Does Stripe accept Indian cards
Yes, Stripe accepts Indian-issued cards on the Visa, Mastercard and American Express networks, but currency and account rules decide whether a given payment will go through.
Stripe's own support pages list Visa, Mastercard and American Express as supported for both domestic and international payments on Stripe accounts in India. How an Indian card is treated depends on who is charging it and in what currency.
- Domestic payments: A Stripe account registered in India must charge Indian-issued cards in Indian Rupees (INR) for local transactions.
- Foreign currency charges: Indian-issued cards generally cannot be used for non-INR charges on cross-border transactions, because of export rules and Reserve Bank of India (RBI) requirements. Stripe notes that a failed international payment is often caused by the customer paying with a card issued inside India.
- International customers: Stripe accounts in India can present prices in INR or in other currencies to customers located outside India, provided the account meets Stripe's requirements for international payments.
- Recurring payments: For subscriptions and other repeat charges on Indian cards, Stripe mainly supports Visa and Mastercard, and relies on mandates set up for India recurring payments.
- American Express: Amex is supported with some restrictions, and certain export businesses need an Importer Exporter Code (IEC) to use it.
Opening a new Stripe account in India is currently by invitation only, and businesses from India cannot sign up through the usual online form. Stripe's focus for these accounts is on businesses selling internationally. Any Stripe overview for Indian businesses should cover this invite process together with the card and currency rules.
If a payment with an Indian card fails, check whether the charge was made in a currency other than INR, whether the billing or shipping address matches the type of transaction, and whether the card network is one Stripe supports for that payment type.