Which Partner Integration Method to Choose?

Choose how you want to onboard merchants with PayU. Use this page to compare Partner Portal, Co-Branded OAuth, Partner Integration APIs, and referral links, then follow the guide for your path.

At a glance

	Referral Link	Partner Portal	Co-Branded OAuth	API
You build UI	No	No	No	Yes
Brand control	None	None	Your logo + colours	Full
Technical effort	None	None	Low	High
Merchant stays on your platform	No	No	No (redirects to PayU, then back)	Yes
Custom onboarding journey	Limited	Manual / portal-led	PayU-hosted, co-branded	Full control via APIs
Pre-fill merchant fields	No	No	Yes	Yes
Redirection to PayU	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Redirection back to platform	No	No	Yes (with auth code)	Not required
Authorisation model	Not applicable	Not applicable	Merchant consent; validate auth code	Bearer token (`GetToken`)
Best for	Individual resellers	Manual onboarding	Mid-size platforms	Large platforms
Ideal when	You only need to share a link and earn incentives	You want dashboard tools without building product UI	You want branded onboarding without building KYC UI	Merchants must never leave your product

If merchants must stay in your platform end-to-end, use API integration. For a branded journey with low engineering effort, use Co-Branded OAuth. For operational onboarding without code, use Partner Portal or a referral link.

flowchart TD
    A[Need to onboard merchants?] --> B{Build your own UI?}
    B -->|Yes| C[Partner Integration APIs]
    B -->|No| D{Need your brand on onboarding?}
    D -->|Yes| E[Co-Branded OAuth]
    D -->|No| F{Self-serve link only?}
    F -->|Yes| G[Referral Link]
    F -->|No| H[Partner Portal]

Partner Portal

Partner Portal helps you grow by onboarding merchants and tracking incentives from a PayU-hosted dashboard. Merchants can then collect payments with PayU payment methods.

What you can do

Refer merchants
Complete the merchant profile on their behalf
Track referred merchants’ onboarding status
Track incentives earned on referrals
Get settlement and other reports for merchants
Manage portal users and permissions

What you should know

No frontend development required for onboarding UI
Brand control is limited; the experience is PayU-controlled
Best for partners who prefer manual or ops-led onboarding
After onboarding, merchants collect payments using standard PayU integrations such as Web Integration

Get started

Co-Branded OAuth onboarding

Co-Branded (OAuth) Onboarding lets partners offer a seamless, co-branded onboarding journey powered by PayU. You customise look and feel without building the onboarding GUI from scratch. Merchants redirect to PayU only to complete onboarding, then return to your platform.

What you can do

Host a partner logo and branding on the PayU onboarding experience
Share sign-up or login links (including optional email and state)
Receive merchant consent to link the account to your partner profile
Capture auth_code and merchant ID on redirect, then call Validate Auth Code and Get Merchant Credentials APIs
Fetch merchant key/salt to create payment links or collect payments on their behalf

What you should know

Low technical effort compared with full API onboarding
Merchants leave your platform briefly for KYC and consent, then redirect back
Enablement (OAuth flow, scopes such as credentials_using_oauth, My App) is done on your partner account — contact your PayU Key Account Manager (KAM)
Configure redirect URI, branding, and download client credentials from My App in the Partner Portal

Get started

Partner Integration APIs

Refer merchants using APIs gives full control. You build the UI; PayU provides the APIs. Partners can onboard merchants, manage KYC, verify bank accounts, handle e-sign, and receive status updates via webhooks — without sending merchants to PayU-hosted screens for the core journey.

What you can do

Create and update merchant accounts server-to-server
Run the full onboarding sequence (authentication through e-sign)
Manage KYC documents, DigiLocker, VKYC, business members, and UBO where required
Poll status with GetMerchant and subscribe to webhooks for real-time updates
Keep the merchant entirely inside your product experience

What you should know

Highest technical effort; you own UI, orchestration, and error handling
Uses OAuth 2.0 bearer tokens — call GetToken first; never expose credentials or tokens in client-side code
Onboarding follows a dependent multi-step sequence (Create Merchant → profile/KYC updates → documents → e-sign)
Best for large platforms that need end-to-end control

Get started

Referral links

Referral links are the lowest-effort path. Share your affiliate link from the Partner Portal; merchants complete sign-up and KYC on the PayU website.

What you can do

Share one link (email, website, messaging)
Let PayU manage the full onboarding journey
Track referrals and incentives in the Partner Portal

What you should know

No platform or API integration required
No brand control and no field pre-fill
Ideal for individual resellers and freelancers

Get started

Which method should you choose?

If you want…	Choose
Zero engineering and a simple shareable link	Referral Link
Ops tools, bulk/manual refer, incentives, and reports	Partner Portal
Your logo on PayU-hosted onboarding with low build effort	Co-Branded OAuth
Merchants never leave your app; full lifecycle control	Partner Integration APIs

Next steps

Register as a partner if you have not already — Register a Partner Account
Follow the guide for your chosen path above
After merchants are onboarded, enable collections — Partner Payment Integration
Before production, review Testing and go-live and Errors and troubleshooting

Updated about 1 hour ago

Did this page help you?

At a glance

Partner Portal

Co-Branded OAuth onboarding

Partner Integration APIs

Referral links

Which method should you choose?

Next steps

EXAMPLE QUESTIONS