BOB Credit Card Charges & Fees 2026: Complete Guide

Key Takeaways

• Annual fees range from lifetime free (Prime, ICAI, ICSI cards) to ₹5,000 + GST (Etihad Guest Premium), with spend-based waivers available on most cards.
• Finance charges on revolving credit range from approximately 18% to 43.2% per annum depending on the card variant - always check your specific MITC.
• Cash advance fee: 2.5% of the withdrawn amount or ₹500, whichever is higher. Interest accrues from day one - no grace period on cash withdrawals.
• Late payment charges are tiered by outstanding balance - the slab structure applies uniformly across all BOBCARD variants.
• Over-limit fee: 2.5% of the amount exceeding your credit limit, subject to a minimum of ₹600 + GST.
• New from April 2026: 1% fee on rent payments (MCC 6513, max ₹5,000 per transaction) and 1% fee on online education payments via select platforms.
• Forex markup ranges from 0% (Etihad Guest Premium) to 3.5% (most standard cards) depending on the variant.
• GST at 18% applies on all fees, interest charges, and other charges - this is in addition to every figure listed below.
• A revision to features and charges has been announced effective 15 July 2026 - verify current rates at bobcard.co.in/most-important-terms-and-condition before your next billing cycle.

Annual Fee and Joining Fee

The joining fee is a one-time charge levied in your first billing cycle. The annual fee is charged every year at renewal. On most BOBCARD variants, the same amount applies to both joining and annual renewal - though some cards have a joining fee waiver as a limited-period offer.

All fees exclude GST. For cards currently available as Lifetime Free under a limited-period promotional offer (e.g. BOBCARD Premier), verify at the time of application as the offer may have changed. The first year fee is charged in the 3rd billing statement from card issuance month unless the spend waiver threshold is met earlier.

Finance Charges (Interest on Revolving Credit)

Finance charges apply when you carry any balance forward from one billing cycle to the next - meaning you did not pay the Total Amount Due in full by the payment due date, or you made a cash withdrawal. These are the most expensive charges on any credit card, and understanding them is essential.

Finance charges on BOBCARD range from approximately 18% to 43.2% per annum depending on the card variant. The rate is card-specific and is published in your card's MITC - not a single universal number across all BOBCARD products.

The key trap: carrying even ₹1 of unpaid balance from one cycle to the next eliminates the interest-free period on all new transactions in the following cycle. Every new purchase begins accruing interest from the day it is made, not from the statement date. This is why paying the Minimum Amount Due is never sufficient to avoid interest charges - it only avoids the late payment fee.

GST at 18% is levied on the interest amount each month. Your monthly statement shows the finance charge plus 18% GST on that charge as separate line items.

Late Payment Charges

A late payment charge applies when you fail to pay even the Minimum Amount Due (MAD) by the payment due date. The fee is tiered by the total outstanding amount on the statement and is applied uniformly across all BOBCARD credit card variants.

Late payment fee slabs are indicative and sourced from published BOBCARD charge schedules. These were revised wef 01/10/2025. Verify current slabs in the BOBCARD MITC 2026 at bobcard.co.in/most-important-terms-and-condition. GST at 18% applies on top of each slab amount.

Important: the late payment fee and finance charges are two separate charges, not the same thing. Paying only the MAD avoids the late payment fee but does not avoid finance charges on the unpaid balance.

Cash Advance Fee

Using your BOBCARD at an ATM to withdraw cash triggers a cash advance fee on the same transaction, regardless of how quickly you repay.

• Fee: 2.5% of the amount withdrawn, or ₹500 - whichever is higher
• Interest: accrues from the day of withdrawal at your card's finance charge rate - no interest-free period, no grace period
• The cash advance fee appears in your next billing statement; the interest runs continuously until fully repaid
• Cash advance sub-limit: a portion of your credit limit is designated for ATM withdrawals, determined by BOBCARD at its discretion. Typically 20%–40% of the credit limit, and reduced to 20% for Corporate Premium cards from 1 April 2026

For a detailed breakdown of cash advance fees, limits, and the full cost calculation, see the companion blog: BOB Credit Card Cash Withdrawal: Fee, Rate & Daily Limit.

Over-Limit Fee

If your outstanding balance - including finance charges, fees, and new transactions - exceeds your assigned credit limit at any point, an over-limit fee applies:

• Fee: 2.5% of the amount by which outstanding exceeds the credit limit
• Minimum: ₹600 + GST
• This charge applies per billing cycle in which an over-limit condition exists

Over-limit situations can arise indirectly: finance charges and fees accumulating on an already near-limit balance can push it over without any new spend. Monitor your available limit regularly via the BOBCARD app or SMS "BAL XXXX" to 9223172141.

Forex Markup Fee

The foreign exchange transaction fee (forex markup) applies to all international card transactions - retail purchases outside India, online transactions in foreign currency, and ATM cash withdrawals abroad. It is a percentage of the transaction amount charged in addition to the base exchange rate.

Forex markup is charged even on INR-denominated transactions processed through an international payment gateway - for example, some foreign subscription services that bill in INR may still route through an international gateway and attract the markup. GST at 18% applies on the forex markup fee. Verify your specific card's forex fee at the product page on bobcard.co.in.

Transaction-Specific Fees (New & Ongoing)

Rent Payment Fee (MCC 6513) - from April 2026

A 1% processing fee (maximum ₹5,000 per transaction) applies to all rent payments made via Merchant Category Code MCC 6513 - this covers platforms like NoBroker, NestAway, and other rental payment services coded as MCC 6513. Example from BOBCARD's own FAQ: a ₹10,500 rent payment attracts ₹105 in fee + GST. This applies across all BOBCARD variants.

Online Education Payment Fee - from April 2026

A 1% fee (maximum ₹5,000 per transaction) applies to online education fee payments made via select third-party platforms: MobiKwik, NoBroker, Paytm, PhonePe, and SuperPe. Payments made directly to educational institutions may not attract this fee - the charge is specific to these aggregator platforms.

Wallet Loading Fee

A 1% processing fee applies to all digital wallet loading transactions (Paytm wallet, PhonePe wallet, etc.) using any BOBCARD credit card. No reward points are earned on wallet loads. Wallet loading transactions also do not count toward annual fee waiver spend thresholds.

Fuel Surcharge Waiver

All BOBCARD credit cards offer a 1% fuel surcharge waiver on fuel transactions within the following bands:

• Most BOBCARD cards: 1% waiver on fuel transactions between ₹500 and ₹5,000, capped at ₹250 per billing cycle
• IRCTC BOBCARD: 1% waiver on fuel transactions between ₹500 and ₹3,000, capped at ₹100 per statement
• VARUNHA BOBCARD: 1% waiver between ₹400 and ₹5,000, capped at ₹100 per statement
• HPCL ENERGIE BOBCARD: 1% waiver at HPCL fuel stations only, between ₹400 and ₹5,000, capped at ₹100 per statement

No reward points are earned on fuel transactions on most BOBCARD cards. The exception is the HPCL ENERGIE BOBCARD, where reward points are specifically earned on fuel/petrol spends at HPCL stations.

Other Service Charges

The July 2026 Revision: What Is Changing

BOBCARD has announced that some features and charges will be revised effective 15 July 2026. The notice on bobcard.co.in states: "w.e.f 15th July 2026, some of your BOBCARD features & charges will be revised." Full details are available at bobcard.io/1Jul26 or in the MITC section of the website.

If your billing cycle or card anniversary falls on or after this date, verify whether any charge listed in this guide has been updated. In particular, annual fees, forex markups, and category-specific fee structures are the areas most likely to be revised. Check bobcard.co.in/most-important-terms-and-condition for the current MITC before assuming figures in this guide still apply.

How to Minimise BOB Credit Card Charges

• Pay the Total Amount Due in full by the due date - this eliminates finance charges entirely and preserves your interest-free grace period on new purchases
• Avoid ATM cash withdrawals on the credit card - every withdrawal incurs both a transaction fee and immediate interest from day one, making it the most expensive way to access funds
• Use the BOBCARD app to set up auto-debit for the minimum due as a safety net - this prevents late payment fees even in months when you cannot pay in full
• Track your available credit limit via SMS "BAL XXXX" to 9223172141 - staying well under your limit avoids over-limit charges triggered by accumulating fees and interest
• Use the BOBCARD Etihad Guest Premium for international transactions if you hold it - 0% forex markup versus 3.5% on standard cards represents a meaningful saving on large international purchases
• Check bobcard.co.in/festive for offer windows where specific merchant EMIs are Interest-Free - using no-cost EMI instead of revolving credit on large purchases saves on the finance charge