How do people in the Maldives pay online?
Cards are the main electronic payment. The Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) reports that banks and payment service providers acquired over 72 million card transactions worth about MVR 60 billion in 2024, a 67% rise in volume and 45% in value on 2023. Banks handled over 99% of the volume and 85% of the value; Global Payments Asia-Pacific Maldives and V.T.T Finance are the two licensed non-bank acquirers. DataReportal counts 449,000 internet users in late 2025, 84.7% of the population.
Favara is the instant payment system. The MMA launched it in August 2023 with instant payment, request to pay, smart addressing and account verification, and it runs 24 hours a day for MVR payments. Users can send money with a Favara ID, such as a phone number or email address, from internet banking, their bank’s app or an e-wallet, and can also send payment requests. In 2024 Favara handled 7.76 million transfers worth MVR 23.72 billion, and in March 2024 the MMA raised the single transfer limit from MVR 50,000 to MVR 200,000 and the request limit from MVR 5,000 to MVR 10,000.
Five banks joined Favara in its first year: Bank of Maldives, Maldives Islamic Bank, State Bank of India, the Mauritius Commercial Bank (Maldives) and Bank of Ceylon. The MMA then connected two non-bank payment service providers, Dhivehi Raajjeyge Gulhun (Dhiraagu) and Ooredoo Maldives, and in late 2024 began onboarding FahiPay and Payer.
Google Pay is available for online payments in the Maldives. The Maldives is not on Apple’s list of Apple Pay countries.
What rules shape online payments in the Maldives?
GST has two main rates. KPMG reports a general rate of 8% and a tourism GST of 17%. A bill reported by KPMG in August 2026 would bring foreign tour operators and online travel agencies into tourism GST from 1 October 2026, charged on their margin or commission, subject to its passage. KPMG notes that the bill does not create a general regime for digital services supplied by non-residents.
Payment limits come from the central bank. Favara transfers are capped at MVR 200,000 per transaction and Favara requests at MVR 10,000, since March 2024. Card acquiring outside banks needs an MMA licence, and only two payment service providers held one at the end of 2024.
How would Omno route payments in the Maldives?
A merchant would connect once and set routing rules per method, currency and customer group. In the Maldives:
- Card pay-ins would follow rules by BIN, currency and amount, with cascading: if a provider is unavailable or rejects the request, the payment moves to the next provider in the rule until one accepts.
- Favara and wallet payments could be offered through a local provider that supports them, with the order pending until the provider confirms the transfer.
- Customer groups could see different methods, for example saved cards for returning customers and Favara for shoppers without a card.
Webhooks would report the final status of every payment, and the routing-decision log would show which provider handled each payment and why.
What should merchants plan for?
Plan for cards first. Card payments grew 67% in volume in 2024, and banks acquire almost all of them.
Plan for Favara as the bank option. It is instant and works from banking apps and e-wallets, but it is a domestic MVR system, so a foreign merchant would need a local provider to offer it.
Plan for tourism GST. If you sell tours or stays in the Maldives from abroad, follow the bill that would apply 17% tourism GST to offshore operators and booking platforms.