The Federation of OMR Residents Associations (FOMRRA), representing over 250 high-density gated communities along Chennai’s IT Corridor, has joined hands with community governance platform ADDA (3Five8 Technologies) to formally submit a joint representation to the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) and the Ministry of Finance.
Backed by a national coalition representing approximately 2,00,000 housing societies and Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs), the representation calls for apartment maintenance collections to be notified as an essential utility category eligible for a flat ₹5 Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) on UPI transactions above ₹2,000, rejecting the proposed 0.4% commercial levy slated for 15 October 2026.
According to a press release, the coalition cautions that treating residential maintenance payments under standard commercial Person-to-Merchant (P2M) rules will severely penalise middle-class citizens, reverse years of digital payment adoption and impose an unsustainable overhead on non-profit communities.
Under the upcoming UPI MDR framework, standard P2M collections above ₹2,000 attract a 0.4% fee (capped at ₹300). While commercial enterprises can absorb transaction fees or factor them into retail profit margins, housing societies operate strictly on a hand-to-mouth, cost-recovery basis, says the press release.
An RWA calculates its maintenance fees solely on actual expenditure incurred during the year for essential shared amenities such as security personnel, water tankers, lift maintenance, housekeeping, and common-area electricity, the release adds.
Published – October 05, 2026 12:16 pm IST
