ICICI Bank has informed credit card users about changes in various charges related to finance, late payments, fuel, utilities and education transactions. These adjustments will affect rules for airport lounge access, reward limits, transaction fees, and fees for additional cardholders, effective November 15, 2024 (today).

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International Education and School/College Fees: Credit card payments for international education or school/college fees will no longer be charged. However, a 1% fee will be applied to education payments made through third-party applications.

Late Payment Fees

As per the new rules, late payment fees on ICICI Bank credit cards will be revised. A breakdown of late payment charges by unpaid amount is provided below:

Rs 101 to Rs 500: Rs 100 fee
Rs 501 to Rs 1,000: Rs 500 fee
Rs 1,001 to Rs 5,000: Rs 600 fee
Rs 5,001 to Rs 10,000: Rs 750 fee
Rs 10,001 to Rs 25,000: Rs 900 fee
Rs 25,001 to Rs 50,000: Rs 1,100 fee
Above Rs 50,000: Rs 1,300 fee

Note: No late fee will be charged if the outstanding amount is up to Rs 100.

Limits on monthly expenses

The bank has implemented new monthly limits on rewards for certain spending categories. Cardholders with entry-level and mid-range cards can now earn rewards of up to Rs 40,000 per month towards service and insurance payments, while premium cardholders have an upper limit of Rs 80,000.

Additionally, grocery shopping rewards are now capped at Rs 20,000 per month for entry-level and mid-range cardholders and Rs 40,000 for premium cardholders.

No milestone advantage

The bank updated its policy to exclude rent payments, government transactions, and education expenses from milestone benefits or annual fee waivers. Cardholders now need to change their spending habits to meet the new criteria.

Airport lounge access changes

ICICI Bank recently revised the eligibility criteria for free airport lounge access. To avail this benefit, cardholders now need to spend a minimum of Rs 75,000 in the previous quarter. Please note that spa services are no longer included with the Dreamfolks membership.

For Emeralde cardholders, the spending threshold for annual fee waivers has been reduced from Rs 12 lakh to Rs 10 lakh per annum. In addition, Emeralde cardholders will be able to avail increased fuel surcharge exemption of up to Rs 1 lakh.

Interest Expenses

If payment is not paid in full by the due date, interest will be charged. Interest will continue to accrue until the outstanding amounts are paid on both the outstanding balance and all new transactions, excluding fees, charges and taxes, from the date of the transaction. Additionally, interest will be applied to cash advance transactions from the transaction date to the payment date. ICICI Bank has the authority to change the interest rate, which may increase up to a maximum of 3.8% per month (46% per annum) in case of default.