India · Compliance
PCI DSS compliance in India
Achieve PCI DSS compliance in India with Sterling: 8,100+ client engagements in 60+ countries, 20+ years.
- Compliance, end to end
- Mumbai office team
- Effivity software included
- Academy training included
Who asks for PCI DSS in India
Clients include
PCI DSS compliance in India at a glance
Master Direction on Regulation of Payment Aggregator (PA), RBI/DPSS/2025-26/141 refers to PCI DSS, yet none of the Indian instruments checked makes it compulsory. Buyers in India ask for it anyway.
Payment aggregators regulated by RBI now work under the Master Direction on Regulation of Payment Aggregator issued on 15 September 2025, which expects data security standards like PCI-DSS and PCI-SSF to be implemented, requires merchants' PCI-DSS compliance status to be reviewed at onboarding, and asks for the PCI-DSS Attestation of Compliance and Report of Compliance to be reported to the IT Committee. Beyond payments firms, many Indian BPOs handle card data for overseas retailers — refunds, order changes and customer support — and their clients require them to validate PCI DSS as service providers. PCI DSS is not a certification: compliance is validated by a Qualified Security Assessor qualified by the PCI Security Standards Council, or by self-assessment where the payment brands and acquirer allow it. Sterling's Navi Mumbai office scopes the cardholder data environment, drives segmentation and remediation, and prepares evidence for the QSA, with Effivity and Sterling Academy included. The questions Indian service providers ask follow.
Who needs PCI DSS in India, and what happens without it
These are the organisations in India that most often need to show PCI DSS.
- Payment aggregators and their merchantsRBI's PA Master Direction expects PCI-DSS and PCI-SSF and reviews merchants' PCI-DSS status at onboarding.
- BPOs handling card data for overseas retailers (refunds, order support)Clients and card brands require service providers to validate PCI DSS.
- IT and processing providers to banksRBI's IT outsourcing direction requires standards to protect customer data.
Not sure which of these applies to you?Answer a short set of questions and your readiness report arrives by e-mail.
Take the PCI DSS readiness checkPCI DSS requirements in India
Strip away the vocabulary and PCI DSS asks any business that stores, processes or transmits card data to comply in six areas.
In India these six sit alongside the local laws and regulations listed under drivers below; one system can evidence both. The detail is on the global hub: PCI DSS explained →
How to achieve PCI DSS compliance in India
One team from the Mumbai office carries the work from scoping to sign-off. Across India from the Navi Mumbai office: on-site in Mumbai and the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, on-site or remote for other states; remote delivery for distributed teams.
- Discovery call and scopeEntities, locations, regulators and target date, agreed before any proposal.
- Gap assessment against PCI DSS and the Indian requirements that apply to youControls you already run for your regulators and customers are reused, not rebuilt.
- Your system built with your team in EffivityRisks, controls, evidence, incidents and reviews in one live system the auditor can see.
- Internal audit, management review and corrective actionsYour internal auditors trained by Sterling; the evidence proven before any external review.
- Reviews by regulators, customers and auditorsSterling supports the reviews your regulators, customers and auditors run.
- End to end, from one team
- Effivity ISO & GRC software
- Preferential Sterling Academy access, with complimentary awareness training for your people
- Internal auditor training for your audit team, as applicable to your standard
- Vulnerability assessment on ISMS engagements
The Sterling Promise: 100% on-time completion, 100% success, 8,100+ client engagements.Sterling does not certify. Certification decisions stay with independent bodies.
How long does PCI DSS compliance take in India?
There is no standard duration: it depends on your scope and on how much of the system already runs. In India these are the factors that set the timeline.
- Cardholder data environment scope and segmentation
- Service provider versus merchant validation level
- Remediation of gaps before the QSA assessment
- Number of delivery centres handling card data
Sterling agrees a dated plan with you on the discovery call, once the scope is known.
How much does PCI DSS compliance cost in India?
The cost has two parts: the consulting work to build and prove the system, and any external assessor’s fees, which are quoted separately. In India these factors move both.
- Size of the cardholder data environment
- QSA fees quoted separately from consulting
- Segmentation, logging and encryption remediation
- Penetration testing and scanning
Sterling gives one customised, all-inclusive proposal after the discovery call, never before the scope is agreed.
PCI DSS consultants and assessors in India
Two different organisations are involved. A consultant helps you build the system and prove it works; your regulators, customers and auditors then audits or assesses it and decides. Keeping the two separate is what makes the result credible to buyers and regulators.
- Check that the body’s accreditation or approval covers PCI DSS and your sector, and that its certificates can be verified online.
- Ask the consultant how the local requirements in India are mapped into the same system, so nothing runs twice.
- Ask for client references in your sector; Sterling’s client letters are available on request.
- Agree who owns the evidence and the tool after the engagement; with Sterling the system stays yours, in Effivity.
Laws and regulations that drive PCI DSS in India (3)
| Instrument | How it treats the standard |
|---|---|
| Master Direction on Regulation of Payment Aggregator (PA), RBI/DPSS/2025-26/141 | Refers to / expects PCI-DSS and PCI-SSF to be implemented; merchants' PCI-DSS compliance reviewed at onboarding; PCI-DSS AOC and ROC reported to the IT Committee. |
| PCI Security Standards Council — Qualified Security Assessor programme | Scheme rule QSA companies are qualified by the Council to validate an entity's adherence to PCI DSS. |
| RBI Master Direction on Outsourcing of Information Technology Services (RBI/2023-24/102) | Expected in practice Contracts to cover standards to protect customer data; PCI DSS not cited. |
"Expected in practice" means the instrument asks for the outcomes PCI DSS covers without naming a standard, and PCI DSS is what buyers and regulators commonly accept as evidence of them.
Accreditation, audit language and remote audits in India
Compliance validated by a Qualified Security Assessor (QSA) or by self-assessment, as the payment brands and acquirer require. QSAs are listed by the PCI Security Standards Council. No QSA is named here unless verified. Edition and transition details: PCI DSS hub →
Audit language
Reports on Compliance and Attestations of Compliance are prepared in English.
Remote and on-site
QSA assessment elements may be remote under PCI SSC guidance; delivery centres handling card data are commonly visited on-site.
PCI DSS in India: questions clients ask
Is PCI DSS mandatory for payment aggregators in India?
RBI's Master Direction on payment aggregators expects it. It requires PCI-DSS to be implemented, that merchants' infrastructure comply with security standards such as PCI-DSS and PCI-SSF as applicable, and that reports to the IT Committee include the Attestation of Compliance and Report of Compliance.
Is PCI DSS a certification?
No. It is compliance, validated by a Qualified Security Assessor or by self-assessment, as the payment brands and the acquirer require. The Attestation of Compliance records the result. QSA companies are qualified by the PCI Security Standards Council, which lists them.
Does a BPO handling refunds for overseas retailers need PCI DSS?
Yes, if it stores, processes or transmits card data, or can affect the security of that data. The client and its acquirer set the validation route that applies. Take their written requirements as the starting point and confirm the scope with them.
More on PCI DSS for Indian organisations
- PCI DSS: the complete guide
- Watch: How to implement PCI DSS
- Banking and financial services: PCI DSS for the sector
- BPO and contact centres: PCI DSS for the sector
- E-commerce and retail: PCI DSS for the sector
- Fintech and payment facilitators: PCI DSS for the sector
- Healthcare providers and insurers: PCI DSS for the sector
- Hospitality and travel: PCI DSS for the sector
- Software and hosting: PCI DSS for the sector
- Sterling in Mumbai
- PCI DSS compliance in India and every other standard Sterling delivers there
Other standards Indian businesses ask Sterling for
Organisations in India often combine PCI DSS with one of these, under one management system where the scopes allow.
Start with a free discovery call from the Mumbai office
A Sterling consultant goes through your entities, your regulators and your target date with you. No proposal until the scope is agreed.
Sources
- Master Direction on Regulation of Payment Aggregator (PA), RBI/DPSS/2025-26/141 — rbi.org.in (accessed 5 Oct 2026)
- PCI Security Standards Council — Qualified Security Assessor programme — pcisecuritystandards.org (accessed 5 Oct 2026)
- RBI Master Direction on Outsourcing of Information Technology Services (RBI/2023-24/102) — rbi.org.in (accessed 5 Oct 2026)
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