UAE now accept a variety of mobile wallets, including India's UPI (Unified Payments Interface), and China's WeChat Pay and Alipay+. This means you can enjoy shopping, dining out, and even paying taxi fares without worrying about carrying cash or dealing with currency exchange rates - your domestic digital payment app takes care of everything.

Alipay+

Since 2023, more than 3,000 retailers and merchants in the UAE have been accepting Alipay+ digital payments. This enables Alipay’s 1.4 billion users to conduct transactions seamlessly while visiting the UAE, using their home e-wallets without any need for currency conversions. This is particularly convenient for tourists from China, the Philippines, South Korea, Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore.

Alipay+ is a digital payment system that includes partner e-wallets such as Alipay (China), Kakao Pay, Naver Pay, and Toss Pay (South Korea), as well as GCash (Philippines).

You can also use Alipay to pay for public taxi fares in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. In Abu Dhabi, travellers can scan the Quick Response (QR) code on the POS terminal, while in Dubai, they can scan the QR code on the taxi metre.

How does it work?

Before entering a store, you can check if Alipay+ is accepted by looking for its logo at the entrance. These mobile-based transactions can be made in physical stores or on online platforms.

In-store payments are easy – either scan the QR code displayed at the cashier’s desk, enter the payment amount, and confirm the transaction, or let the merchant scan the payment QR code on your phone. This eliminates the challenges of exchanging currency, withdrawing cash, or facing language barriers.

WeChat Pay

WeChat Pay is another popular mobile wallet and digital payment system from China accepted across the UAE. Many POS terminals support WeChat Pay, enabling Chinese visitors to transact easily and securely via their mobile wallets. WeChat Pay is widely accepted in major malls, including Dubai Mall and Mall of the Emirates.

How does it work?

When WeChat Pay users make a purchase at international retailers, whether online or in-store, the funds are drawn directly from their account. WeChat Pay handles the foreign currency exchange before transferring the funds to the vendor’s bank account. Like Alipay+, you can make payments by scanning a QR code or using the POS terminal.

India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI)

For Indian tourists visiting the UAE, you can now use your existing UPI app – India’s largest instant payment system – for shopping, dining, and sightseeing. You can make payments using your preferred UPI app, such as PhonePe or Google Pay, linked to your Indian bank account, just as you would back in India. All transactions are processed in Indian Rupees (INR), and the current exchange rate is clearly displayed at the time of payment.

UPI-based apps are accepted almost everywhere in the UAE, from major supermarkets to shops and retailers in popular malls. This year, it was announced that the UPI payment system is now an option available at over 60,000 outlets across UAE.

How does it work?

Look for a sign at the checkout counter indicating that UPI payments are accepted. To make a payment, you need to activate ‘International UPI’ on your PhonePe or Google Pay app. You can do this by scanning the QR code at the checkout counter or by placing your phone over the POS machine. Enter the amount in dirhams, confirm the details, enter your UPI PIN, and the transaction will be complete. To find out how you can activate international payment in your UPI-based app, click here.