The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Wednesday extended the deadline by six months to September 30 for various stakeholders to comply with its directive on recurring payments made in online transactions.

However, it issued a stern warning that any further delay in ensuring complete adherence to the framework beyond the extended timeline will attract stringent supervisory action.

The rules were first proposed in August 2019 and the deadline was to expire on March 31, 2021. It covered recurring payments made by credit or debit cards, wallets or unified payments interface (UPI) in third party merchant websites such as utility bill payments, mobile bills, insurance premiums and even subscription of OTT platforms. Debit from a person’s bank account such as EMIs on home or auto loans was not counted.

It was framed to improve the security of such recurring payments.

However, various players have been unable to meet the March 31 deadline. Therefore, many credit and debit card customers received text messages asking them to make direct payments to the merchants for continuous services. Some of the players approached the RBI seeking an extension.

“It is, however, noted that the framework has not been fully implemented even after the extended timeline. This non-compliance is noted with serious concern and will be dealt with separately,” the RBI said in a statement.