INFINIA METAL CREDIT CARD

A COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE

Infinia is a premium credit card of HDFC Bank that was launched in July 2011
and Infinia Metal Card was launched in October 2021 and has gone
through a few changes over time.
This guide is updated as on 01 July 2024.

Collated and Compiled By

“Virtual King”
An Infinia Metal Credit Card User

Disclaimer. All the data in this guide has been sourced, collected and collated from open
sources like various blogs, articles, threads, news, bank websites, etc and/or through
Infinia concierge/customer care/personal experiences. These details/data may change
from time to time. All information in this guide is for mere reference and user guidance only
for Infinia Metal Credit Card users.
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CONTENTS

Chapter Topic Page

1 Earning Reward Points (RPs) 3
2 Cappings on Earning RPs 14
3 Redeeming RPs 16
4 Cappings on Redeeming RPs 23
5 Transferring RPs 24
6 Card Offers and Benefits 26
7 Add On Cards 36
8 Priority Pass (PP) Cards 37
9 Lounge Access 39
10 Other Card Details 42
11 Fees and Charges 45
12 Credit Card Statement 49
13 Bill Payments 51
14 Miscellaneous Tips 57
15 Customer Support 71
16 References 72
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CHAPTER 1: EARNING REWARD POINTS (RPs)

Base Rate for Earning RPs

• RPs will be earned for transaction amounts in multiples of Rs 150 @ 5 RPs/Rs 150.
• Residual amounts or transactions below Rs 150 will not earn RPs.
• RPs base earning rate is 3.33% (i.e. 5 RPs/Rs 150 = 3.33%).
• Accelerated Rate for RPs is 5x (i.e. 16.67%) or 10x (i.e. 33.33%).

RPs on Annual Fees

• You get 12,500 RPs in return for paying the annual fees.
• With the right point conversions, you are essentially paying Rs 2.25K per annum which
is the GST (@12% of Rs 12,500).
• Given that the annual fee is mostly returned via RPs, it’s not a bad card, if you can
redeem points at 1:1 ratio Since the renewal benefit can be 1:1 points to rupee
conversion ratio.

Reward Rates

Spend RPs Reward Reward Remarks

Category Earned Rate % Rate
Per Rs 150
Retail 5 RPs 3.33% 1x 1x on utilities, insurance,
Purchases education.

Train & bus 15 RPs 10% 3x 3x reward points on IGP, Imagine,

ticket booking Tresor, Nykaa if you visit these
on SmartBuy sites through the SmartBuy
platform.
3x on Trains and Bus tickets
booked via SmartBuy > Travel and
Stays link on the Menu

Flight 25 RPs 16.67% 5x 5x on Flights booked via SmartBuy

booking and > Travel and Stays link on the
vouchers Menu.
purchases 5x on Gyftr for purchasing Myntra,
on SmartBuy Amazon shopping, Big basket,
Swiggy, Zomato and several other
gift vouchers.
Amazon Pay Vouchers (APVs)
have extra charges tacked on by
Gyftr, but still beneficial against the
16.6% reward rate. Amazon
Shopping Vouchers (ASVs) have
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no extra charges. Sometimes there

are 4% or 6% discounts on Swiggy,
Myntra, Zomato gift vouchers.

Hotel spends 50 RPs 33.33% 10x 10x on Hotels booked via

on SmartBuy SmartBuy > Travel and Stays link
on the Menu.
Medicines on 50 RPs 33.33% 10x 10x on medicines through
SmartBuy SmartBuy.
Forex 5 RPs 3.33% 1x However forex markup is 2%+GST
(~2.36%), which is still beneficial
considering the 3.3% points
earned. Enrolling for GVP gives
additional 1% rewards on forex,
against Rs 199+GST fee.

HDFC SmartBuy Portal

• Launched in 2015, SmartBuy is the bank’s proprietary aggregator portal where you’ll
find all the deals and offers that the bank is currently offering on its various credit and
debit cards under one roof.
• SmartBuy is a HDFC Bank’s customer engagement initiative to create an exclusive
portal that offers wide range of digital and physical products offering from merchants
across travel, entertainment, bill payments, electronics, fashion, books and more
categories. Also, provides the list of merchants where you can avail exclusive offers,
discounts and reward point for purchase through your HDFC Bank - Credit Card, Debit
Card, Internet Banking, Prepaid Card and Payzapp Wallet.
• HDFC Bank has partnered with various merchants like Cleartrip, MakeMyTrip (MMT),
Yatra, Goibibo IRCTC Authorised Partner, Amazon, Flipkart etc for products/services
offered on SmartBuy portal. The Products/Services are being offered solely by the
Merchants and HDFC Bank is not selling/rendering any of these Products/Services.
• With SmartBuy, you can earn accelerated RPs or CB with every transaction.
• Infinia gets the highest reward rate on HDFC Bank’s SmartBuy portal.

Reward Rates on SmartBuy Portal for Infinia

Category Reward Rate (x) Value % (@ 1RP=Rs 1)

IGP 10X 33%

Flights (Cleartrip and Yatra) 5X 16.5%
Hotels (Cleartrip) 10X 33%
MMT (Hotels) 10X 33%
IRCTC 3X 10%
Redbus 5X 16.5%
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Instant Voucher 5X 16.5%

Apple Tresor 5X 16.5%
Flipkart 3X 10%

Using SmartBuy Portal

• Flight Tickets Through SmartBuy. (SmarBuy Price + convenience fees) is roughly 5-
9% more than (Aggregator price + Card discounts + convenience fees) on flight
bookings. If you don't have the right card for aggregator websites then price will be
almost same. SmartBuy gives the same price. It just shows the price inclusive of taxes
whereas in external websites, taxes are added just before payment.
• Hotel vs Flight Bookings on SmartBuy. It is preferrable to pay for hotel booking and
redeem points while booking air tickets. 33% back on hotel which can be redeemed
against flights. If you do other way round, it’s a win for SmartBuy.
• Flight Bookings Using SmartBuy. One should compare the extra money being paid
at SmartBuy against the value of accelerated RPs being received. Based on an
analysis, the extra paid on SmartBuy in general will not be more than 15% of the total
value and 10% being more common. Let us assume the overhead as 15% which means
we should reduce the value of RPs by 15% to judge its actual value. Assuming you get
16.5% RPs on all the accelerated spends and 3.33% on regular spends, the adjusted
returns (16.5 - 15%) is still 14% for accelerated spends and 2.83% for regular spends
which is still better.
• SmartBuy Value. Expectation should be as follows when it comes to Infinia points –
• Value extracted per point via SmartBuy to be ~0.9.
• Flights will work ~75 - 80% of times with < ~10% price difference including
convenience fees.
• Hotels will work for ~50% of the times with < ~10% price difference between other
portals.

On SmartBuy Portal: 10x Accelerated RPs (33% RPs Gained)

• Max Limit. Max limit for accelerated gain: 15,000 RPs/month i.e. spending Rs
45,000/month will max out the limit.
• Hotels via SmartBuy. SmartBuy acts as an aggregator in this case and lists hotels on
Cleartrip, Yatra, and MakeMyTrip (MMT).
• Others. IGP Gift Vouchers, Jockey, etc.

On SmartBuy Portal: 5x Accelerated RPs (16.5% RPs Gained)

• Reward Rate. 25 RPs (5x) on every Rs 150 spent; spending Rs 90,000/month will max
out the limit.
• SmartBuy Portal. Infinia gets the highest reward rate on SmartBuy. 16.5% RPs for
SmartBuy (AGVs, ASVs, APGCs, etc). Check SmartBuy before you buy anything.
• Flights. Flights get 16.5% RPs. So, when you compare prices directly on OTAs and
then HDFC SmartBuy, SmartBuy should be the option when you don’t see a major price
difference. Infinia has capping of 15,000 RPs for flights in a month.
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• Gift Vouchers (GVs). GVs are the next best option. With 5x rewards on Infinia, you can
rack up RPs on virtually every purchase even if it is offline. You can buy Pantaloons,
Shoppers Stop, etc GVs for apparel and Big Basket GVs for groceries. Other options
are APVs and ASVs.
• Amazon/Flipkart. You still get a whopping 16.5% reward rate (5x) on insta voucher for
both Amazon and Flipkart. There is a monthly cap, but for planned purchases you can
accordingly accumulate vouchers over previous months.
• Make My Trip (MMT). Various packages
• IGP etc. 10x or 5x or 3x RPs on IGP, Imagine/Tresor, Nykaa if you visit these sites
through the SmartBuy platform .
• Discounts and Offers. Sometimes there are 4% or 6% discounts on Swiggy, Myntra,
Zomato gift vouchers. Nykaa, Zoom car (extra 5% off).
• Travel. Buses.
• Apple. Various offers.

Using SmartBuy Example

• On purchase of Rs 1,000 Amazon Pay Voucher (APV) from SmartBuy using Infinia,
Base RPs – 30; Accelerated RPs (4x) – 120; Value of RPs (0.5 - redeemed for voucher)
- Rs 75; Processing charges (2.95%) – Rs 29.5; Net value gain - Rs 45.5 ~ 4.55%
returns.
• If redeemed for Flights/hotel/tanishq/apple then Value of RPs – 150; Net value gain - Rs
120.5 ~ 12.05% returns.

3x Accelerated RPs: 9.9% RPs Gained

• Reward Rate. 15 RPs on every Rs 150 spent; spending Rs 1.5L/month will max out
the limit.
• Portals. SmartBuy, Gyftr, etc.

1x Base RPs: 3.3% RPs Gained

• Reward Rate. 5 RPs on every Rs 150 spent i.e. 3.3% pts gained (1x); spending Rs
60L/month will max out the limit. There are few credit cards that offer 3.3% as the
standard reward rate on all transactions.
• Online Portals & Offline Stores. 3.3% RPs on normal/every transaction - Redemption
- 1% for statement credit, 1.65% for SmartBuy shopping, 3.3% for SmartBuy (Apple,
Tanishq, Flights, Hotels) + AirMiles conversion.
• Education. For all fees etc. 5 RPs/Rs 150.
• Electricity Bills. If you pay via any website/app with your Infinia card you get 3.33%
reward rate credited in your points. However, if you buy APGC from SmartBuy/Gyftr
then you get 13-14% reward rate credited in your points, load that into Amazon and pay
the bill via Amazon pay. This is the best way to earn more RPs than traditional card
usage route.
• DMart. DMart is considered as grocery.
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Using Gyftr Portal

• What is Gyftr. Gyftr is a voucher portal. There are three… one for HDFC users
(SmartBuy), one for normal users and one for American Express. When we buy gift
vouchers from Gyftr we get more CB or upfront discount when compared to paying
directly.
• Buying Gift Vouchers (GVs). One can buy almost all types of Gift Vouchers (GVs)
through Infinia on the Gyftr portal and earn accelerated RPs and discounts.
• Accelerated RPs on Gyftr Portal. Buy vouchers for a lot of places through Gyftr for 5x
rewards. With Gyftr vouchers you get 16.66% RPs. On Gyftr - for purchasing Myntra,
Amazon shopping, Big Basket, Swiggy, Zomato and several other gift vouchers.
• Using Gyftr Portal. Eg. If you spend Rs 150 on Infinia you get 5 RPs. But HDFC has a
tie up with Gyftr whereby you spend Rs 150 on Gyftr using your Infinia and you get 25
RPs. So now for example if you need to buy something from Myntra worth Rs 3,000.
Had you used Infinia to purchase from Myntra you would have earned 100 RPs. So
instead of that – you go to Gyftr portal, then buy Rs 3,000 worth of Myntra vouchers
using Infinia and earn 500 RPs, then you go back to Myntra Portal, add these vouchers
to your account and then use them to complete your purchase. Thus, using Gyftr you
earned 400 extra RPs in this scenario.
• Buying and Using GVs on Gyftr. Certain brands like Amazon, Flipkart, BookMyShow
(BMS), PVR, Blinkit, Ola, Swiggy, Zomato, Myntra, Tata Cliq, Nykaa etc. can only be
used online while brands like Bata, Pantaloons, Westside, United Colours of Benetton,
Jack & Jones, Levi’s etc. can only be used at stores. Brands like Prestige, Shoppers
Stop, Croma, Kama Ayurveda, Skechers etc. can be used both online and at stores.
Please visit the brand page to check the usage of GVs.
• Using Gyftr/Amazon Pay Vouchers (APVs). Buy APVs from Gyftr to pay these bills.
16.5% accelerated RPs and Gyftr charges 2.5% + GST just for Amazon pay. Net value
back is ~13.5%. So getting a value back of Rs 27,000 just on bills on a spend of Rs
2,00,000 is possible. Other vouchers on Gyftr, we get 16.5% RPs.
• Gyftr GVs. Never buy directly on Amazon Portal by Infinia card. Use Gyftr Portal to buy
APVs first until monthly capping of Rs 30,000 is reached.
• Links for Gyftr. Don’t go to Gyftr directly and via PayZapp to buy APVs. Also, visit Gyftr
via PayZapp or via this link https://www.gyftr.com/instantvouchers/, not directly
on https://www.gyftr.com/ - when you get the OTP for CC payment you'll see in the SMS
the merchant is specified as GYFTR VIA SMARTBUY.
• Gyftr Portal Charges. Gyftr now charges an extra 2.5% on APVs and ASVs vouchers.
Yes you get the extra RPs but the deal is not as sweet anymore.
• Using Gyftr. You can directly go to Gyftr instant vouchers -
https://www.gyftr.com/instantvouchers/ to avail bonus RPs. SmartBuy redirects you to
the instant vouchers page. Select any of the offers and it'll take you to a page which
shows the RP calculation for different credit/debit cards including Infinia before
payment. Unfortunately, Gyftr seems to have two different login/account experience for
https://www.gyftr.com and https://www.gyftr.com/instantvouchers. The regular gyftr.com
doesn't provide bonus RPs.
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• SmartBuy Gyftr for Amazon. There are 2 vouchers on SmartBuy Gyftr for Amazon:
Amazon Shopping Voucher (ASV) - only to be used at Amazon at the time of checkout
and Amazon Pay Voucher (APV) - gets added to Amazon Pay Balance (APB). APB
itself is of three types - ASVs - can only be used for Amazon shopping; Amazon Pay
Gift Card (APGC) - can be used for Amazon shopping and gets added in APB as gift
card and can also be used with partner apps and utility bills; and Amazon Pay Add
Money (APAM) - can be used in place of ASVs and APGC. Additionally can also be
used for UPI payments.

Additional Charges on Gyftr Through SmartBuy

• Using Gyftr via SmartBuy and buying Amazon Pay Vouchers (APVs) (not the Amazon
Shopping Vouchers (ASVs)), one needs to pay 2.5% extra to Gyftr in return for the
accelerated RPs.
• One is getting 5x benefit which works out to 16.5% for Infinia. More than any other card.
One can afford to pay 2.5% & still get 14% which is still more than any other card.

Using Amazon Portal

• Amazon Pay Vouchers (APVs), Amazon Shopping Vouchers (ASVs) and Amazon
Pay Gift Cards (APGCs). APVs, ASVs and AGCs are different things. You can buy
these on Gyftr through Infinia an then use them as per requirement.
• APV. APV can be used on any website that supports Amazon Pay. Buy APVs through
Gyftr, to pay off at lots of places. APV on Gyftr (via SmartBuy) charges extra 2.5% as
GST, which reduces the overall benefit. APVs have extra charges tacked on by Gyftr,
but still beneficial against the 16.67% reward rate. But that is on 5x points for Infinia. So
you still get (5*3.3 -2.5) = 14% benefits. Nothing else can beat that.
• ASV. ASVs can be used only on the Amazon website/app. ASVs have no extra
charges.
• APGC. If there are no vouchers on Gyftr for something you are going to spend on, then
check if Amazon has APGCs for them. You can pay them via ASVs bought on Gyftr
through Infinia. APGC is a convenient, instant and perfect gift for every occasion to your
loved ones. It can be used to shop across millions of products across Amazon or pay on
any of the Amazon Pay partner websites.
• Amazon Pay Balance (APB). APB = Amazon Pay Wallet (APW) + APGCs.
• Monthly Cappings. Rs 20,000 per month is the cap on Amazon gift card on Gyftr
using HDFC Infinia and Rs 5,000 per month is the cap on Amazon wallet payments.

Using IRCTC Portal

• Links for IRCTC Portal. RPs on trains and bus (3x) booked via SmartBuy > Travel
and Stays link on the Menu.
• Charges. 1% of the transaction amount + GST will be charged on railway ticket
purchases. (Refer IRCTC website for detailed fee structure).
• If you book directly using IRCTC and pay using the Amazon Pay Gift balance (APGC
purchased from Gyftr using SmartBuy), you can save up to 14% (16%-1.8%
processing).
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• However, this method is only applicable for train bookings on IRCTC, not bus/flight/food
bookings on IRCTC.

Using PayZapp App

• Use PayZapp app, add your Infinia CC there.
• Shop for Gyftr vouchers within this app, and payment too is breeze without OTPs.
• If you want to buy vouchers, it takes hardly 30 seconds.

Gyftr vs SmartBuy
• Gyftr gets you 5x and SmartBuy gets you 10x (with an option to redeem 70% RP). The
difference is 5x which is around 15%.
• If the hotels in SmartBuy are more than 15%, get MMT coupons, else use SmartBuy to
book hotels. (This is a rough back of the hand calculation).
• eg. If you spend Rs 150 on Infinia you get 5 RPs. But HDFC has a tie up with Gyftr
whereby you spend Rs 150 on Gyftr using your Infinia and you get 25 RPs instead of 5
i.e. 5 times ie.e 5x RPs. So now for eg you need to buy something from Myntra worth
Rs 3,000. If you use your Infinia card to purchase directly from Myntra you would have
earned 100 RPs only. However, instead of that, if you go to Gyftr and buy Rs 3,000
worth of Myntra vouchers using Infinia and earn 500 RPs on this transaction. Then you
go back to Myntra, add these vouchers to your account and then use them to complete
your purchase. This way, using Gyftr you earned 400 extra RPs ie.e total of 500 RPs in
this scenario.
• Always compare the actual fares from the partner OTA websites and then book through
SmartBuy.
• Instead of booking from SmartBuy, one can buy the APVs to pay for a flight ticket and
can get 16% RPs and extra discount from Amazon Pay.

SmartBuy Perspectives
• SmartBuy is useful if using a premium card like DCB/Infinia. The savings in terms of
RPs will be slightly better than buying vouchers from other platforms. But again to
redeem those RPs one is forced to spend those RPs on SmartBuy again. It's quite
useful if you travel. Else if you use other card than DCB/Infinia SmartBuy does not make
much sense.
• SmartBuy redemption works best for travel, Tanishq and Apple purchases. If you use
flights and tanishq only then you can use it well.
• Earning through Infinia+SmartBuy, and utilizing RPs in the form of conversion points
gives you an excellent value back. Even using SmartBuy to book hotels and flights
should easily give you 13% value back, even with the inflated prices. The prices may be
4-5% higher than cheapest online option, so even taking that into account, the reward
rate would be 11-13%.
• Hotels are costlier on SmartBuy but it gives more RPs. So if the RPs outweigh the extra
cost then SmartBuy.
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• Another limitation is monthly capping on amazon shopping vouchers (25k) and amazon
pay (20k) which is painful. But you can buy max limit every month till you have stocked
up your amazon wallets for big buys like phone and laptop.
• You need Rs 1 L a month in SmartBuy to max out in Infinia.
• With SmartBuy, even though one is paying a bit more on the ticket itself, one is only
paying 30% of the total ticket price and one gets to keep the 70% cash. That's a big
upside if you have a lot of RPs and frequently redeem them. Also, the difference in
SmartBuy tickets for international routes is usually much lesser, and the value of RP
redemptions, therefore, much higher.

RPs on Activation
• Get welcome benefit of 12,500 RPs upon fee realisation and card activation.
• RPs are credited to your account on the payment receipt.

RPs on Renewal
• Given that the annual fee is mostly returned via RPs, it’s not a bad card either, if you
can redeem points at 1:1 ratio Since the renewal benefit can be 1:1 points to rupee
conversion ratio, the effective price for the card is 18% GST on Rs 12,500 i.e. Rs 2.25K
per annum only.
• E.g. With a fee of Rs 12,000+GST, you will get Rs 21,600 worth (@ 1 Accor point ≈ Rs
1.8 so Rs 12,000*1.80 = Rs 21,600) of Accor stay.
• RPs are received whenever fee is paid (renewal & joining both).
• 12,500 RPs credited only if card fee is paid. So, if you get waiver due to Rs 10L+
spends, then you won’t be getting the RPs.

RPs Validity
• For Infinia, the RPs will be valid for 3 years from the date of card upgrade/migration,
replacement, renewal or reissuance.
• RPs lapse after 3 years of not using it. E.g. If you make a purchase on 1 January 2024,
your RPs earned for that transaction will expire on 31 December 2026.
• And all points are nullified if the card is not used for 365 days.

RPs on Quarterly Spend Benefits

• There are no quarterly spend benefits with Infinia.
• They keep bringing the spend based offer. Like spend XXXX in a calendar month and
you get Rs 1,000/2,000 voucher etc.
• Spend criteria change every month. The bank will email if you are eligible for spend
based offers.

RPs on Add-on Cards

• The limits and RPs are shared across cards.
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RPs for Blocked / Hot Listed Cards

• If the CC is blocked due to hot listing i.e. lost, stolen, etc (or) card is returned i.e. not
delivered due to address change, etc (or) resident card holder holding a Non-resident
account (or) de-activation of card till card holder authorization – for such cases if the
card is not re-activated within 6 months from block placement, then the RPs accrued in
the card will be nullified.

RPs on Closed Cards

• RPs will be available for redemption only for 30 days from the date of card closure.
• RPs will get lapsed post 30 days of card closure.
• RPs redemption is allowed only towards products/vouchers.
• Cash Back (CB) redemptions are not allowed on closed cards.

RPs for Cancellation of Tickets

• If flight tickets booked on SmartBuy portal are cancelled then RPs equivalent to the
refund amount are credited back and not the points used to buy the tickets.

Receiving RPs
• The points arrive with the next statement date and you can use them right away.
• No need to wait 120 days to receive the rewards.
• 10x shows up in your points balance within few days but won’t be available to redeem
until after the billing date.

Additional Rewards
• Additional Rewards. Use your Infinia to book travel through the HDFC Bank Travel
Portal. You’ll earn additional rewards on top of the rewards you already make on your
purchases.

RPs Statements/Records
• RPs accrued will reflect in the statement as a message and will reflect as 'Reward
Points Summary'. The following will reflect under the RPs Status:
• Opening Balance
• Earned
• Adjusted
• Closing Balance
• 'Closing Balance' means RPs that can be redeemed by you .
• ‘Reward Points earned this month' means RPs that have accrued on the transactions
appearing on the statement of account.
• RPs will become available for redemption only when the RPs reflect in your statement
of account in the 'Closing Balance' field.
• Minimum number of RPs that can be redeemed are 500.
• RPs will also not accrue on transactions for rent, wallet load, EMI, fuel and government
transactions.
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Missing RPs
• Request for missing RPs must be submitted promptly in writing to The Manager
Customer Services, HDFC Bank Credit Cards Division and be accompanied by a legible
copy of the relevant sales receipts or card account statements.
• The bank will investigate all RPs queries but reserves the right to be the final arbiter in
the event of any dispute.
• The bank further reserves the right to adjust RPs records retrospectively in the event of
incorrect crediting or otherwise.

Utilising Online Links

• Bonus RPs. There's a section at the bottom of the statement which specifies the
bonus RPs. Depending on your transaction date and bill statement date, you might see
the bonus rewards shown in the next statement.

RP Calculations
• SB+Infinia is 16.67% rewards. APay gives ~ 10% (including the coupon) and any other
CC say PNB card gives 15% discount. Now for redeeming when you bring in Accor
redemption in this equation, SB+Infinia to Accor is 30% (1 RP = Rs 1.8. So it’s
16.67%*1.8). For other options one will get Cash Back (CB) but one will eventually pay
in full for a hotel accommodation which is probably not a great idea. One can do own
calculation before making a purchase. It won’t probably matter for small transactions
say Rs 500 or so but can be worthwhile for larger transactions.

Using Vouchers
• Buying Vouchers. Although most vouchers that are useful have monthly caps like
APVs and ASVs, but still the potential reward rate is much higher, if you simply keep
buying APVs/ASVs to the fullest quota and keep them handy for later. You can buy
other vouchers (Swiggy, Zomato, Reliance smart, Jewellery vouchers) from ASV
balance too. Pay all your bills on Amazon pay and buy SmartBuy vouchers for it. Use
ASVs for shopping. Buy Swiggy vouchers for groceries.
• AGCs. You can buy AGCs (up to Rs 20,000 a month) at a discounted rate due to
accelerated RPs and then use your Amazon Pay Balance to buy things on Amazon or
pay for food orders on Swiggy/Zomato.
• Amazon Pay Vouchers. You can get Rs 20,000 worth Amazon pay vouchers and Rs
10K worth Amazon shopping vouchers in a month. Make full use of it . You'll pay 3.5%
and 2.5% charges respectively, but you will still come out on top.
• Misc Vouchers. Myntra, Swiggy, Big Basket, etc. have vouchers too.

Booking Flights and Hotels

• Low Cost Airlines and Off Beat Hotels. If you don’t find your flight on the portal, it’s
better to once have a word with concierge before looking for other options.
• Flight Bookings. If sometimes you can’t get Vistara tickets via Club Vistara (CV)
points because the CV points seats are sold out, you can try and easily get the same
tickets on SmartBuy. Careful, bookings through Yatra vouchers are non-refundable.
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• Flight Bookings – Baggage Allowance. Most of the flights in SmartBuy are offers
without any baggage allowance. So please check before you book.
• Flight and Hotel Bookings. If you want to take a hotel in places like Kasauli or
Dharamshala where major rands do not exist, it is a dud with other cards. If you want to
book indigo or Spice Jet flights, it is a dud again. With Infinia points though; you can
book any hotel, any flight! With Infinia it's all just so simple, just choose the flight and the
hotel like a non-savvy normal person and use your points to make the purchase. You
can book any hotel or flight via SmartBuy. You don't have to rely on only ITC which is
quite expensive or Accor which does not have any property in hill stations in the north or
Vistara which is expensive and doesn't fly on all the routes.
• Hotel Bookings. If you don't have any RPs, then go to Cleartrip through SmartBuy. It
will give you 33% back as well. Using Infinia for hotel bookings will get 10x rewards,
which are quite lucrative. Of course, you will be limited by 7.5k/day or 15k/month
rewards. Assuming your transaction value doesn't exceed that, I would recommend that
route. If you have Infinia RPs, best option is to use RPs to book hotel through
SmartBuy. Price is same as directly booking through Cleartrip etc but you will not be
able to use promo codes in SmartBuy. Pay 70% using RPs and rest 30% using Infinia
which will again give you 33% RPs back.
• Nice Gestures. Book flights and hotels for your friends offering them some discount.
It’s a nice gesture.
Amazon Pay App Loading
• Amazon Pay app allows users to recharge its wallet balance only through debit cards or
Unified Payments Interface (UPI). It has barred credit cards for this purpose. This would
mean CC holders cannot earn CB rewards on loading their APW. However, apart from
debit cards, a user can also load the wallet using an AGC, which can be bought with a
credit card.
• So, you earn RPs on buying APGC, which can then be used to load the APB.
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CHAPTER 2: CAPPINGS ON EARNING RPS

Max RPs
• The max RPs that can be earned in a statement cycle Infinia metal is 2,00,000.

SmartBuy Capping for Accelerated RPs

• A daily cap of 15,000 RPs per day and 15,000 bonus RPs per calendar month.
• Once you reach this cap, subsequent purchases will earn RPs at the regular rate (1x).
• The monthly SmartBuy caps only apply to accelerated rewards, not base rewards.
• The base 1x rewards on spends is uncapped.
• So, do calculate bonus RP limits when doing a high-value transaction and try to split it
when possible. One can only book max Rs 45K/calendar month. After that no RPs.
• Technically Rs 50K/calendar month for hotels since SmartBuy gives 9x points, the
remaining 1x is base RPs.

Amazon Cappings
• Amazon Pay Vouchers (APVs). Capped at Rs 20,000 per month vis SmartBuy.
• Amazon Shopping Vouchers (ASVs). There is higher limit on purchase of ASVs vs
APVs.

Gyftr
• Gyftr has a Rs 1L/month limit on vouchers.
• All vouchers are linked to the phone number.

Other Cappings
• Insurance. Up to 5,000 RPs per day (i.e. Rs 1.50L per day). So if you are okay
staggering your insurance premium over multiple days then Infinia still offers better
value. The best way to pay insurance premium is via Amazon pay - and the best way to
get Amazon pay vouchers is via Gyftr portal for Infinia.
• Groceries. RPs earned on grocery transactions - capped at 2,000 RPs per calendar
month.
• UPI. CC purchases done via UPI mode will earn RPs up to a maximum of 500 points
(i.e. Rs 15,000) in a calendar month.
• E-Wallet. Load money into Pay Zapp wallet and use it for SmartBuy - Pay Zapp with a
Rs 1K cap per month.

Checking RPs Credit/Debit

• In the Rewards Redemption Portal (redirected from Net banking), You can check My
Orders (gives redemption details) and My Rewards (gives Monthly debit/credit of RP).
• Also verify with your CC statement for RP credits summary.
 15

No RPs
• Rental Transactions. RPs will not be accrued for rental pay transactions, property
management services like rent, maintenance, packers & movers, etc.
• Rent – 3rd Party. For rent payments made through third-party merchants, a fee of 1%
of the total transaction amount will be levied from the second rental transaction of the
calendar month. The rent payment platform is Red Giraffe. And they charge ~0.4%.
Which is the significantly lowest any of these platforms charge. Pay Zapp doesn't
charge anything.
• Income Tax (IT) Payments. Infinia doesn't give any RPs on IT payments.
• Government Transactions. No RPs for government transactions. For government
spends like IT payments you will pay extra convenience fee (which is 0.72% as of 1st
July 2024 for HDFC gateway through IT portal), get no RPs.
• Fuel. No RPs are earned on fuel transactions.
• Easy EMI. No RPs for Easy EMI.
• Smart EMI. RPs accrued will be reversed if a retail transaction is converted into Smart
EMI.
• E-Wallets. Infinia does not provide any RPs for loading e-wallets.
 16

CHAPTER 3: REDEEMING RPs

Redeeming RPs
• RPs earned can be used to redeem products and services, such as flights, hotel
reservations, and gift cards.
• Flights, IRCTC Trains, and Instant Vouchers are the most useful ones.
• While there are several options available for redeeming Infinia RPs, the miles transfer
program is the best choice for those looking to enjoy luxury flights and hotel bookings.
• With the program’s extensive list of transfer partners, you can maximise the value of
your RPs and experience top-notch travel experiences.
• Only 70% of the total payment for flights, hotel bookings, Apple and Tanishq vouchers,
etc can be made through RPs. Balance 30% has to be made through Infinia on which
RPs can be earned.

Redeeming RPs: Methodology

• SmartBuy or Net Banking. The RPs earned using Infinia are redeemable on HDFC’s
SmartBuy platform or via Net Banking.
• SmartBuy. SmartBuy is a rewards portal exclusively made for HDFC bank customers
where they can avail of exciting offers and deals over different categories. If you are
someone who doesn't have the time or knowledge, Infinia is pretty great as you can
easily redeem your points for flights/hotels on the SmartBuy portal. You get accelerated
reward points on your Infinia when you make purchases via SmartBuy.
• Net Banking. Login to HDFC internet banking using your customer ID and password.
Go to the ‘Credit Card’ tab from the top bar. Click on ‘Redeem Reward Points’ on the
left panel. Select the CC for which you want to redeem reward points and click on
‘Continue’ after which you will be redirected to the online redemption portal. On the
redemption portal homepage, click on ‘Redeem Reward Points’ and select your ‘Points
Range’ and ‘Item Category’ to find the rewards catalogue. Select the items against
which you want to redeem your points and confirm the same on your shopping cart.
Check the ‘Terms and Conditions’ Box and click on ‘Redeem’ to complete the
transaction.
• New Offers. HDFC Bank keeps launching different offers on its credit/debit cards via
the SmartBuy portal. Keep checking these offers.
• Tip. Avoid net banking portal for voucher redemption as you get lesser value there as
compared to what you get on SmartBuy.

Redemption Options
• Optimum Redemption of RPs. Infinia is not for someone who redeems the RPs for
cash/vouchers. If one is not redeeming the points on Infinia for booking flights/hotels,
then the converted standard reward rate when redeeming for vouchers and cash drops
to 1.65% (i.e. 1,000 RPs = Rs 500 Amazon voucher) and 1% (i.e. 1 RP = 30p)
respectively!
• Redemption Options. Don't redeem it to Amazon pay. That's waste of RPs. APVs are
better suited to book flights/hotels.
 17

• Special Offers. Every year in March, Vistara comes up with an offer where they give
bonus Club Vistara points if RPs are transferred to them.

RPs Structure
• 33% RPs (10x). For flights/hotels on SmartBuy - Redemption - 10% for statement
credit, 16.5% for SmartBuy shopping, 33% for SmartBuy (Apple, Tanishq, Flights,
Hotels) + AirMiles conversion.
• 16.5% RPs (5x). For SmartBuy (Amazon, Gift voucher) - Redemption - 5% for
statement credit, 8.25% for SmartBuy shopping, 16.5% for SmartBuy (Apple, Tanishq,
Flights, Hotels) + AirMiles conversion.
• 9.9% RPs (3x). For SmartBuy (Flipkart, train booking) - Redemption - 3% for statement
credit, 5% for SmartBuy shopping, 9.9% for SmartBuy (Apple, Tanishq, Flights, Hotels)
+ AirMiles conversion.
• 3.3% RPs (1x). On normal/every transaction - Redemption - 1% for statement credit,
1.65% for SmartBuy shopping, 3.3% for SmartBuy (Apple, Tanishq, Flights, Hotels) +
AirMiles conversion.

Available Options Value Per RP (Rs)

Flight and Hotel Bookings 1

Miles Transfer 1.33 approx.

Products (From HDFC Net Banking) 0.50

Gift Vouchers (GVs) 0.50

Apple Products and Tanishq Vouchers 1

Cash Back (CB) 0.30

Redeeming @ 1 RP = Rs 1
• SmartBuy. The redemption option that provides the best value for RPs is booking
flights and hotels on SmartBuy. In this case, 1 RP = Rs 1 for Infinia.
• SmartBuy Hotels & Flights. The best value would be to redeem the points for booking
flights/hotels on SmartBuy or transfer miles to one of the airline, hotel partners. To book
flights, Hotels etc via SmartBuy > Travel and Stay menu link. For flight and hotel
bookings, CC members can redeem up to a maximum of 70% of the booking value
through RPs/Cash Points. Rest of the transaction amount will have to be paid via the
same CC limit. And you earn 5x RPs on the portion of amount paid by card. Can
redeem up to 1,50,000 RPs per calendar month towards flights and hotels redemption.
• SmartBuy for Flights as Aggregator. SmartBuy portal on which you redeem the RPs
aggregates from all the top providers like Expedia, Cleartrip, Yatra, etc. So you always
 18

get the best rates too. Only Booking.com isn't present which can sometimes give better
rates.
• Cost Factor - Hotels & Flights. Do look at the price differences quoted on the
SmartBuy portal where you can use RPs vs the actual website partner which is booking
the flight. At times there is a vast difference in pricing. Check for price markup
compared to the direct airline website or other websites/apps like
Skyscanner/MMT/Cleartrip.
• SmartBuy vs Cleartrip. Use Infinia to buy only air tickets to get 16.66% RPs, but not
for hotels. Because hotels are available at a discount of 35% on Cleartrip and others.
• SmartBuy Pricing. Do check pricing of flights on different portals/apps. At times
SmartBuy is costlier.
• E.g. Indigo return on SmartBuy was Rs 17,900. Found the same flight on the Indigo
app for Rs 14, 400. Huge difference in fares. Another e.g. - booked a flight on SmartBuy
from BLR to JAI which costed Rs 7,190 (6,840 + 350 convenience). I did redeem RPs
for 70% of the flight value and effectively paid Rs 2,157. The same flight on amazon,
costs Rs 6,840 + 309 convenience - 400 coupon - 337 CB on Amazon Pay ICICI = Rs
6,412. This means effectively paying a premium of 12.13% just to book on SmartBuy.
• Another e.g. - there were few instances where there was cheaper price on
SmartBuy than any other aggregator platform. Another perspective - with SmartBuy,
even though you are paying a bit more on the ticket itself, you are only paying 30% of
the total value and get to keep the 70% cash. That's a big upside if you have a lot of
RPs.
• SmartBuy Flights.
• Book flight tickets via SmartBuy/Pay Zapp. This method allows you to pay 70% of
the ticket’s price with the RPs points in the ratio of 1 RP = Rs 1. The best part is when
you pay the rest of the 30% via Infinia, you accrue 16% of that 30% as RPs which can
be reused in your next travel.
• E.g. Actually Infinia gives you only approx. 14.5% discount on airlines. If you buy
air tickets for Rs 90,000, you get 15,000 RPs (max). Then you can use 15,000 RPs to
buy Rs 21,400 air tickets in the second transaction. (70% points allowed) and you have
to pay Rs 6,400 by card. So total expense Rs 96,400 to buy air tickets worth Rs
1,11,400. Discount is Rs 15,000 on Rs 1,11,400 which is 13.5%. Even if you consider
the 1066 RPs that you get on the second transaction of Rs 6,400, the discount becomes
around 14.5%. If you use 15,000 RPs on Accor, you will be spending Rs 90,000 to get
air tickets of Rs 90,000 and also get Accor hotels worth Rs 15,000 Spending Rs 90,000
to get value of Rs 1,05,000. Discount will become 14.29%.
• SmartBuy – International Flights. The difference in SmartBuy tickets for international
routes is usually much lesser, and the value of reward redemptions, therefore, much
higher.
• Family Holiday. Use the accrued RPs for a yearly family holiday where hotel
accommodation is taken care of using Accor and use the balance points for flight
redemption. That way your major expense (air+hotel) is covered without you spending
anything.
 19

• Airmiles Transfer. Infinia’s transfer program now includes many new partners, such as
British Airways, Etihad Airways, Vietnam Airlines, and more. You can redeem your RPs
against the miles or loyalty points of these partners through the Rewards360 portal, with
varying redemption rates.
• Travel vs Gold. For people with low travel expenses, there is Tanishq as a
redemption option.
• Tanishq Vouchers. Redeem RPs in 1:1 ratio for Tanishq vouchers. Redemption of
RPs for Tanishq vouchers on SmartBuy portal will be capped at 50,000 RPs per
calendar month. You can buy Tanishq vouchers at 1:1 conversion but capped at 70%
per transaction till 50,000 RPs per month. So, if you want to make full use of Rs
50K/month limit, you can redeem 7 * Rs 10,000 + Rs 2,000 vouchers. So you’re
spending Rs 22k for redeeming Rs 72,000 (50K RPs + Rs 22K cash) worth of vouchers
per month. You’re also eligible for 5x points for that Rs 22K spent on SmartBuy. If you
spend around Rs 10-12 L annually on Infinia, you can get around 60-80K Tanishq
vouchers every year using RPs.
• Tanishq Vouchers to Tanishq Gold. Infinia points are best used to buy Tanishq
vouchers as gold itself is an investment. Redeem Tanishq vouchers to buy gold at 1:1
i.e. 1RP = Rs 1. You cannot buy gold coins, but you definitely can buy jewellery.
• Apple. Redeem RPs in 1:1 ratio for Apple products on SmartBuy.

Redeeming @ 1 RP = Rs 0.5
• Amazon Vouchers. If you’re not into travel of any sort, then eVoucher is the best way
to redeem your points, especially of Amazon vouchers i.e. APVs, ASVs and APGCs.
Note that you need to visit SmartBuy redemption portal for redeeming such vouchers. If
you redeem via net banking portal, you’ll lose a lot of value. While this may sound like a
poor redemption, you still get a decent ~1.6% on any spend, about 16% on 10X
rewards and 8% on 5X rewards.
• Yatra Vouchers. Other way to save money on traveling is to buy yatra.com vouchers
from SmartBuy which generally sold in the range of 10 to 15 percent discount+ you will
get 5x RPs on Infinia + you will also get discounts offered by yatra.com.
• Redemption Rate. The effective standard reward rate when redeeming vouchers and
cash drops to Rs 0.5/RP i.e. 1.65% (i.e. 1,000 RPs = Rs 500 Amazon voucher).
Sometimes HDFC runs offers where 1 RP = 0.7 Amazon voucher. You could wait for
that rather than going for 0.5 point conversion.
• Products. Can get items from the rewards catalogue, apple catalogue, premium
rewards, points to cash, via the SmartBuy > Rewards menu link. Each method/brand
has different RPs to Rs conversion rate.

Redeeming @ 1 RP = Rs 0.3
• Cash Back (CB) for Statement Credit. Convert to cash. i.e. CB (i.e., can be
redeemed against the statement balance of the card). CB credits will not be considered
as payment for the last statement. You need to effect payment towards the previous
statement outstanding. CB amount credited to the card account will be adjusted
towards the next statement balance. No CB redemption charges.
 20

Redemption Calculations
• Formula. Suppose you earn X% of RPs and the place where you redeem provides Y%
RPs, and now while redeeming the points earned where you get Y% points back, you
are not getting the Y% on those points redeemed. You will only get Y% RPs for the
amount paid. So correct mathematical formula for this is (Reward Rate - (Redemption
Rate percentage of Reward Rate)) i.e. = X - (Y% of X).
• Reward Rates. Accordingly, various reward rates are:-
• For flights both X and Y is same i.e. 16.67%.
• So for Flights 5x = 16.67( 1 - 16.67% ) = 13.89%.
• General spends 1x = 3.33( 1 - 16.67% ) = 2.77%.
• Instant Vouchers 3x = 10( 1 - 16.67% ) = 8.33%.
• For Hotels 10x = 33.33( 1 - 16.67% ) = 27.7%.

Best Returns
• Real returns on Infinia are 13.46% at best, when the RPs earned on SmartBuy (max
15,000 RPs per day/month) are used to buy air tickets on SmartBuy (using 70% RPs
and 30% real money).
• Return 13.50% (since points can be used for only 70% of airfare).
• E.g. When you spend Rs 1,12,500 per day/month on SmartBuy for vouchers or air
tickets, you will collect 15,000 + 3,750 points. For the second air ticket of Rs.26,786,
you can use this 18,750 points as 70% payment along with Rs 8,036 real money (30%).
• Total money spent is Rs 1,12,500 + 8,036 = Rs 1,20,536.
• Total value received is Rs 1,12,500 + 26,786 = Rs 1,39,286.
• Max Return %.
• =(1,39,286—1,20,536)/1,39,286.
• =18,750/1,39,286.
• =13.46% at best (without wasting any points).

Redemption of RPs
• Redemption. Never redeem against CB or shopping items.
• Redemption for Flights on SmartBuy. There is a problem with Vistara towards South
India. For Ex. Vistara uses Mumbai & New Delhi as their hubs and operate on Hub and
spoke model, whereas Indigo operates on point to point model. This increases
connectivity for Indigo compared to Vistara. In this scenario HDFC SmartBuy portal
gives edge on redemption over Vistara.
• Redemption Hiccups. A user used 900 Infinia points for booking a flight ticket on
SmartBuy. It consumed points before taking the rest of the payment. 900 points were
consumed, but the payment failed for some reason. So what about the refund? Well, the
points are first redeemed into a voucher which in turn is used for the booking. In this
case, since the booking failed, the voucher is still active. User can choose to reuse it if
user has another booking or else it'll get expired on user’s next billing date and points
would be refunded back to user’s account.
 21

• Redemption vs Conversions for Flights. Rule of thumb - look at a redemption rate of

at least Rs. 1/mile. So if a cost of a ticket is Rs. 10,000. And it travels 8,000 miles and
Rs. 1,000 in taxes and fees - you're getting a redemption rate of Rs. 1.125/mile so that's
good. Anything less than that and you're better of redeeming 70% at Rs. 1/mile through
the SmartBuy portal.
• Cleartrip vs. Yatra. Always select Cleartrip for flight redemption, not Yatra (prices are
same or Rs 10-20 difference). But Cleartrip refund/reschedule process is excellent. You
receive full refund (even when you cancel yourself) almost immediately. But for Yatra
booking, refund is difficult, even after multiple follow-ups.
• MMT Bookings. During regular 10x days one can buy MMT e-voucher/gift card at 10x
from SmartBuy and book the property through MMT site using the gift coupon for a cool
10x reward on our choice of hotel at best rate. However, now MMT hotel portal is
directly integrated through SmartBuy and it’s easier to use MMT directly.

Cash Back (CB)

• CB. Even if you don't want to bother with gift vouchers and accelerated RPs (and
therefore monthly SmartBuy caps), you can just keep using it as a CB card with 1% flat
returns (with very few exclusions) and redeem whenever you are ready.

Maximise Utility Bills CBs

• E.g. For electricity bill of Rs 52K by BSES, make at least 4% reward ratio for all
payments... so for Rs 52K bill do 4 tranches of Rs 13K each i.e. add Rs 13K worth GC
in Amazon Pay Balance (APB) and pay electricity bill in advance... repeat it thrice
before bill is generated... generated bill would be less than Rs 15K.... then again add
GC and pay it through Amazon pay balance.... get maximum out of it @1% CB every
time.

Monetary Value of RPs

• The monetary value of RPs varies depending upon where the points are redeemed i.e.
SmartBuy or net banking and for what i.e. hotels or dining, or products, etc.

CB vs Hotel Redemption
• Let's say you have 50,000 RPs. Which means approx. Rs 15K in CB . With the Rs 15K
CB if you want to book a hotel, you will get a small hotel. But if the 50K RPs are
redeemed on partners like Accor, you will get much better experience with no extra
cost.

CB and Income Tax (IT) Obligations

• As per Section 56(2)(x) of the Income-Tax Act, the total CB earned on the CC is also
taxable if the amount on all your cards is equal to or greater than Rs 50K per annum.
• You need to report it under the head ‘Income from Other Sources’ or ‘Profits and Gains
from Business or Profession’, as the case may be.
 22

Miscellaneous Precautions
• Selling RPs. If you can find a buyer for Infinia RPs you can encash them at 15-20%
discounts. But never sell your RPs. Puts you in huge risk of getting banned.

Other Options
• DTH. You can redeem your RPs for DTH payments. This is one of the additional
advantage (yet small) of Infinia over other HDFC credit cards.
• Experiences: You can redeem for various experiences in a foreign city. Select city from
the dropdown and check out the experiences that you would love to explore. This
potentially reduces your expenses when you’re visiting a foreign country. For ex, you
can redeem for Universal studios entry at Singapore with hotel transfers for 5K points.
 23

CHAPTER 4: CAPPINGS ON REDEEMING RPs

CB Redemption (@ 1RP = Rs 0.30)

• With effect from 1st Feb’23, redemption of RPs against statement balance (cashback
redemption) will be capped at 50,000 RPs (i.e. Rs 16,666) per calendar month.
• CB credits will not be considered as payment for the last statement. Customers need to
effect payment towards the previous statement outstanding.

Flights & Hotels Redemption (@ 1RP = Rs 1)

• Redemption of RPs for flights, hotel bookings and against airmiles transfer is done with
best rate @ 1 RP = Rs 1 on SmartBuy portal - capped at 1,50,000 RPs per calendar
month.
• To convert your RPs to miles for Club Vistara, Intermiles, and Singapore Airlines, head
to the card section of HDFC net banking.
• For all other miles transfer partners, you’ll need to use the SmartBuy portals.

Tanishq (@ 1RP = Rs 1)
• Redemption of RPs for Tanishq vouchers on SmartBuy portal - capped at 50,000 RPs
per calendar month @ 1 RP = Rs 1.

Rewards Redemption Fee

• No redemption fee on Infinia (of Rs 99 as applicable to other HDFC cards).
• Rewards Redemption Fee will not be charged on redemption of RPs towards CB .

Redemption Value Cappings Remarks

Type (Per Calendar
Month)
Flights and hotel 1 RP = Rs. 1 1,50,000 RPs The redemption of RPs will be
bookings capped at 70% of the total value. The
remaining amount must be paid
using credit card.
Air Miles 1 RP = 1 air 1,50,000 RPs
conversion mile
Products & 1 RP = up to 50,000 RPs For some Products & Vouchers (like
Vouchers 50p (Tanishq Apple, Tanishq), the redemption of
vouchers) RPs will be capped at 70% of the
1 RP = Rs. 1 total value. The remaining amount
for Apple must be paid using credit card.
products and
Tanishq
vouchers
Statement 1 RP = 30p 50,000 RPs
balance
 24

CHAPTER 5: TRANSFERRING RPs

Travel Programs
• Best thing for Infinia is converting your RPs to various travel programs- flights or hotels.

Conversion – Airplanes @1:1 (i.e. 1 RP = 1 AirMile)

• Convert to Vistara miles, Intermiles, Krisflyer miles – go to HDFC net banking - Cards
Section - open up the Infinia card - Redeem rewards link - 1 RP to 1 mile conversion
rate.
• Convert RPs to several airlines and hotel programs (British Airways, Etihad, Accor All,
Wyndham and many more) via the SmartBuy platform > miles transfer menu link - again
different conversion rates, sometimes 1pt to 1mile, sometimes 1pt to 0.5 miles and so
on.
• Once or twice a year there is a bonus offer running, when you get 30% extra miles on
Vistara.
• Air Canada (aeroplane), AirAsia (AirAsia rewards), Avianca (Columbian), Finnair, Air
France (Flying blue), Hainan airlines (Fortune Wings Club), Vietnam Airlines (Lotus
miles), Turkish Airlines (miles and smiles), etc.

Conversion – Airplanes @ 1:0.5 (i.e. 1 RP = Rs 0.5)

• Air Canada (Aeroplan), British Airways, Etihad Airways, etc.

Ratio Airline/Hotel Partners

1:1 ALL – Accor Live Limitless, AirAsia rewards, Avianca LifeMiles

Finnair Plus, Flying Blue
Hainan Airlines Fortune Wings Club
Intermiles, IHG One Rewards
LotusMiles Program
Singapore airlines Krisflyer
Turkish Airlines Miles & Smiles
Vistara Airlines – Club Vistara
Wyndham Rewards

Air Canada – AeroPlan

British Airways Executive Club
2:1 Etihad Guest
United MileagePlus
 25

Conversion – Hotels @1:1 (i.e. 1 RP = Rs 1):

• Accor. For Infinia, Accor is best for hotels. Accor hotel conversation rate is 1:1
conversion ratio. For 1,000 Accor points you get 20 euro gift voucher. So effectively
1.7x. Accor values their points higher at 40 EUR per 2,000 RPs. So it works out to be
1.7x to 1.8x depending on the conversion rate. @ 2:1 w.e.f. 15 January 2024.
• Marriott. Marriott can be of great value if you find good redemption options too.
Marriott has more reach in India and worldwide too (more hotels). Infinia to Marriott in
1:0.5 in following way: Infinia -> KrisFlyer (1:1) and then KrisFlyer -> MarriotBonvoy
(1:0.5) or book the Marriott hotel through SmartBuy if available.
• Others. IHG, Wyndham, etc.

Best Returns
• Return 8.33%, if points transferred to Accor.
• Return 4.16--6.66% if points transferred to Turkish, Avianca, British, Etihad, United, Air
Canada.
• Return 8.33--13.33%, if points transferred to AirAsia, KLM/Air France, Finnair,
Singapore, Vistara, Vietnam, Hainan, IHG, Wyndham.

Optimising RPs and Requirements

• If you don't have any immediate need for a particular flight or hotel room, you can
convert the Infinia RPs into airmiles or hotel points in the ratio @2:1 or 1:1 and then use
these airmiles or hotel points later.
• But then you are locked into that particular airline or hotel chain and you can use the
converted points to buy air tickets only of that airline or rooms only of that hotel chain.
 26

CHAPTER 6: CARD OFFERS AND BENEFITS

Renewal Offer
• Spend Rs 10 L or more in the preceding 12 months and get renewal membership fee
waived off for next year.
• Renewal benefit of 12,500 RPs upon fee realisation.

Hotels: Complimentary Club Marriott Membership (For First Year)

• The membership starts on the day of card activation for one year only.
• Up to a 20% off on the food and beverage bill at the restaurants for up to a maximum of
ten (10) guests.
• Select Marriott hotels offer a 15% off up to a maximum of ten (10) guests.
• Up to a 20% off on the Best Available Rates on rooms at participating Marriott hotels in
India and on Weekend Rates in Asia Pacific.
• 20% off on Spa services at select participating Marriott hotels in India between Monday
and Friday i.e. 2 certificates entitling the Member to a 20% off on select treatments at
the Spa from Monday to Friday. This benefit is valid for one guest. The use of the
certificates is governed by the terms and conditions mentioned on the back of each
certificate.
• Two (2) one-time use certificates that are valid for use in India only. 1 certificate entitling
the Member to an upgrade to the next category of room on Best Available Rate for a
maximum of two (2) night’s stay. 1 certificate offering the Member a 30% off on
accommodation on the Best Available Rate on the base category of rooms, valid for a
stay of a maximum of two (2) consecutive nights. Reservations must be made in
advance and are subject to room allocations.
• You do not get the Club Marriott membership along with your card kit. You’ll need to
apply separately. Membership can be availed only by Primary cardholders on providing
valid Email and mobile number registered on your Infinia. On successful registration, the
membership number will be emailed to you instantly. The membership will be
available to you on the Club Marriott South Asia App. The membership can be availed
only in the first year of Infinia cardholding. First year of cardholding is defined as 365
days from card issuance date of Infinia/Infinia (Metal Edition) whichever is earlier. This
membership will not be renewed by HDFC Bank.
• Within 15 days of Infinia card setup, the cardholder will receive an SMS /e-mail to apply
for the membership from HDFC Bank. The cardholder will need to visit the webpage
shared on SMS/ e-mail and provide details as required for membership issuance. A Rs.
1 transaction will have to be completed by the cardholder on the webpage.
• Customer needs to visit partner webpage and provide their details as required for the
issuance of membership. The customer will need to use the registered email ID and
mobile number. On successful verification, the cardholder will receive an activation
email with the Membership Number instantly.
• Download the Club Marriott South Asia App from the App Store / Google Play Store.
Click on Activate Membership. Enter the Membership Number and verify your Mobile
Number and Email to create your login credentials. Unlock your Membership to access
 27

a range of benefits at Marriott hotels. You have an option of adding a Spouse Card at
the time of activating your Membership on the App.
• Club Marriott membership once issued, the cardholder, needs to contact below
coordinates for the support Email: [email protected] or Number: 1800 1021
030
The helpdesk will be operational from 9.30 AM to 6.00 PM from Monday to Saturday
(excluding Public Holidays).
• Marriott Member Care Number: +91 11 4316 9650 from 9 AM to 9 PM, 7 days a week.
Email [email protected]. WhatsApp +91 97100 8210.

Club Marriott Membership vs Other Offers

• Club Marriott offers have so many clauses and limited participation from Marriott hotels.
You’ll receive better offers from aggregators like MMT or Agoda.

Hotels: ITC Hotel Offers

• ITC Hotels: Night Stay.
• 2 nights + 1 night free i.e. book stay for 3-nights and pay for 2 at participating ITC
Hotels with your Infinia credit card.
• The complimentary room night is only applicable for the room rate as any applicable
taxes & additional services will be borne by the guest/ customer. Payment to be
made via Infinia CC to avail the offer.
• One complimentary night per booking irrespective of the number of nights stay. Offer
applicable for booking 3 nights only.
• The offer is only applicable to advance booking. Offer is subject to availability of room
nights /categories reserved for the program.
• Offer valid only for Primary cardholders i.e. offer applicable only if the primary
cardholder is one of the room guests.
• Bookings on blackout dates are excluded from the offer.
• Spa & Salon services are not included in the package and are subject to availability
subject to prior appointment.
• Wi-Fi/ Breakfast will be included.
• This offer cannot be combined with any other offer/promotion or benefit(s) available
through any loyalty program run by either ITC Hotels or HDFC Bank.
• Use Case Eg. A user tried availing 2+1 offer on ITC room nights via Infinia.
Compared rates and it emerged that if one books via SmartBuy MM, then it was Rs
26,000 for 2+1 and Rs 16,600 for SmartBuy. So it was a loss of Rs 10,000 even after
getting one free night. All the factors like room category, and inclusions etc - all were
exact same.
• ITC Hotels: Buffets.
• 1+1 buffet i.e. get 1+1 complimentary buffet at participating ITC Hotels with Infinia.
• Payment to be made via Infinia to avail the offer.
• Offer is applicable on all days.
 28

• Maximum one complimentary buffet per booking and one booking per month/card
allowed. So use the ITC 1+1 and save approx. Rs 3.5K per month i.e. approx. Rs
42K benefits per year.
• Offer is only applicable on advance booking done via Concierge desk.
• Booking should be placed 48 hours before date of dining. Booking once made cannot
be cancelled/modified.
• Offer valid only for Primary cardholders i.e. offer applicable only if primary cardholder
is one of the guests who will dine at restaurant.
• Offer applicable only if booking amount is paid via Infinia.
• Offer cannot be clubbed with any other offer being provided by either ITC Hotels or
HDFC Bank.
• Kids below the age of 6 dine free, kids above the age of 6 and under the age of 12
will be charged 50% of the prevailing rate. Kids above the age of 12, will be treated
as adult.
• Call Infinia 24x7 concierge at 1800 118 887 / 022 42320226. Share the preference of
hotel, date and time of visit. Receive reservation confirmation via e-mail. Show the
reservation email at the time of dining and make balance payment at restaurant with
your Infinia card.

Good Food Trail Program

• Customers can get up to a maximum of 40% discount at select partner restaurants. The
customer will get the discount in the bill itself. Customer he has to inform the restaurant
that he holds the card, and he is eligible for the discount, before the generation of
invoice. Also he has to produce the card.
• Get additional 15% off on all your bill payments via Swiggy Dineout (20k + restaurants).
• Discount will be applied on the transactions with value of Rs. 2,000 (post applying
restaurant discounts & offers) or more payable through the payment gateway using
HDFC Bank Credit Card.
• Max capping at Rs 1,000 per month; twice per month.
• Offer utilisation through Swiggy app.

Dineout Passport Membership

• Minimum 25% off on the bill at 2,000+ restaurants in 20 cities across the country.
• 1+1 on Buffet at 200+ restaurants.
• Benefits on Dineout Pay such as additional CB and zero convenience fee.
• Exclusive Access to Dineout Passport Experiences.
• Early Access to events and festivals such as GIRF, Gourmetlicious, etc.
• Cardholders will have to apply for Dineout Passport membership. Rs. 1 transaction
will have to be made from Infinia for availing the membership.
• You can just Walk-In any of partner restaurants of your choice and Dine-In. No prior
reservation required. When you request your bill, you must notify the person attending
to you that you want to redeem a Dineout Passport offer using your smartphone.
Search for the restaurant within the Dineout app and tap redeem of Dineout Passport
Offer. Be sure that the outlet is correct because some restaurants have offers that
 29

can be redeemed at more than one outlet. The app will ask for the restaurant's PIN.
Simply ask the Server for the restaurant Dineout Passport PIN number to
acknowledge and enter it on the app. Once done, you will get a confirmation notice on
your screen on the successful redemption of the offer. The Server will most likely
want to make a note of the transaction ID that appears on your screen so you should
allow them to do this. If you accidentally moved past this then you can still see the
redemption confirmation reference by going to your 'Redemption History'. The Server
will then prepare your bill with the discount applied. The restaurant will receive a
receipt of the redemption by email and this will contain the same transaction ID for
security purposes.
• Infinia is the card which makes the bill of Rs 8K on Dineout to Rs 6.8K, and those
who accompany you..... they open their mouth in awe.

Fuel Surcharge Waiver

• 1% fuel surcharge waiver at all fuel stations across India.
• On transactions between Rs.400 and Rs.1,00,000.
• Waiver capped at Rs 1,000 every billing cycle.
• Fuel Surcharge Waiver will be capped at 1% of the eligible fuel transaction amounts.
• GST on Fuel surcharge will not be reversed.
• The rate of surcharge may vary from 2.5% to 1% depending on the fuel station and their
acquiring bank.

Swiggy
• Swiggy Dineout discount of 15% of up to Rs 1,000/twice a month (bill amount> Rs
1,500) on eating at restaurants.
• Also, you do not get the 3.3% CB on the spends. E.g. : If you get Rs 1,000 off on a Rs
5,000 bill and pay Rs 4,000 at the restaurant, Rs 4,000 is not eligible for base 3.3%
RPs.
• Some Swiggy transactions are marked as grocery based on the MCC. Infinia now
calculates grocery RPs on a calendar month basis, meaning the RPs may come in the
statement after the one where the transactions are billed, depending on when you
transacted.
• E.g. On a bill of Rs 2,500, effective discount will be :-

Offer Discount Discount Effective Bill

Rate (Rs) (Rs)

Swiggy Dineout discount 10% 250 2,500 – 250 = 2,250

Infinia discount 15% 341.25 2,250 – 341.25 = 1,908.75

Total Effective ‘Discount’ 23.65% 591.25 1,908.75

 30

Spas
• Free Be Relax Spas in Malaysia, Singapore, London, Germany, Dubai, and USA.

24x7 Personal Concierge Services

• Offers
• Book golf.
• Book travel and stay.
• Airport VIP meet and greet.
• Itinerary planning and reservation assistance.
• Private dining assistance.
• International gift delivery.
• Event planning and referrals.
• Courier Service Assistance.
• Car rental and limousine referral and assistance.
• Flower & gift delivery assistance.
• Hotels. International SOS will assist you by providing the name, address and telephone
number of hotels in major cities. If requested and whenever possible, International SOS
will facilitate in making the reservation on your behalf.
• Business Services. International SOS will assist you by providing conference service
referral or arrangement assistance and translation service assistance.
• Flower and Gift Delivery Assistance. International SOS will assist you by arranging
for delivery of flowers or gifts to his or her family or business associates.
• Courier Service Assistance. International SOS will assist you to send documents or
parcels by arranging courier services to his or her family or business associates.
• Dining Referral and Reservation Assistance. International SOS will assist you by
providing the name, address and telephone number of restaurants in major cities. If
requested by you and whenever possible, International SOS will facilitate in making the
reservation on your behalf.
• Events. International SOS to provide a calendar of global, entertainment-related events
for the year, to be updated quarterly, which can be shared with HDFC Bank
cardholders.
• Fine Dining Network. International SOS shall assist you in the development of a
“special value-added offer” for at least 15 restaurants in the domestic Indian market,
targeting restaurants in Mumbai and New Delhi, and to be expanded to Hyderabad,
Chennai and Bangalore at a later date as mutually agreed.
• Hotel Benefit. International SOS shall assist in the negotiation of complimentary
status in a hotel brand loyalty program.
• These referral and arrangement services would be provided to all the eligible members
anywhere on a 24-hr basis on a best effort basis. International SOS shall not be
responsible for any third party expenses incurred which shall be the responsibility of the
user.
• When HDFC mentions referral, it means that they will give you information on request.
This is more like you talking to Alexa or Google Assistant – but only with a real person.
 31

• Use the concierge service only if you really need it e.g., you are in a different country,
and you are unable to understand the local language.
• You might lose some opportunity to get the best deals – e.g. flower delivery through a
local store might be cheaper and faster than the vendor concierge has on file.
• For concierge services, call 1800-118-887 (toll-free) or 022-42320226 (toll).

Foreign Travel And Forex Transactions

• Rewards on forex transactions @ 5 RPs on every Rs 150 spent i.e. standard reward
rate (3.3%).
• Currency conversion rate is applicable as on the date of settlement.
• Forex markup is 2%+GST (~2.36%) - still beneficial considering the 3.3% RPs earned.
• Net Reward Rate for international transactions: +1.94%.
• Though not activated out of the box, one can call to the priority desk and enable the
Global Value Program (GVP) - additional 1% rewards on forex, against Rs 199+GST
fee & 1% CB on all international transactions.
• GVP - Do note that GVP has a Rs 199+GST fee and is auto renewed unless you cancel
it. There is a monthly cap of Rs 1,000 CB and on hitting Rs 1.5L international spends
you get Rs 2,000 travel voucher. First time alone there is 500 RPs as welcome bonus.
• 2% markup + GST - 3.3% effective rewards - 1% CB with the GVP = almost 2% back.
• Rs 50L medical emergency insured globally.
• W.e.f. 1st January 2023, a markup fee of 1% will be levied on all transactions carried
out in Indian Currency at an international location or at merchants which are located in
India but registered overseas.
• Charges in foreign currencies will be converted into Indian Rupees (INR) using the
exchange rate established by the bank for such transactions on the date when the
charges are processed by the bank or authorised agents, plus any applicable
conversion commission.
• Amounts converted by third parties such as airlines or other establishments will be billed
at their rates.

Forex Card vs Infinia During Foreign Travel

• During international travel, using a Forex Card instead of your Infinia CC is
recommended.
• Forex cards are cheaper and safer to use internationally.

Golf
• Applicability. Only primary cardholders are eligible for complimentary game/lesson.
• Golf Games. Unlimited complimentary golf games at leading courses across India and
select courses across the world.
• Golf Coaching. Unlimited complimentary golf coaching at select golf courses across
India.
• Fee Waiver. Complimentary golf games and 100% green fee waiver + free access to
driving range + instructor’s fees + free 50 golf balls per lesson.
 32

• No Charges. All the charges pertaining to the golf coaching sessions are a part of your
membership, hence you should not to make a payment to anybody pre-or post-the
coaching session.
• Making Golf Reservations. You’ll need to make reservations through the Golf
Concierge Assistance services before you can access the service. To book, please call
the concierge at 1800 118 887 (toll free); 022 42320226 (toll). At all times, please
ensure that you call the Golf Concierge on 1800 118 887 to make enquiries or to
request a booking, whether for a Golf Lesson or Golf Game.
• ID Proof. Photo ID proof which is a mandatory requirement for verification at the golf
course. The golf course will recognize you by your name, as mentioned during
reservation. However, we request you to carry your Infinia card and or any other ID
proof.
• Dress Code. Golf dress code is mandatory. The dress code for all the classes will be
Collar t shirts & formal trousers along with regular sports shoes. Members who have
golf shoes can wear them instead of regular sports shoes. All practice equipment & balls
will be provided by their team.
• Handicap Certificate. Certain golf courses may require a handicap certificate, the
same will be intimated to you at the time of booking/confirmation. It is mandatory to
carry a valid handicap certificate for all international bookings. The same will need to be
mailed to the golf concierge at the time of placing the booking.
• Minimum Player Conditions. Weekdays - minimum of 2 (Two) golfers per flight;
weekends/holidays – minimum of 3 golfers per flight. It will be the exclusive
responsibility of the cardholder to fulfil the minimum flight conditions in respect of each
booking request.
• Domestic Golf Courses. You need to book 4 clear days in advance for
Weekday/Weekend/Holiday Bookings for a golf game or a golf lesson. 4 days will not
include the day of placing the request, and the day of the game.
• International Golf Courses: You need to book 15 clear days in advance for
weekday/Weekend/Holiday Bookings for a game of golf. 15 days will not include the day
of placing the request, and the day of the game.
• Cancellation of Domestic Bookings. Cancellation must be made at least one clear
day in advance prior to tee-off date to avoid application of cancellation charges. Should
there be a “no-show” or the confirmed booking be cancelled less than one clear day
before the tee-off time, you will be charged a cancellation fee of Rs 500 per person.
• Cancelation of International Bookings. Cancellation must be made at least four clear
days in advance prior to tee-off date to avoid application of cancellation charges. Should
there be a “no-show” or the confirmed booking be cancelled less than four clear days
before the tee-off time, you will be charged a cancellation fee of Rs 500 per person.
• Number of Slots. The number of slots available for complimentary golf sessions is
limited and is available on a first-come-first served basis.
• Advance Booking. A Cardholder shall be permitted to book a maximum of 14 days in
advance and can hold only one booking at a time.
 33

• Cancellations. Should the golf game be suspended or cancelled after commencing the
round due to rain, inclement weather or for any other reason there will be no refund of
guest charges or any other pre-paid charges.
• Blackout Dates. Tournament dates at courses are blackout dates.
• No Group Bookings. The HDFC Golf Program is valid for golf course access only to
individual golfers and is not valid for any group bookings.
• No Direct Contact. Under this programme you are not allowed to contact the golf
clubs/golf courses directly.

Offline Spends
• You don’t have to think before each purchase about which card should be better for this
merchant. Just take out Infinia and pay and get flat 3.33% back.
• Flat 3.33% RPs on any offline purchase.

Interest Free Credit Period

• Up to 50 days of interest free period on your Infinia from the date of purchase (subject
to the submission of the charge by the Merchant).
• This period will be free of interest only if all previous dues are paid in full and there is no
unpaid balance carried over from previous months.

Revolving Credit
• Enjoy Revolving Credit on your Infinia at 1.99% per month interest.

Credit Limit
• Infinia comes with Rs.8 L upwards credit limit.
• Also, it has this neat feature called NPSL (No Pre-set Spending Limit). This means, that
if you ever wanted to get higher credit limits, you ask them and they give.

Cash Advance
• Use Infinia to access cash in an emergency from ATMs in India or abroad.
• Zero cash withdrawal charge upon withdrawing up to 40% of the card limit value in
India.
• All cash advances also carry a finance charge equal to charges on revolving credit from
the date of withdrawal until the date of full payment. The finance charge is subject to
change at the discretion of HDFC Bank. Presently 1.99% monthly.

Rental Payments
• Infinia gives one transaction per month without any charges.
• W.e.f. 1st January 2023, 1% fee on transaction amount will be levied on rental
transactions done on any applicable merchant from the 2nd transaction onwards per
month.
• For rental payments no RPs will be credited.
• Though you won't get RPs or other significant benefits but you can defer all your cash
out flow by 1 month.
 34

Rental Payments and IT Aspects

• If you are paying rent greater than Rs 50,000 in any month, you have to compulsorily
deduct 5% TDS and pay the net amount after tax deduction to your landlord else no
deduction is required under section 194IB. Else you can be made an assessee and
penalized.
• The person receiving such amounts is liable to show it as income from House Property
and pay applicable taxes on it after necessary deductions as per their tax slab. Failure
to do all this may lead to interest, fines and penalties.

Insurance Cover (Primary Card Holder Only)

• Accidental Air Death. Accidental air death cover worth Rs. 3 Cr. In case of death in an
air accident, the nominated NOK will receive a compensation of Rs 3 crore. Air accident
cover will be activated if the tickets are purchased using Infinia credit card.
• A 12-month window is provided for injury resulting in death.
• Medical Emergency Cover. The card holder is covered up to Rs 50 lakh against
medical emergencies including hospitalisation during travel abroad if the tickets are
purchased using Infinia credit card.
• Credit Shield Cover. Credit Shield Cover for up to Rs 9 L. The outstanding amount on
the Infinia CC is covered to an extent of Rs 9 L in case of accidental death and
permanent disability.
• Nominee Details. The customer needs to update their nominee details for the Air
accident cover.
• Travel Insurance. Travel Insurance provided shall be valid only for International
Travel, subject to travel origination from India. Maximum trip duration is restricted to 30
days. It will be activated if the tickets are purchased using Infinia credit cards. Travel
Insurance provided under the policy shall not be valid for procuring a travel visa. Travel
Insurance provided shall be valid only for International Travel, subject to travel
origination from India.
• Claim Procedure. Intimation of Claim to be provided within 60 days from the date of
loss by the insured. Documents to be submitted to HDFC ERGO within 130 days from
the date of loss.
• Insurance Partner. The insurance partner is HDFC Ergo and the customer needs to
raise the claim directly with the insurance company. HDFC Ergo General Insurance
Company Reach @ + 800-0825-0825 (Global toll-free) and 0120 – 4507250 (toll).
Email: [email protected].
• Claim Documents. The claim documents to be sent within 130 days. Contact details:
• Toll Free: +800 08250825 (International Toll Free - accessible from outside India) /
01204507250 (Chargeable)
• Email: [email protected]
• Address: A&H Claims Inward Team, HDFC Ergo GIC Ltd., 6th Floor, Leela Business
Park, Andheri Kurla Road, Andheri East. Mumbai 400059.
• Applicability. Please note that all the above insurance covers will be available only
after the you activate Infinia credit card.
 35

• Documentation. After the card activation, it is recommended that the initial documents
for nominee etc be forwarded at the earliest lest in an unfortunate accident, the benefits
lapse.
• Nominee. The last held details of the nominee are considered for release of benefits.
 36

CHAPTER 7: ADD-ON CARDS

Add-On Cards
• Lifetime Free (LTF). There is no joining/yearly charge for Add-on cards.
• Add on cards for Infinia metal will be metallic.
• Supports up to 3 Add-on cards for family members (close/blood relatives like parents,
wife, children over 18 years of age, in-laws, etc) for free.
• With due approval, you can get the 4th Add-on card also.
• Add-on cardholders also enjoy the same travel benefits as the primary cardholder.
• Earlier the card numbers and CVV were same, only the name was different. However,
now wef February 2024, the Add-on cards have different numbers and CVV as well.
• The credit limit is shared across all the cards.
• Add-on cardholders are also given PP Cards.
• No golf privileges for Add-on card members.
• There is a separate section in the app to manage the limits of all Add-on cards. You can
control the international/ATM/etc usage, and see the individual spends too.
• The transactions will be charged to the primary cardholder account and will be included
in the statement and will not be segregated in any manner from the transactions
incurred by the primary cardholder.
• No separate statement will be issued for Add-on card.
• The mobile number for add-on card will be that of the add-on card member. However, in
case one wants to get it changed to the primary card holder, it can be done through
customer care/RM/bank branch.

Loss of Primary/Add-on Card

• If you lose and/or block your primary card, you get a single box with all cards and all PP
cards included in that. You lose one, you lose all.
• As the Add-on card is an extended facility given on the Primary Card Account, the Add-
on card is rendered invalid when the primary card is reported lost.
• Similarly, if the Add-on card is reported lost, the Primary Card Account and other Add-
on cards will be invalidated from usage.

Optimum Beneficiaries of Add-on Cards

• Add-on cards are the best possible options for those individuals who have difficulty
starting their financial journey in the credit market and can find it challenging to create
their credit journey due to a lack of credit history or because of having no source of
income. Many people nowadays want to start their credit journey with an Add-on card
which can help you create your credit journey if your family members have credit cards.
 37

CHAPTER 8: PRIORITY PASS (PP) CARDS

PP Cards
• PP Cards Membership. PP membership is offered through PP Ltd Hong Kong. The
PP membership and cards are not transferable.
• Receipt of PP Cards. Customer need not apply separately for the PP membership. It
is included in the welcome kit.
• PP Card Numbers. PP cards of Primary & Add-on cards have different numbers
(Mastercard variant).
• PP Account. You don't need to activate your card but by activating your online account
you'll see lots of benefits like offers, discounts and lounge alternatives. Register online
to enjoy PP at your fingertips.
• Validity. The validity is as under:-
• Card Activity. Bank has the right to withdraw the PP membership, or any other
benefit associated with your CC if your card is closed or remains inactive for more
than 90 days.
• Card Expiry. Usually your CC expiry date and PP expiry dates are same, so when
the bank would resend you renewed CC (which should also happen automatically)
your PP also gets sent at the same time automatically.
• PP App. One can also download PP App and add digital cards associated with CCs if
one wants to avoid carrying physical PP cards. However, downloading the app is not
mandatory. Also, it appears that there are no major benefits in signing up for or
downloading the app.
• PIN Requirement. PP card doesn’t require PINs. But they may ask for matching
passport. If not they are likely to deny entry, saying that passport and priority pass
holder need to be the same person.
• Rules and Regulations. All participating lounges are owned by the third party
operators. You need to abide by the rules and regulations of the visited lounge.
• Children. Accompanying children are subject to full guest fees unless otherwise stated
in the lounge listing.
• Maximum Stay Policy. Participating lounges may reserve the right to fix a maximum
stay policy to avoid overcrowding.
• Food and Beverages. The provision of free alcoholic drinks is at the discretion of each
lounge operator and in some cases may be limited. In such cases you are liable to pay
for all additional consumption.
• Lounge Access. Admittance to lounges are subject to the you holding a valid ticket of
travel on the same day in an airline flying out of the airport in which the lounge is
present.
• Guests. Any accompanying guests shall be charged at the prevailing retail lounge visit
rates, which is currently US$ 27.00 and which may be changed by PP Ltd from time to
time.
• Loss/Damage of PP Pards. Lost, stolen and damaged PP cards need to be intimated
to HDFC Bank for a fresh PP card to be issued.
 38

• Cancellation/Non-Renewal of Infinia. In the event of you cancelling or not renewing

your card account the PP membership ceases to exist for you.

Using PP In Domestic Airports

• As per the customer care, it is better to use Infinia CC at domestic airports.
• Use PP cards during foreign travel only.
• Using PP cards at domestic lounges may result in charges being deducted sometimes.
 39

CHAPTER 9: LOUNGE ACCESS

Access Type Via Limit

Domestic (Primary card only) Visa Unlimited
Domestic (Primary & Add-on cards) PP Unlimited
International ( Primary & Add-on cards) PP Unlimited

Lounge Access with Infinia

• Complimentary Visits. Unlimited complimentary visits to airport lounges by Infinia
Lounge Access Program is available. The offer is not transferable, non-negotiable and
cannot be encashed. The details are as under:-
• Domestic Lounges. For lounge visits in airports within India, it is recommended to
use Infinia credit cards. Both Primary and Add-on cardholders can avail unlimited
complimentary lounge access through Infinia credit cards.
• International Lounges. For lounge visits in airports outside India, it is recommended
to use PP cards. Both Primary and Add-on PP cardholders can avail unlimited
complimentary lounge access.
• Process. Please swipe your Infinia cards in India and PP cards abroad to avail the
complimentary lounge access. Swiping the card is mandatory.
• Charges. Nominal charges may be deducted as under:-
• For Mastercard Cards. Earlier Rs.25 was charged and immediately made void at
the terminal for validation. Now, Rs. 2 will be charged at the POS terminal for
MasterCard variant from 1st January 2024 onwards and will not be reimbursed.
• For Visa and RuPay Cards. Rs.2 will be charged to the card account as a
transaction for validation.
• Primary and Add-on Infinia Cards Benefit also available for Add-on card holders.
• Lounge Entry. Many lounges ask for multiple cards for multiple people. They don’t
allow same card to be swiped twice.
• Refreshments at Lounges. Please note that additional charge may occur for
meal/food/drink items (especially alcoholic drinks) as well as for services like nap,
massage service and spa as per the discretion of the participating airport lounge.
• Duration. Participating airport lounges may reserve the right to enforce a maximum
stay policy (usually 2 - 3 hours) to prevent overcrowding. This is at the discretion of the
individual lounge operator who may impose a charge for extended stays.

Lounge Access with PP Cards

• Complimentary Visits. Infinia PP is unique. It allows the listed India lounge (domestic
or international terminal) entry at free of cost You must show PP card to avail the
complimentary access at PP lounges.
• Refreshments at Lounges. Primary card and Add-on card holders may utilize the
refreshment and business centre facilities at PP lounge.
• Primary and Add-on PP Cards. The access and usage at all PP lounges in
India/outside is complimentary for both Primary and Add-on PP holders.
 40

• Domestic Travel. Domestically, you can use PP in one of the HDFC Bank Partner
lounges only (the list they have on their site), and not on all PP ones. If you do that it will
be chargeable.
• International Travel. Internationally, you have to use your PP (and not Infinia) at any
of the PP lounges which will be free. The same is the case with Add-on card-holders.
Outside India, do not use Infinia card. Use your PP.
• Charges for Guests of Cardholders. PP card can be swiped in Indian airport lounges
as well. Other cards that offer PP typically charge you USD27 per guest for swipes in
India. You can use the same PP twice – once for self and once for the guest - and it's
free as well because it counts as 2 visits and Infinia has unlimited lounge visits. You'd
be charged if you swipe it once but add a guest to it.
• Guest Charges. Guest visits using PP will be charged at USD 27 + GST per visit per
guest.
• Process. When you go to the airport lounge, hand over your PP card for them to
swipe. That’s it! Presentation of the PP card at the participating airport lounge is
mandatory to avail access. When presenting the PP card on entering the lounge, lounge
staff will either electronically scan or take an imprint of the card and issue a 'Record of
Visit' voucher or receipt to the cardholder or make a log entry. The cardholder must sign
the 'Record of Visit' voucher or receipt, or sign the electronic reader (as applicable),
which will also reflect the exact number of accompanying guests, if any, but does not
show any per person per visit charge. The charge per visit for the cardholder, where
relevant, and that for any guests will be based on the 'Record of Visit'
voucher/receipt/log submitted by the lounge operator
• Records. The lounge staff, will where appropriate, make a voucher imprint/log entry of
the PP card, and the cardholder is responsible for ensuring the 'Record of Visit'
voucher/receipt/log correctly reflects their own usage and that of any guests at the time
of using the lounge. Where applicable, the cardholder is responsible for retaining the
'Cardholder's' copy of the 'Record of Visit' voucher or receipt presented to them at the
lounge. PP always reserves the right to make any changes to these Terms & Conditions
subject to giving cardholders reasonable notice as appropriate in the circumstances.

Optimising Lounge Usage

• Lounge Usage. Unlimited lounge access within and outside India - on your foreign trip
you can save multiple breakfast, lunch and dinner charges with food in lounge.
• Lounge Access. Many lounges ask for multiple cards for multiple people. They don’t
allow same card to be swiped twice. It changes from lounge to lounge. Recently at Delhi
T2 for a user, they offered to swipe it twice but user had separate Priority Passes so
user had to stop them.
• Check Lounges Before Use. There are huge changes in services given at the airport
lounges. So, request the agent at the entrance to let you go in and check out the lounge
before you use my PP. In most cases, they are happy to oblige unless it's crazy
crowded.
 41

Lounge Access with VISA/Mastercard Cards

• Infinia Primary Cardholders can avail of 4 complimentary lounge access per quarter
through Infinia Visa Lounge program.

Lounge Access with Mastercard World

• Infinia Primary Cardholders can avail lounge visits through Mastercard world program.
• MasterCard Airport Lounges in India are exclusive airport lounges accessible to
MasterCard holders. These lounges offer a comfortable and relaxing environment for
travellers to unwind before their flights. They provide various amenities such as
complimentary food and beverages, Wi-Fi, charging stations, and more.
 42

CHAPTER 10: OTHER CARD DETAILS

Credit Limits
• Initial Credit Limit. The Card Carrier (known as welcome letter) enclosing the CC will
show the initial credit limit applicable and available for usage.
• Minimum Credit Limit. Minimum credit limit is Rs 8L.
• No Pre-set Spending Limit (NPSL). Infinia has this neat feature called NPSL. This
means, that if you ever wanted to get higher credit limits, you ask them and they give.
The bank reserves the right to increase or decrease the credit limit from time to time,
upon giving due notice to the customer.
• Balance Credit Limit. The bank will also inform the Cardmember about the balance
credit limit available as the Cardmember reach closer to exhaustion of the sanctioned
credit limit.
• Available Credit Limit. The available credit limit will be equivalent to the unutilized
value of the credit limit at any point of time, after considering the balance outstanding
and any transactions already implemented with any merchant but not received by the
bank for processing as on that date.
• Add-on Card Limit. Add-on cardmembers share the same limit as the primary
cardholders.
• Cash Withdrawal Limit. 40% of the credit limit.
• Monthly Statements. Credit limit will also be shown in the monthly statement together
with the amount of available credit as on the closing date mentioned in the Card
statement.
• Outstanding Amount. The total principal outstanding amount due shall not exceed the
sanctioned credit limit.
• Payment of Outstanding Amount Over Credit Limit. Any amount utilised in excess
of the credit limit shall be repaid immediately as any such utilisation in excess of the
credit limit shall be subject to applicable fees and service charges as may be applicable
from time to time.
• No Interest. The Cardmember will not be entitled to interest on credit balances on the
card account and the same will also not be included in the available credit.

Contactless Transactions
• Chip Enabled Card. Infinia chip card can be used anywhere in the world wherever
Visa/MasterCard are accepted. At a chip-enabled terminal, you can insert your chip
card into a POS terminal. If you are using your card at a location that does not have a
chip-enabled terminal, your card will be swiped and the transaction will be completed
with your signature as in case of a regular card transaction. A merchant has to tap the
card in the POS terminal as opposed to swiping the card. Tap the card in a POS
terminal. Enter the amount. Do not remove the card till the charge-slip is printed. Take
the customer's signature on the charge-slip.
• Contactless Transactions. To make a transaction of Rs 5,000 or less, just tap to pay
with your contactless card and you won't need to sign or enter any PIN. Contactless
transactions are as secured as any chip or PIN based transactions.
 43

• Tapping Issues. Sometime tapping may not work. It has to do with the construction of
the card. In case of plastic cards, the Near Field Communication (NFC) coil is over
moulded by plastic. Plastic of such nominal thickness is invisible to the electromagnetic
NFC waves used to interact with the chip. However, in case of metal cards a metal card
of certain thickness is milled and a slot is made. This slot is of smaller size and
accommodates a small coil compared to the plastic cards. This reduces the range and
sensitivity of the NFC. The chip is placed in the milled slot and powder coated to this slit
but the range is reduced due to the shielding effect of metal. That's why RFID blocking
wallets have metal inserts to prevent anyone from accessing one's card via NFC.
• Infinia Tapping Method. 100% success rate with Infinia if you flip it around and tap
near the NFC icon. The best guess is the thickness of the card is a major factor. Hence,
the need to tap right on the NFC icon. Only 1 side which has the NFC icon works in
Infinia for contactless payment.
• RBI Mandate. As per RBI guidelines to encourage secure contactless transactions, it
is mandatory to temporarily disable contactless usage service on credit cards for
customers who have been inactive for the service or have been issued a new card
(fresh issue/re- issue /replacement/renewal/upgrade). You can continue to use your
card at online stores, ATMs, & for purchases at merchant outlets near you using contact
mode (swipe/dip and pin).This is simply a precautionary measure to ensure a safe
banking experience for you. You can easily re-enable contactless usage with the below
mentioned steps.

Insurance
• Insurance Against Fraud. The card itself is insured against fraud and lost - Lost Card
Liability: Cover up to Rs 9 L available for Primary Card Holder. After the receipt of
proper notification of the loss by the bank, your subsequent liability is zero. Only the
primary cardholder gets the insurance benefits.
• Optional Insurance. An optional insurance product may be availed of by the card
members, at his/her own discretion, to cover the liability arising in the event of any
fraudulent transactions on the card. For further details and terms and conditions of such
insurance cover, kindly contact HDFC Bank representative.

International Usage
• As per RBI guidelines to encourage secure International transactions, it is mandatory to
temporarily disable International usage service on credit cards for customers who have
been inactive for the service or have been issued a new card (fresh issue/re-issue
/replacement/renewal/upgrade).
• You can continue to use your card at domestic online sites, ATMs & for purchases at
merchant outlets near you.
• This is simply a precautionary measure to ensure a safe banking experience for you.
You can easily re-enable International usage with the below mentioned steps.
 44

Visa vs Mastercard
• Infinia Visa vs. Mastercard. The card falls under Visa Infinite and Mastercard World.
There is hardly any difference in the two variants. However, some people prefer visa or
Mastercard as per their personal choices.
• Change of Visa/Mastercard. If you want a Visa or Mastercard, you can request the
bank while you place the request for the card.
• Visa Movie Offers. Although Infinia doesn’t have any movie benefits but since it’s on
VISA Infinite you can get great offers and discounts on movies like 50% off on movie
bookings etc for minimum 2 tickets up to Rs 300 and up to Rs 200 for food combo offers
once a month for movie and non-movie tickets each via book my show i.e.
https://in.bookmyshow.com/offers/visa-infinite-card-offer/VIP0116. However, mostly
these tickets are unavailable as these are very few in number.
 45

CHAPTER 11: FEES AND CHARGES

Joining Fees
• Total joining fees - Rs 12.5K + 2.25K (GST @ 12% of Rs 12,500) = Rs 14.75K.
• The joining fees are waived off upon spending Rs 3.0L during first 90 days of card
activation and balance Rs 7.0L in the next 9 months.

Annual Fees
• Total annual fees - Rs 12.5K + 2.25K (GST) = Rs 14.75K.
• The annual fee of Rs 12.5K is waived off upon spending Rs 10L in a year.
• Given that the annual fee is mostly returned via RPs, it’s not a bad card, if you can
redeem points at 1:1 ratio Since the renewal benefit can be 1:1 points to rupee
conversion ratio, the effective price for the card is 18% GST on Rs 12,500 i.e. Rs 2.25K
per annum only.

Cash Withdrawal Limit

• 40% of the Credit Limit (CL).
• If the CL is Rs 8,00,000, then the cash withdrawal limit is Rs 3,20,000.

Cash Advance Fee

• Cash advance fee for Infinia is 0%.
• All cash advances also carry a finance charge equal to charges on revolving credit.
• So, 0% does not mean it is free money. There are finance charges associated with cash
advances.
• For Infinia, the finance charges are 1.99% per month or 23.88% annually.
• Unless it’s an emergency, do not use Infinia for cash withdrawal.

Finance Charges (for both Revolving Credit and Cash Advances)

• For infinia, monthly charges are 1.99%.
• For infinia, annual charges are 23.88%.

Cash Processing Fee

• Rs 100 for all card payments made by depositing cash in HDFC Bank branches or
ATMs.
• So avoid paying Infinia bills by cash.

Payment Return Charges

• 2% of payment amount subject to minimum of Rs 450 .

Balance Transfer (BT) Processing Charges

• 1% of BT amount or Rs 250, whichever is higher.
 46

Late Payment Charges (LPC)

• For Infinia zero LPC.
• However, if you do a late payment then it’s up to the bank to nullify your LPC.
• E.g. first time X had a default, X called up customer care and told them as this is his first
time so let’s make this an exception and have the late fees waived off, and in fact it was
waived off subsequently. It’s good to put it this way to customer care. So it’s at the
bank's discretion definitely to waive off these charges.

Charges on Overlimit Account

• 2.5% of overlimit amount, subject to a minimum of Rs 550.
• As per RBI Guidelines of March 2024, Interest or any charges/fees on the CC shall not
be factored in for the purpose of computing a cardholder’s credit limit usage and levying
overlimit charges..

Duplicate Physical Statement Charges

• Rs 10 per duplicate physical statement.

Reissue of Lost, Stolen or Damaged Card

• Rs 100 for card replacement.

Add-on Card Fee

• Lifetime Free (LTF).

PP Lounge Charges.
• For PP Card Holders. Free for PP card holders – both primary and Add-on card holder
and unlimited lounge access - both India and abroad.
• For Guests. All guest/s (person accompanying the PP card holder) will be charged at
$27 (in INR equivalent) + Taxes per person per visit.

Outstation Cheque Processing Charge

• For cheque value up to Rs 5,000 – Rs 25 and for above Rs 5,000 – Rs 50.

Insta Loan & Jumbo Loan Processing Fee

• Processing fees levied is up to Rs 999, (Exclusive of GST for all loan amounts)
depending on the customer’s eligibility/offer details.

Pre-Closure of Insta and Jumbo Loan Charges

• 3% of the Balance Principal Outstanding.

Reward Redemption Fee

• Nil for Infinia.
 47

Card Validation Charges

• For VISA. Rs 2 will be charged and the same shall not be reversed by the bank for all
variants except MasterCard.
• For Mastercard. From 1st January 2024 onwards, Rs. 2 will be charged and made void
at the POS terminal for MasterCard variant.

Rental Transactions
• 1% fee on transaction amount will be levied on rental transactions done on any
applicable merchant from the second transaction for the month.
• So you can pay rent via RedGiraffe, etc. and check if you get RPs.
• 1 transaction per month is free.
• The rent payment platform is RedGiraffe. And they charge ~0.4%. Which is the
significantly lowest any of these platforms charge.
• Pay Zapp doesn't charge anything.

Railway Ticket Purchase Fee

• 1% of the transaction amount + GST will be charged on Railway Ticket Purchases.
(Refer IRCTC website for detailed fee structure).

Minimum Amount Due (MAD)

• 5% of Retail Balance / Cash Advance Balance and finance charges and 100% of
Charges, Loan EMI billed under cards, levies, and taxes, previous month outstanding
and rounded to the next higher 10th digit.
• However,
• If MAD value is calculated as per the aforementioned details falls below or equal to Rs
200, the MAD value will be charged as Rs 200.
• If Total Amount Due (TAD) is Rs 200 and lower, MAD will be equal to TAD.

Forex Markup Fee

• Typically, when we make a purchase using the card, it will be billed in INR – the Indian
currency. However, if you purchase in a different currency, say USD, the bank will
charge you a foreign exchange fee. E.g., Let’s say you spent $100 while you were on a
trip to the US. Assuming Rs 70 is the going rate for a USD, your actual bill was Rs
7,000. However, banks will charge you a forex fee for converting your USD purchase
into INR.
• For Infinia, this is 2% + GST. In your case, you will be effectively paying Rs 7,000 + Rs
140 (2% Infinia fee) + Rs 45 (GST) = Rs 7,185.
• The GST slabs are currently defined as follows: Up to Rs 1 Lakh: GST from Rs 45 to Rs
180; Rs 1 L to Rs 10 Lakh: GST from Rs 180 to Rs 990; Rs 10 L +: GST from Rs 990.

Dynamic Currency Conversion Markup Fee

• With effect from 1st January 2023, a Markup fee of 1% will be levied on all transactions
carried out in Indian Currency at an international location or at merchants which are
located in India but registered overseas.
 48

Goods and Services Tax (GST)

• Applicable on all fees, interest, and other charges.
• The applicable GST would be dependent on Place of Provision (POP) and Place of
Supply (POS).
• If POP and POS are in the same state then applicable GST would be CGST and
SGST/UTGST else, IGST.
• GST for fees & charges/interest transactions billed on statement date will reflect in next
month statement.
• GST levied will not be reversed on any dispute on fee & charges/interest.

Liability of Dues
• The liability for dues shall rest solely with the primary cardholder and not with the Add-
on cardholders.
 49

CHAPTER 12: CREDIT CARD STATEMENT

Understanding Credit Card statement

• Transactions: Your statement will include a chronological list of all the transactions you
have made during the statement period (a one-month period preceding the statement
date). Domestic and international transactions may be listed separately. Each
transaction will include the date you made the transaction, a description of the
transaction and the value. It will also include any credits into your account, such as CC
bill payment you may have made or a refund you may have received. These will be
marked with a ‘Cr’ next to the amount. Check each item against the charge slips or
transaction alerts.
• Dates: Check the statement date (the date the statement was generated) and, most
important, the payment due date (this is the date by which you should pay the total dues
to avoid finance charges and late fees)
• Dues: Check the total dues (this is the sum of all your transactions during the statement
period plus any past dues) and minimum amount due (this is the amount you must pay
to avoid late payment charges).
• Limits: Check your credit limit (how much you can spend in a month), available credit
limit (the credit limit minus what you have already spent) and available cash limit (how
much you can withdraw from ATMs)
• Account Summary: Gives you an overview of how much you paid the bank and how
much you spent and past dues if any.
• RPs Summary: Another important section that highlights how many reward points you
have accumulated during the statement period and in total. It also intimates you if any
points are likely to expire and points you may have claimed.
• Offers: Special offers if any are indicated in this section.
• Important and Statutory Information: This includes terms and conditions, changes to
the cardmember agreement, payment options and information like how to hotlist lost or
stolen cards.

Statements
• Non-receipt of the statement for any reasons whatsoever is not a valid reason for non-
payment of dues.
• Should the cardmember not receive the statement within 7 days from the usual
statement date, the cardmember is requested to call the HDFC Bank Credit Cards
Division to check the amount payable.
• Requests for duplicate statements will attract charges as determined by the bank from
time to time.
• You must keep copies of all such vouchers/documents in a safe manner at least till such
time as the transaction is reflected in the statement.
 50

Non-Issue of Statements
• In the rare case of no transaction pending billing since the last statement and there are
no outstanding charges or transactions from the previous months’ bills, then no
statement will be issued for that particular month

Transaction Records
• When you complete a transaction at an electronic terminal you will receive a printed
transaction record. You must check the record carefully.
• You should retain these records for verification purposes and to aid in reconciling
account statements.

Secrecy of Transactions
• Bank will preserve secrecy of details of transactions to the extent required by law.
• However, information on usage of credit facilities by customer(s) is/are exchanged
across banks, credit bureaus and financial institutions.
 51

CHAPTER 13: BILL PAYMENTS

Billing Cycle
• The day you activate your card, the billing cycle starts.
• RBI has instructed CC companies to allow customers to change their CC billing cycle
“at least once”.
• So, you must take your cash flow into consideration before getting the billing cycle
updated.
• You shall be provided a one-time option to modify the billing cycle of the credit card.
• You may change your CC billing cycle by talking to your respective CC customer.

Payment Due Date.

• The payment due date as mentioned on the CC statement is the date by which clear
funds must be credited to the credit card.
• However 3 grace days are provided to accommodate for processing time of payments.
• The Bank shall report a CC account as 'past due' to Credit Information Companies
(CICs) and levy late payment charges when a CC account remains 'past due' for more
than 3 days.
• The number of 'days past due' and LPC shall, however, be computed from the payment
due date mentioned in the CC statement.

Grace Period for Payments.

• Grace days of 3 days is allowed from the payment due date on CC accounts, where
payments are not overdue.

Reporting as Defaulter.
• In case the cardholder fails to make payment of either the MAD or the TAD, under each
monthly billing statement, the bank shall notify the customer of such non-payment and
its intention to report the cardholder as defaulter to the CICs in case the cardholder fails
to pay the MAD or TAD within 7 (seven) days.

Recovery Procedure.
• In case of default, upon a demand made by the bank, if the balance amount due on the
card is not repaid within the prescribed time; bank shall have a right of lien and set-off
without notice on all monies belonging to the Cardmember and/or Add- on Cardmember
held in any account or in custody of the bank.

Payments Due
• The payments will first be applied to all overdue amounts (the oldest due being credited
first) in the following order:
• 1. Fees and other Charges
• 2. Interest
• 3. Balance Transfer Amount Billed (if applicable)
• 4. Cash Advances Billed
 52

• 5. Retail Transactions Billed

• 6. Balance Transfer Amount Current (if applicable)
• 7. Cash Advances Current
• 8. Retail Transactions Current
• All payments must be made prior to the due date, irrespective of whether or not
statement has been received.
• Non-receipt of a statement will not be considered a valid reason for non-payment.
• If you have not received the statement, you can calculate the amount based on the
unpaid charge slips in your possession.

Payment of Bills
• Paying MAD. Make it a habit to pay your bill in full and on time each month. This will
help you avoid interest charges and keep your account in good standing.
• Utility Bills. Use Infinia to buy Amazon Vouchers and pay all utility bills via Amazon
Pay. E.g. buy Amazon pay voucher from Gyftr to pay the utility bills. 16.5% accelerated
RPs and Gyftr charges 2.5%+ GST just for Amazon pay. Net value back is ~13.5%. So
I'm getting a value back of Rs 27K just on my bills on a spend of Rs 2 Lakh. Other
vouchers on Gyftr, we get 16.5% RPs. Best part is, we'd be paying these utility bills
anyway even if there were no RPs but now we're getting rewarded for paying our bills.

Payment Methods
• Total Outstanding Authorization (TOA) Amount. It is the amount in your CC that is
not billed but will be billed in your next statement. Suppose you have purchased any
product online using your card worth Rs 15,000 and you have opted no cost EMI of 3
month (so it will divide into 3 EMI of Rs 5,000 each). So the first EMI of Rs 5,000 will be
added to your current billed amount on the last date of a billing cycle and remaining
amount i.e. Rs 10,000 will show in the TOA.
• Credit Card Payments Through Apps. There are almost no apps that give CB on CC
payment now. PostPe CB is unusable now and CheQ too. Your best bet right now is
CRED since at least the CC payment is almost instantaneous. However, with CRED
app the offers available in the app are almost useless. The cash backs have reduced to
single digit numbers.

Enabling Auto Pay

• Via HDFC Bank Mobile Banking. Go to the Credit cards under Pay section from left-
hand menu. Select the CC and scroll down to Auto-pay Status. By default, it would be
disabled, if not set-up during card application. Click on Enable, select the payment type
- a) TAD b) MAD. Select the Savings Account and proceed to enable Auto-pay on your
account. OR
• Via HDFC Bank Net Banking. Under Credit cards section, select the 'Request' Menu.
Click on Autopay Register. Now select the CC and the account, which is to be debited
from. Select the payment type - a) TAD b) MAD. Select the Savings Account and
proceed to enable Autopay on your account.
 53

Modifying Auto Pay.

• Via HDFC Bank Mobile Banking. Go to the Credit cards under Pay section from left-
hand menu. Select the CC and scroll down to Auto-pay Status. Click on
Change/Modify. Select the alternate payment option - a) TAD b) MAD. Select the
Savings Account and proceed to modify Auto-pay instructions. OR
• Via HDFC Bank Net Banking. Under Credit cards section, select the 'Request' Menu.
Click on Autopay Register. Now select the CC and the account, which is to be debited
from. Select the alternate payment option - a) TAD b) MAD. Select the Savings Account
and proceed to modify Auto-pay instructions.

Bill Paying Options

• UPI or cash or cheque or
• Standing Instructions (SI). In the event of non-realization of the complete SI amount,
which is set by the Cardmember, SI return charges shall be levied on the net payable
amount post payment attempts.
• You can't pay using Amazon Pay balance.
• Recovery of MAD post failure to recover TAD shall lead to levy of the autopay return
charges on the net payable amount remaining due and outstanding on the payment due
date.

Earning Rewards and CB s on Paying Bills

• Typically, CC bills are paid using money from a bank account, either automatically or by
manual transfer. While these payments don't usually earn rewards, some banks offer
CB incentives for using their debit cards to pay bills.
• By strategically using a debit card for CC payments, you can earn CB on expenses that
wouldn't otherwise earn rewards.

Paying Bills
• Paying Full and On Time. Make it a habit to pay your bill in full and on time each
month. This will help you avoid interest charges and keep your account in good
standing.
• If You Pay MAD: Bank will treat this as a valid payment and will not report the event to
credit bureaus so it will not impact your credit score. This is where banks get most of
their earnings from credit cards. They will charge you on the balance amount remaining
to pay. For Infinia MAD is 5% of Retail Balance / Cash Advance Balance and finance
charges and 100% of Charges, Loan EMI billed under cards, levies, and taxes, previous
month outstanding and rounded to the next higher 10th digit. In cases where MAD value
is calculated as per the aforementioned details falls below or equal to Rs 200, the MAD
value will be charged as Rs 200.
• If You Pay TAD: Bank will treat this as a complete payment with no impact on credit
rating. Where statement value of Total Amount Due (TAD) is Rs 200 and lower, MAD
will be equal to TAD.
• If You Pay More Than MAD and Less Than TAD: Bank will charge you interest on
the balance amount (Total Outstanding - Amount Paid) and there is no impact on credit
 54

score. You will be charged interest on the remaining amount at exorbitant rates,
(Interest calculated = (outstanding amount* 3.6% per month (i.e., 43.2% per annum) *
No of days)/365). Also, all purchases made in the current month will be charged
similarly So your fresh purchases are void of the 50 day usual interest free period.
• If You Pay More Than TAD Due: Bank will adjust the additional payment paid by you
in the next billing cycle.

Refunds on Payments
• Cancellations and Refunds. As per RBI Guidelines of March 2024, for a typical CC
with billing cycle from October 1, 2023 to October 30, 2023, let’s assume the bill is
generated on October 30, 2023 and the due date of payment is November 19, 2023.
The different scenarios for adjustment of credit are detailed below:
• Credit Of Refund/Failed/Reversed Transaction Within the Same Billing Cycle (e.g.
Purchase transaction date – October 15, 2023 and Refund on October 19, 2023):For
cancellation of purchase dated October 15, 2023. As bill is yet to be generated in the
given case, the refund amount received on October 19, 2023, shall be adjusted with
other debits, prior to calculation of the Total Amount Due.
• Credit Of Refund/Failed/Reversed Transaction Post Generation of Bill But Before
Making Payment of the Dues (e.g. Purchase transaction date - October 29, 2023 and
Refund on November 04, 2023 - For cancellation of purchase dated October 29, 2023):
The bill is generated on October 30, 2023, however, the payment towards the dues has
not been made till the date of refund. Therefore, the refund amount received on
November 04, 2023, shall be adjusted towards the Total Amount Due (TAD) and
accordingly the cardholder will be required to pay only the remaining outstanding
(Remaining outstanding = TAD – Refund amount).
• Credit Of Refund/Failed/Reversed Transaction for Which Payment has Already
Been Made (e.g. Purchase transaction date - October 30, 2023 and Payment towards
dues – November 06, 2023 and Refund on November 07, 2023 - For cancellation of
purchase dated October 30, 2023): As the cardholder has already cleared the dues,
card-issuers shall seek explicit consent of the cardholder to adjust the refund amount. If
the cardholder gives explicit consent, then refund amount shall be adjusted. If the
cardholder does not provide the consent or no response is received for adjustment of
the refund, then the refund amount will be credited to the bank account of the
cardholder. Further, if the cardholder makes a request for crediting the refund
(transaction for which payment has already been made), the same shall be credited
back to the bank account of the cardholder.

Airlines/Railway Refunds
• After the cancellation of an airline/railway ticket, if the credit is not processed to your
account within 30 days of the cancellation date, you may immediately mail a copy of the
credit voucher to enable the bank to follow up with the concerned member bank for
processing the transaction.
• The bank will credit the card account as appropriate on receipt of the proceeds from the
processing bank.
 55

• However any charge/finance charge(s) resulting from delay at any parties' end to
process the credit will need to be borne by you.

Balance Transfer (BT)

• Only one BT request will be permitted.
• The transferred amount may be from multiple cards of other issuers, provided the total
amount of BT requested does not exceed 75% (or such other amount/percentage as
may be decided by the bank) of the available credit limit on the card.
• BT requests will not be processed for amounts less than Rs. 2,500 (or such other
amounts as may be prescribed by the bank from time to time).
• BT from other HDFC Bank card accounts will not be accepted.
• BT requests are to be sent in writing in the format as may be prescribed by the bank. No
telephone or fax requests will be entertained.
• BT will not be accepted for amounts in excess of the outstanding reflected in the
statement(s) submitted with the BT application.
• At the end of three months from the date of availing the BT facility, if the amount is not
fully paid off, the outstanding balance shall attract the normal interest prevailing at that
time.

Smart EMI Processing Fee

• Processing Fees. Processing fees levied is up to Rs 999 + GST for all loan amounts
depending on the customer’s eligibility/offer details.

No Cost EMI – Hidden Charges

• No one can give you a 0% interest loan as per RBI norms, so No Cost EMI is not a 0%
rate loan.
• Then how do the total payments match the exact value of upfront payment? What they
do is that a special discount is applied on the bill IF you choose to pay the EMI way
(which is borne by the bank but also partially by the merchant). This discount is such
that when the standard EMI calculation with 15% interest is done, the sum of EMIs is
the same as the actual bill amount.
• An illustration for a 6 month EMI conversion on a bill of Rs. 10,000:
Upfront Payment = Rs. 10,000
No Cost EMI discount = Rs. 429
Net Principal = Rs. 9,571
EMI for 6 months @ 15% = Rs. 1667
Total EMI Payment = Rs. 10,002
• Any EMI loan creation charges your card with a Rs. 199 fee, +18% GST - that's Rs.
235. Since you've converted a Rs. 10,000 purchase into EMI, you've already spent an
extra 2.35%.
• Next up, card purchases made with EMI structure do not earn any RPs. Even the most
basic of credit cards provide points worth 0.7% to 0.9% of purchase value.
• Now, let's get to the fun part. Just like creation of EMI loan, every payment of EMI
interest is also considered a service and thus attracts 18% GST. Yes, you read that
 56

right - the entire interest portion (= EMI discount) is taxed at 18%, which turns out to be
Rs. 77 here, so another 0.77%.
• On the net, that's around 4% of your value that you are going to be paying extra for
financing Rs. 10,000 over 6 months.
• So it is not "No Cost" in the true sense of the word.
• Bump this up to Rs. 1 L and the fees, lost points and taxes add up to about 2% of bill
amount, or Rs. 2,000. It is not a small amount by any means, and you would be burning
into some of the discounts which made you get into the deals in the first place.
• There are hidden charges you'd end up paying and banks find it in their interest to not
show these explicitly in an accessible way.
 57

CHAPTER 14: MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION AND TIPS

Infinia Metal CC
• Invite Only Card. It is important to note that Infinia CC is not available through direct
application. Instead, HDFC Bank evaluates potential cardholders based on their
creditworthiness, financial standing, and existing relationship with the bank. If an individual
meets the specified criteria and stands out as a creditworthy candidate, HDFC Bank may
extend an invitation to join the prestigious Infinia CC program.
• Metal Feel. Infinia is made from a premium metal alloy, giving it a sleek, sophisticated
look and feel. This instantly elevates the cardholder’s status and sets them apart from
the crowd. Speaking of metal, it is great the way it feels in your hand. It is lightweight
and weighs about 18 grams.
• Infinia Card. Honestly, Infinia is a super-premium card and if you need to get stressed
about reaching the spend milestone to make it free, it’s not the card for you. You should
either not care about the fee and recoup it via rewards or naturally reach the milestone.

Card Activation
• Activation. Customer-initiated process indicating intent to use a CC such as PIN
generation, modification of transaction control, Interactive Voice Response (IVR),
recorded call to the customer care centre and SMS may be considered as activation.
• Activation Time Period. If a CC has not been activated or used within 30 (thirty) days
of card open date., the bank shall intimate the cardholder about non-usage or non-
activation of the card and request the cardholder to activate or start using the card
within 7 (seven) days from the date of such intimation. If the cardholder does not start
using the card within a period of 7 (seven) days, the card account shall be closed by the
bank.
• Primary Card Activation. Once Infinia gets delivered to you, firstly, you will need to
generate the PIN for the card. This can be done in the following ways:-
• Through Customer Care. The card can be easily activated by contacting HDFC Bank
CC customer care. You can call HDFC Bank’s helpline number, 1860 266 033, from
your registered mobile number and request that the bank officials help you generate
your CC PIN. They will either guide you on the necessary steps that need to be followed
or help you do it on the call itself.
• Through ATM. Activating a CC or generation of its PIN becomes the most
straightforward task when you do it through an ATM. You can simply follow the steps
mentioned, and you should be done in a few minutes:
• Visit an HDFC Bank ATM nearest to you.
• Insert your CC into the machine.
• Find an option to generate a CC PIN from the main menu presented to you.
• You will need to follow the instructions present on the screen carefully.
• Through WhatsApp. You can also send a WhatsApp message and enable your CC
for online, contactless and international transactions. Send a message ‘Manage My
Credit Card’ to 7070022222 to enable your credit card. After this, you are required to
follow the steps as per your requirements to activate your card.
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• Through Eva. You can also use Eva (personal assistant on the bank’s website) to
enable your card for online, contactless and international transactions. You can chat
with it by sending ‘Manage My Credit Card’. After this, you have to select as per your
requirement from the options available on the screen and enable your card.
• Through Net Banking. Generating the PIN of a CC online is much more convenient as
it takes less time to get the required tasks done and activation and PIN generation are
also tasks that take a few seconds with net banking. Steps are as under:-
• Firstly, you will need to sign in to your internet banking account.
• Then you go to the ‘Cards’ option and click on ‘Credit Cards.’
• Scroll down and search for supplementary/add-on credit cards as an option.
• Click on the CC that you want to activate and add it to your account if it hasn’t been
added yet.
• Follow all the necessary steps and proceed further as necessary.
• Add On Card Activation. The process of activating the supplementary credit cards is
similar to what it is for the primary cards.

Avoid Taking Cash From ATM Through Infinia

• Disable ATM card withdrawals on CC.
• Charges may be reversed if you chat with customer care, Call customer care and
explain that you didn't know about the charges and ask them to reverse it. One of my
colleague got it reversed after threatening to close the card.
• You get charged interest on it from the day of withdrawal daily (some cards), even
before bill is generated. its best to pay it off ASAP
• Read the fine print that comes with your card, or make friends that help you out with
stuff like this.

Some Precautions While Using Infinia

• Disable All International Transactions. International transactions don’t require OTP
and you can easily be defrauded. International transactions don't need an OTP to go
through so if you share your CC numbers or it gets leaked then frauds can easily
happen. It’s best to disable international transactions if you don’t use it frequently. It will
keep you safe from fraud transactions.
• Disable Domestic ATM Withdrawal Transactions. Or keep a Rs 1,000/- limit on. This
will allow you to use the card in bank ATM to set / change PIN and do other non-cash
transactions. If you disable ATM usage completely then even non-cash transactions
stop working.
• Activate Only Domestic Transactions. Like domestic online, POS and tap to pay
transactions.
• Decrease Limits. Decrease the max limit of tap to pay to Rs 2,000.
 59

PIN Change
• Change of PIN. You will have to go to an ATM machine and manually select a PIN of
your choice. Alternatively, you can select the change PIN option on the HDFC app or
net banking. For Add-on cards, it will be on the net banking of the primary holder.
Login > Cards > Requests > CC ATM PIN > Pin request for add on card.

Credit Card Limit – No Pre Set Limit.

• Usually, the credit limit on your Infinia card will be upwards of Rs 8 L.
• However, if you have a large upcoming purchase, you can inform the bank, and they will
remove the spending limit on your card. Technically, that means you can even buy a
luxury car using your card.
• However, it is recommended that you retain a limit. Depending on how the bank reports
your credit limit, it may negatively impact your credit score.

Lost and Blocked Cards

• Loss or Theft. In case of loss/theft/misuse of the card, customer can immediately
hotlist/block the card. As the Add-on card is an extended facility given on the Primary
Card Account, the Add-on card is rendered invalid when the primary card is reported
lost. Similarly, if the Add-on card is reported lost, the primary Card Account and other
Add-on cards will be invalidated from usage.
• Finding a Lost Card. Further if you happen to recover the card after having reported it
lost, please do not use it. Cut it into 4 pieces diagonally and ensure you cut across chip
embedded in the card.
• Blocking Card. Login to HDFC Bank Mobile Banking. Go to the credit cards under pay
section from left-hand menu. Select the CC and scroll down to 'Block Card'. Select the
reason for hot-listing and re-issue [Y/N] as per the requirement and click on 'Continue'
to confirm the card hot-listing.
• Temporary De-activation/Blocking. De-activation/Blocking of a CC temporarily
curtails the ability of a cardholder to make any transaction in a CC account while still
maintaining the credit/account relationship with the card-issuer.

Loss of Card
• You must notify the Bank Cards Division located at Chennai and its Regional Offices as
intimated from time to time immediately if the Primary or any Add-on card is lost, stolen,
mutilated, not received when due or if he/she suspects that the card is being used
without your permission.
• You must report a card lost over the telephone. HDFC Bank will upon adequate
verification temporarily suspend the card account.
• Once a card is reported lost, it should not, under any circumstance be used if found by
you.
• As the Add-on card is an extended facility given on the primary card account, the Add-
on card is rendered invalid when the Primary Card is reported lost.
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• Similarly, if the Add-on card is reported lost, the Primary Card Account and other Add-on
cards are invalidated. In case of loss / theft / misuse of the card, you can immediately
hotlist / block the card by raising a request through below channels:-
• Net Banking: www.hdfcbank.com > Log in > Pay > Credit Cards > Select the Card from
Your Credit Cards > Block.
• Mobile Banking: Mobile banking home page > Pay > Credit Cards > Select the Card
from Your Credit Cards > Block.
• MyCards: https://mycards.hdfcbank.com > enter registered mobile#> Card control
>Services > Security > Hotlist.
• WhatsApp Banking: 70700 22222 > Type Hotlist Card > Option will be displayed for
hotlisting.
• Phone Banking / IVR: 1800 202 6161 / 1860 267 6161 (accessible across India)
• EVA: Visit www.hdfcbank.com > Click on EVA icon > Credit Card Service > Block Card.

Card Renewal and Expiry

• Renewal. Don’t request new card just because your Primary CC got renewed. Request
for new card only after using up the limits. You can always drop an email to HDFC
customer care to know the limits if you’re not sure about it.
• Extending Card Expiry. One way to extend your card expiry date is to request for card
block (as lost/stolen) and replace it 3 months before card expiry. This may extend the
card expiry at times.

Card Usage
• Usage. Use your card for all regular purchases daily. You’ll earn a lot more rewards if
you use your card often.
• Non-Usage. If a CC has not been used for a continuous period of 1 (one) year, the
bank will intimate the cardholder about non-usage of the card and request the
cardholder to start using the card within 30 (thirty) days from the date of such intimation.
If either no reply is received from the cardholder or the cardholder does not start using
the card within a period of 30 (thirty) days, the card account shall be closed by the bank,
subject to payment of all dues by the cardholder.
• Sample Usage Case. Load Rs 20K per month on Amazon pay and then pay for
shopping, grocery, insurance, gas, Swiggy, Ola, Rapido, Zomato, utilities, telephone
bills, property tax, lounge, ITC, Dineout, fast tag + all insurance premiums + buy gold at
13-15% discount + school fees + misc. spends + travel, etc. So Rs 10 L per annum
easily achievable.
• Use Case. A user holding Infinia since October 2022 and shared the experiences.
In his own words… “The amount spent (April 23 – March 24): Rs 13.8L. Points received:
75,525. Points reward value: 5.5%. Converted most of these points to Accor and
enjoyed several hotel stays since they provide 1.8 times the value. Hold memberships
with Accor, Marriott, and ITC. Would like to use these points to book hotels in some
small towns where don't find Accor or other big hotels available. Also would like to add
more points. Took 2 additional Add-on cards for family members and visited multiple
airport lounges in last few months. Had a great experience at Bangalore 080 lounge.”
 61

Optimising Card Usage

• Before Buying Offline. Basically try searching for vouchers any time you want to
spend anything. Even before you checkout in offline stores, it's best to check if you can
quickly buy offline via vouchers to maximize rewards.
• Large Transactions. For any large value transaction keep daily RP capping in mind
and see if transaction can be split across days or months to avoid hitting respective
caps.
• Swiggy Dineout. While eating outside check if the restaurant is on Swiggy Dine out.
Flat 15% discount on Rs 2,000 and above.
• Gyftr and SmartBuy. Use Gyftr and SmartBuy to buy everything. Also once you
accumulate points you can check Accors loyalty program to get value of Rs 1.8 per
Infinia RP.
• Blinkit/Zomato. If you use Blinkit, Zomato or dozens of other services even mildly then
it will pay you back in no time. If you pay the renewal fee, you get points back anyway
which can be used for flight bookings.

Merchant Category Code (MCC)

• MCC. MCC is a four-digit number used by credit card companies to classify the services
or products offered by a business. The International Organization for Standardization
(ISO) establishes and assigns these merchant category codes. Despite consisting of
only four digits, these codes hold significant importance for both consumers and
business owners.
• Importance of MCC. MCCs hold significance for both businesses and consumers,
mainly due to their influence on Merchant Discount Rates (MDRs).
• MCC and Convenience Fees. Not all businesses are authorized to impose
convenience fees on their customers. Depending on their MCC, it is determined
whether a business can apply convenience fees to their customers or not. For instance,
fuel stations are allowed to pass on surcharges to their customers.
• MCCs and RPs. Credit card issuing companies generally offer rewards every time a
customer uses their credit card. However, they don't provide the same reward rate for
all categories. For example, the SBI Cashback credit card offers 5% cashback on online
shopping, 1% on utility bill payments, and no cashback on certain categories like rent
payment and government payments. Card issuers, like SBI Card, examine a merchant's
MCC to determine its business category and then set the reward rate accordingly.
• MCCs and Tax Issues. Certain transactions need to be reported to the income tax
department, such as rent payments. Card issuers can identify such transactions based
on MCC.
• Incorrect Merchant Category Code (MCC). Card networks such as Visa, Mastercard,
and Amex assign MCCs to merchants based on their business categories. However,
sometimes merchants are assigned the wrong MCC. This mistake usually occurs from
the payment gateway provider's end. However, sometimes merchants provide incorrect
information about their business to obtain a lower Merchant Discount Rate (MDR).
Many merchants use a Point-of-Sale (POS) machine with a different category MCC to
save on the Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) charges even though they are engaged in
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an entirely different kind of business. As a result, CC users are not able to earn reward
points (which could be at an accelerated rate) at the applicable rate for that category. A
merchant who operates a travel agency may have a POS machine with a grocery MCC.
Then, if someone uses a CC at this travel agency, they will accumulate reward points at
the rate applicable for grocery spends and not travel spends. E.g. person x stayed at a
well-known hotel and used his card to pay for the stay. After a few days, he noticed that
the card had charged him Rs. 199 + GST, and he didn't receive any reward for that
transaction. When he contacted the card issuer, he found that the hotel was categorised
as "property management/rent payment" (per the MCC), hence he was charged Rs. 199
+ GST as rent payment processing fees. Also, per the terms and conditions for rent
payment, he didn't receive any reward. The MCC should be shared with card users for
their reference. This will allow consumers to easily identify a merchant's business
category, and help mitigate such errors. An incorrect MCC can affect both the merchant
and the customer.
• Incorrect MCC - Not Getting RPs on Transactions. E.g. On VFS Global, purchases
are considered "Governmentt transaction" and hence no RPs will be awarded even
though VFS is very much a private company with government consulates just being
their customers, along with the common public. Reason - if that company uses
government MCC then you won't get any CB . If they use let's say digital goods MCC,
then you'll get CB . Do any transaction & call bank to know MCC.
• Knowing MCC. There is only one way to know the MCC before paying. You have to
disable all domestic and international transactions on your card and then pay. The
payment will obviously fail. Then you have to phone customer care and ask them what
is the MCC for that failed transaction and if it is in airline category then you can use your
card.
• Contemporary Issues and Views. Wrong MCC or MCC miscoding is a real and
common problem. Card issuing companies are not liable; it's the acquiring bank that is
responsible. Payment gateway providers should be more careful while assigning MCCs
to merchants. CC RPs are essential for cardholders, and due to MCC miscoding, many
cardholders don't receive the expected rewards they're eligible for. RBI should establish
strict guidelines for all payment gateway providers to minimize mistakes. If payment
gateway providers display a merchant's MCC on the OTP page for online transactions
and on the POS machine for offline merchants, this MCC miscoding problem could be
effectively resolved. This step would also help consumers easily identify a merchant's
business category.

Merchant Discount Rate (MDR)

• What is MDR. MDR is essentially a fee that a business pays to their lending institution
for taking credit and debit card payments from clients. MDR is the rate or amount that a
merchant pays for using a lender’s CC or debit card services for accepting their
customers’ bills. MDR pays the network providers (MasterCard and Visa), payment
gateways, and the bank that instals the POS (Point of Sale) interface for their services.
• Who Charges MDR. MDR constitutes a fee charged by payment gateway providers to
merchants for accepting credit or debit card payments.
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• How Much is MDR. MDR percentages are determined based on the MCC of a
business. Depending on the MCC, MDR can differ for various categories. For instance,
payment gateways typically apply an approximate 1% MDR for businesses categorized
as educational services and around 1.3% MDR for those categorized as grocery shops.
• Calculation of MDR. MDR for CCs are usually set by acquiring banks; card networks
such as Visa and Mastercard only set the interchange rate. This is usually determined
by market forces MDR fees are calculated as a percentage of the transaction value and
are proportionally split between the merchant and the bank. If you use Blinkit, Zomato or
dozens of other services even mildly then it will pay you back in no time. If you pay the
renewal fee, you get points back anyway which can be used for flight bookings.
• RBI Rules on MDR. Some of the new rules on MDR by RBI are as under:-
• RBI has decided to allow issuing banks to charge large businesses an advanced
MDR figure, while small businesses are charged comparatively less.
• Small business owners will pay a maximum MDR of 0.4 of the bill value. Medium and
large business owners will pay MDR of 0.9 of the bill value.
• Also, RBI has set a MDR limit at Rs. 200 per bill for small business possessors.
• Under the new rules laid down by RBI, business owners can no longer pass on the
MDR charges to their guests.
• A different set of rules are commanded for QR (Quick Response) grounded
payments. For small businesses, the MDR will be 0.3 percent or Rs. 200 per sale,
whichever is lower. For medium and large businesses, the MDR will be 0.8 percent.

MDR Factor in CCs vs. UPI

• MDR is one of the primary reasons merchants tend to favour UPI payments over card-
based payments.
• When customers pay via UPI, merchants have to pay no processing fee instead of the
MDR levied on card payments.
• The government will bear MDR charges on deals up to Rs 2,000 made through
disbenefit cards, BHIM UPI or Aadhaar- enabled payment systems.
• There are both pros and cons attached to imposing MDR charges in UPI:-
• Pro is that if you want innovation to increase and companies to enter into innovative
models, business models have to be sustainable and make money as companies
are not earning from customers. So definitely, if you charge something, more
people will enter and innovate.
• On the other side, UPI was created for 'nation-building'. If you think about it, local
kirana stores and all shopkeepers also have UPI QR codes outside their shops. The
moment you say you will charge, the shopkeeper will refuse and ask for cash. That
will unnecessarily force people to take out cash.

Interchange Fee
• When customers pay via credit or debit cards, three pillars ensure that the payment is
processed successfully. They are as follows:
• An issuing bank that provides the credit or debit card in question.
• An acquiring bank where the amount is transferred after the transaction.
 64

• Issuing institutions like VISA and MasterCard.

• With every transaction of this sort, the funds get transferred from the issuing to the
acquiring bank, with the entire process being facilitated by the issuing institution.
• An interchange fee is an amount paid to the issuing bank by the issuing institutions after
they collect the same amount from the acquiring bank. It comes up to a percentage of
the total transaction amount along with an accompanying fixed charge.

Purchasing Options
• Credit vs Debit Option. When making a purchase, always select the “credit” option
instead of “debit.” This way, you’ll earn rewards on your purchase and have added
credit protection in case of fraud or dispute.

Visa vs Mastercard
• Infinia Metal comes in both Visa and Mastercard.
• Most international travellers are aware of the fees associated with using their CCs
overseas. Depending on the card variant, you can expect to pay 1.0-3.5% in fees when
you use your CC in another country. This 1.0-3.5% in fees comprise: the currency
conversion charge imposed by card associations (Visa, MasterCard, or American
Express); the administrative fee imposed by the bank.
• The foreign exchange rate is said to be “determined by Visa/MasterCard/Amex”. Is this
an additional fee? How can we avoid, or at least minimise this "fee"? It is important to
understand this because the exchange rates provided by each card association can
differ by 1-2%.
• Visa, MasterCard, Amex, etc calculate blended exchange rates from a range of sources
such as wholesale currency markets or government-mandated rates, then make these
rates available to the issuing banks. The issuing banks may then adjust the exchange
rates further in your credit card bill. The rates from card associations are usually made
available to the issuing banks one business day prior to the processing date.
• Thus, as a retail consumer, there is no way to know in advance the exact foreign
exchange rates that will be applied to your overseas credit card transaction. This means
that you won’t know the exact exchange rate at the point of purchase, but only until after
you check your credit card statements.
• The exchange rates are determined as under:-
• Visa guarantees the exchange rate the day you make the purchase, but has a built
in cushion since the transaction typically only posts a couple of days later, so exchange
rates could change, meaning there’s some risk for Visa
• Mastercard charges the exchange rate the day the transaction posts (often a couple
of days after the transaction), so since they’re charging whatever the rate is, the cushion
is much smaller
• Analysis and results show that all else being equal, you can expect to save ~0.1-0.7%
on average with MasterCard as it generally provides better exchange rates than Visa.
• Does this mean that you should always use a MasterCard card when you’re overseas?
All else being equal (leaving aside card fees/rebates/benefits), MasterCard does
generally provide the best exchange rates for the cardholder.
 65

Visa and Mastercard Offers

• Both VISA and Mastercard offer numerous offers throughout the year.
• It is recommended to check these time based offers on the respective websites.
• Eg From 3 June 24 to 15 November 2024, flat Rs 8,000 off is being offered by Kalyan
Jewellers on purchase of diamond jewellery of minimum Rs 1,00,000 (i.e. 8% discount).
• Similarly, Mastercard is offering a maximum of Rs 2,900 discount on booking tickets
through Ease My Trip up to 31 March 2025.

Rent Paying Options

• Though you won't get RPs or other significant benefits on points but you can defer all
your cash out flow by 1 month.
• You can go the Red Giraffe via Pay Zapp route and pay rent. Red Giraffe charges are
quite low and the payment is considered an insurance payment, so you will not be
charged the extra 1% and get your RPs too.
• Red Giraffe bug has been patched where rent payments (MCC 6513) were being
treated as insurance payments.
• HDFC BillPay + Red Giraffe + Infinia gives RPs and will be counted towards milestone
also. Red Giraffe charges 0.39℅ + GST which comes around 0.46℅ total of your rent
paid. So net gains will be 3.3 – 0.46 = 2.84% RPs.
• If you have bank accounts with HDFC only then you can use bill pay. For only CC
holders Pay Zapp is the only option i.e. Red Giraffe bill via HDFC Pay Zapp app.
• You need to register with Red Giraffe first, on their website submitting all the documents
they've asked for. You need to upload the rental agreement, upload landlord's proof of
ownership. i.e. electricity bill, property tax bill or sale deed, etc. also in Red Giraffe. At
the time of registration you can ask them to register you with HDFC. Or once they've
done your registration you can take your Red Giraffe ID and add it to HDFC net
banking/app bill pay.
• Looks like HDFC has patched Red Giraffe payment option as well in bill pay option via
credit card. Now payment email contains remarks as RENTALBBPSNO instead of
HDFC BILLPAY when payment made to Red Giraffe via CC using HDFC bill pay. So
you will not get RPs anymore on this but will count towards milestone benefits.
• You can pay rent from various options as tabulated below:-
Rent Agreement
Platform Net Charges* Card Acceptance
Required
Red Giraffe 0.46% Yes All, except AMEX
MagicBricks 0% to 1.76% Yes for 0% fees All, except AMEX
99Acres 1.17% No All, except Diners
NoBroker 1.3% Optional All, except AMEX
Freecharge 1.47% Optional All, except AMEX
Housing 1.61% No All, except AMEX
CRED 1.8% No All, except AMEX
 66

PhonePe 2% No All
PayTM 2.2% No All, except AMEX
Mobikwik 2.36% No All, except AMEX
PayMatrix 2.36% No All, except AMEX

Identifying PP Cards
• Infinia PP Card. The format for Infinia PP Cards is: 18 digits without any space
between them.
• Format of Other PP Cards. The format of PP cards can be used to identify the issuer
bank as under:-
• AMEX Plat Charge: 10 digits <space> 1 digit
• Axis Reserve: 6 digits <space> 8 digits
• Axis Magnus: 6 digits <space> 5 digits <space> 7 digits
• AU Zenith: 6 digits <space> 12 digits
• Axis Select: 14 digits without space
• CITI Prestige: 6 digits <space> 10 digits
• HDFC Regalia Gold: 16 digits without any space.
• IndusInd Pioneer Heritage Metal: 6 digits <space> 8 digits
• Standard Chartered Ultimate: 4 digits <space> 4 digits <space> 4 digits
• SBI Elite: 6 digits <space> 10 digits
• SBI Vistara Prime: 6 digits <space> 4 digits <space> 6 digits
• Yes Prosperity Edge: 6 digits <space> 5 digits <space> 7 digits

Tax Implications On Rent Payments

• Since all the rent payment transactions are captured by AIS nowadays as everything is
linked to PAN.
• TDS. So, If you are paying rent greater than Rs 50,000 in any month, you have to
compulsorily deduct 5% TDS and pay the net amount after tax deduction to your
landlord else no deduction is required under section 194IB. Else you can be made an
assessee and penalized.
• Income Source. The person receiving such amounts is liable to show it as income
from House Property and pay applicable taxes on it after necessary deductions as per
their tax slab. Failure to do all this may lead to interest, fines and penalties.
• Even if the landlord is earning more than Rs 2.5LPA but less than Rs 5LPA then he is
liable to file ITR.
• And if the recipient is not owning any property then it is nothing but a case of
misrepresentation and financial fraud.

Tax Implications on CBs

• Ceiling. The total CB earned on the CC is also taxable if the amount on all your cards
is equal to or greater than Rs 50K as per Section 56(2)(x) of the Income-tax Act.
 67

• Income Source. You need to report it under the head ‘Income from Other Sources’ or
‘Profits and Gains from Business or Profession’, as the case may be.
• So beware of all this before doing any such transactions.

Credit Bureaus and Credit Score

• Credit Bureaus in India. Credit bureaus also known as Credit Information Companies
(CIC) are regulated by Reserve Bank of India (RBI) under Credit Information
Companies (Regulation) Act, 2005 (CICRA 2005). RBI has authorised four credit
bureaus to issue credit reports and scores. Credit Information Bureau India Limited
(CIBIL) is widely used in India to calculate your financial health (others being Experian,
Equifax, and CRIF High Mark). These bureaus compile credit scores and reports based
on an individual’s credit history, payment behaviour, and borrowing patterns. These
reports aid financial institutions in evaluating creditworthiness and making informed
lending decisions. Experian and Equifax).
• Credit Score. A credit score is a number that indicates a consumer’s creditworthiness
to lenders, such as banks and NBFCs. It reflects how well one has managed credit in
the past, including personal loans, home loans, and credit cards. In simple terms, it tells
lenders the level of risk involved in lending to an individual and their likelihood of
repaying the loan on time. Different credit-scoring models and score ranges exist, but
they typically fall into the following categories:
• 851-900 (Excellent). Indicates a borrower with no payment defaults, considered
low-risk.
• 751-850 (Good). Favourable score showing strong credit history with timely
payments.
• 651-750 (Average). Represents a balanced credit history with fair credit
management.
• 501-650 (Poor). Indicates a higher risk level, potentially due to missed payments or
high credit utilisation.
• 300-500 (Very Poor). Reflects a bad credit history with defaults and difficulties in
obtaining credit.

Maintaining a Good Credit Score

• Good Credit Score. A CIBIL score is a three-digit number that indicates an individual’s
creditworthiness. It ranges from 300 to 900, and a score of 750 or above is considered
good.
• Make Payments on Time. Late payments can damage your credit profile and make it
difficult to get approved for credit in the future. Set up automatic payments or reminders
to ensure you don't miss even a single payment.
• Monitor Your Credit Report. Regularly check and monitor your credit report to ensure
that all the information is accurate. Checking your own score does not impact it and in
fact, is considered a good credit practice.
• Avoid Too Much Credit. Applying for too much credit in a short period of time can
negatively impact your credit profile. Only apply for credit when you need it and do your
research to find the best options for you. Do not apply for credit you don't need.
 68

• Avoid Maxing Out Your Credit Cards. Maxing out your credit cards can negatively
impact your credit score and make it difficult to get approved for credit in the future.
• Low Card Utilisation Ratio (CUR). Try to use less than 30% of your total credit limit
across all cards and lines of credit.
• Use Old Credit Cards. The length of your credit history impacts your score. Keep
using your old credit cards with good payment history. When you are trying to close
your oldest CC account, please check what is the second oldest CC account's age, if it
is more than 5 years, no need to worry.
• Number of Credit Enquiries. The longer the credit history, the lesser the impact of
number of enquiries on the credit score. Even if your credit score is impacted because
of no of enquiries, the score will recover pretty fast ie. within 2 to 3 months.
Only people with less than 5 years of credit history should be careful about the no of
enquiries.
• Be Patient. Building or improving a credit score takes time. Continue practicing good
credit habits, and your score will gradually improve.
• Credit Mix. Maintain a healthy credit mix: It is better to have a right combination of
secured loans (such as Home Loan, Auto Loan) and unsecured loans (such as
Personal Loan, Credit Cards) of a long and short tenor to build a good credit score. Too
many unsecured loans may be viewed negatively. A mix of secured and unsecured
loans is a better indicator rather than having only unsecured loans. However, what is
observed in practice, except for home loan, all other secured loans have no/minimal
positive impact on the score. Home Loan - will definitely improve your score by around
10 points. Gold Loan and Loan against FD - have no positive impact on the score. Auto
Loan - also may not have a positive impact.
• Co-signed or Joint Accounts or Guaranteed Accounts. Monitor your co-signed,
guaranteed and joint accounts monthly: In co-signed, guaranteed or jointly held
accounts, you are held equally liable for missed payments. Your joint holder’s (or the
guaranteed individual) negligence could affect your ability to access credit when you
need it.
• Set Reminders/Auto Pay. You should set reminders for your payments and be
disciplined with credit. Your settlement of outstanding debt can have a considerable
impact on your credit score. Payment delays for EMIs not only force you to pay the
penalty but also lower your credit score. So if you are looking to improve CIBIL score
pay your dues on time and rack up a good score. Use service that let you automate bill
payment so that you don’t have to worry about missing deadlines.
• Part Payment if CUR Crosses 30%. In case your CUR crosses more than 30% in a
statement cycle, then before the generation of the statement, it is recommended to
make a part payment to bring down the final bill below 30% CUR. This will preclude a
negative CIBIL hit.
• Full Payment Before Statement Generation. Maintain zero or negative current
balances on all CC accounts to get a boost of about 10 points to your CIBIL score
Then one may ask what is the purpose of having 45/50 days of free credit period.
Correct, this may not be useful for those who want to utilise full free credit days, but for
those who want to boost their credit score for any other purposes temporarily.
 69

• Check Credit Score and Rectify Errors. CIBIL report minimum once a year directly
on CIBIL app. You can check for free once a year & multiple times if you pay. If you
notice any error with a negative impact on your CIBIL Score you can bring it to their
notice and have it rectified so that the negative hit on your CIBIL Score can be
removed.

Checking Your Credit Score

• Checking Credit Scores. If it's a soft enquiry like you checking in various
apps/websites GPay, OneScore etc, it won't impact the score. But if banks or other
financial institutions are checking our score from their end, the score will take a hit.
Multiple enquiries from banks will indicate that the person is desperately looking for loan
and credit score will decrease.
• Free Credit Score Checks. If you don't want to spend some Rs 1k per annum on
CIBIL membership (which has its own advantages), then here are a few options to keep
you updated on your credit profile for free:-
• Axis Bank - CIBIL (once a month).
• Amazon App - CIBIL (once a quarter/3 months, and works for a few people only).
• Airtel Thanks App - CRIF for some (CIBIL Discontinued).
• BankBazaar – Not recommended - don't even think about it.
• Bajaj Finserv- CIBIL (once a month).
• Bank Karo - CRIF (once a month).
• BharatPe - Experian (once a month).
• CRED - CRIF + Experian (once a month).
• CreditMantri - Equifax (once a month).
• Experian Business Account on Whatsapp - Experian (whenever needed).
• Fit.Credit App - CRIF (Once in 45 Days).
• Fi Money App - Experian (once a month & only for Fi Account Holders).
• Freecharge - CIBIL (once a quarter).
• GPay App - CIBIL (once a month).
• IIFL - CIBIL (Whenever You want).
• INDMoney App - Experian (once a month).
• Indialends - CIBIL (once a month) [Be ready for spam calls].
• Kotak Bank - Experian (once a quarter).
• KhataBook - Experian (once a month).
• MyMoneyKarma - Equifax (once a month).
• Moneycontrol - CRIF (once a month).
• OneScore - CIBIL + Experian (once a month).
• PaisaBazaar - CIBIL + Experian + CRIF + Equifax (once a month).
• Paytm - CIBIL for some, Equifax for some, Experian for Some (once a quarter).
• Payme IN - CIBIL (Whenever you want) [Be ready for spam calls].
• Poonawalla Fincorp - CIBIL (Whenever You want) [Be ready for Spam calls].
• Tata Neu – Experian - Under NeuPass Tab, press on "My Credit".
• Wishfin - CIBIL (once a month).
 70

Correcting Incorrect Credit Scores/Reports

• Credit Score Errors. If you have identified any errors in the credit reports, you can fix
them by contacting your credit bureaus. Here is how you can dispute your credit report:-
• Step 1:Obtain Your Credit Reports: The first step is to get your updated credit report
from the credit bureaus. You can get a credit report from any of the credit bureaus at
zero cost for one time only.
• Step 2: Review your credit report: Now, you must check your credit report and find if
there are any accuracies in the credit report related to incorrect account details,
incorrect outstanding balances, account-related errors, etc.
• Step 3: Fill out the online dispute form: You must fill out an online dispute form on
the credit bureau’s website. Here, you must provide the details of the errors you
identified in the credit report.
• Step 4: Submit dispute form: Finally, you must review your details to be updated and
submit your dispute form online.
• Data Updation. After submitting your form, credit bureaus will check your details and
verify it with the lenders, and if an error is found, they will update you accordingly. This
process might take 30-45 days.

Death
• Card Cancellation. The death or incapacity of Cardmember including insolvency,
dissolution, bankruptcy or winding up, shall automatically result in cancellation of the
card issued to the Cardmember as well as any Add-on Cardmembers.
• Payment of Dues. On cancellation or suspension of the card, all amounts outstanding
on the card account shall be deemed to have become due immediately.
 71

CHAPTER 14: CUSTOMER SUPPORT

SMS
• For checking your RPs, converting eligible spends to EMI and reporting CC disputes
through SMS, please send an SMS to 7308080808.
• There are no pre-defined keywords and you can type your own query to use this facility.

Phone Banking
• 1800 202 6161.
• 1860 267 6161.
• If you are not in India: +9122 61606160.

Customer Care
• 1800-102-3310 (toll-free).
• 1800-266-3310 (toll-free).
• 022-61717606 (toll).
• 022-2856 1443 (landline).

Post. Manager, HDFC Bank Cards P.O. Box 8654, Thiruvanmiyur, Chennai - 600 041.

Email. If you prefer email, you can reach them at -

• [email protected].
• [email protected]
• [email protected]

Global Concierge Assistance

• Toll Free No.: 1800 118 887
• Landline No.: 022 42320226.

Grievance Redressal Officer

• Reach us on phone 04461084900
• between 09.30 a.m. to 05.30 p.m.
• Monday to Friday.

Grievance Timelines
• Customer Grievance will be addressed within a period of 30 days.
• If your issue still remains unresolved or if you have not received response within 30
days of lodging a complaint, you may approach the Banking Ombudsman appointed by
the RBI.
 72

CHAPTER 15: REFERENCES

• https://www.cardmaven.in/hdfc-bank-infinia-credit-card-review/
• https://www.cardexpert.in/hdfc-bank-infinia-credit-card-review/
• https://www.creditgyani.com/credit-cards/hdfc-infinia-metal-credit-card-review/
• https://www.cibil.com/blog/new-to-credit-heres-how-to-maintain-a-healthy-cibil-score
• https://www.etmoney.com/learn/loans/credit-bureaus-in-india/
• https://www.etmoney.com
• https://www.forbes.com/advisor/in/credit-card/reviews/hdfc-infinia-credit-card-review/
• https://www.fincards.in/hdfc-bank-infinia-credit-card/
• https://www.financesrule.com/hdfc-infinia-credit-card-metal-edition-review/
• https://www.hdfcbank.com/ (various threads/links)
• https://www.hdfcbank.com/personal/pay/cards/credit-cards/infinia-credit-card
• https://www.manikarthik.com/blog/hdfc-infinia-card-review/personal-finance/credit-card-
reviews/
• https://www.moneymint.com/hdfc-bank-infinia-credit-card-review/
• https://www.moneycontrol.com/ (various threads/links)
• https://www.onemileatatime.com/mastercard-international-exchange-rate/
• https://www.paisabazaar.com/credit-card/hdfc-infinia-review/
• https://www.paisabazaar.com/hdfc-bank/infinia-credit-card/
• https://www.prioritypass.com/
• https://www.select.finology.in/credit-card/hdfc-bank-infinia-credit-card
• https://www.specials.priceless.com/en-in/ (various threads/links)
• https://www.technofino.in/community/ (various threads/links)
• https://www.technofino.in/hdfc-infinia-credit-card-metal-edition-review/
• https://www.reddit.com/r/CreditCardsIndia/comments/ (various threads/links)
• https://www.technofino.in/hdfc-infinia-credit-card-metal-edition-review/ (various
threads/links)
• https://www.thinmargin.com/blogs/visa-vs-mastercard-who-gives-better-exchange-rates
• https://www.visa.co.in/en_in/visa-offers-and-perks/?redemptionCountry=103
• Most Important Terms and Conditions (MITC) of Infinia CC available on HDFC Bank
website (Version 2.3, 15 July 2024 edition)
• Others