ICICI Bank to Revise Credit Card Rules in 2026: Charges to Rise, Rewards and Popular Benefits to Be Curtailed
If you are an ICICI Bank credit card user, an important update awaits you in the new year. The private sector lender has announced a series of changes to its credit card rules, which will come into effect in a phased manner starting January 2026. These revisions will impact charges, reward point structures, and several popular benefits across retail credit cards, including premium and mid-range variants.
According to the bank, the new rules will be rolled out gradually between January and February 2026 and will apply to all retail credit card users. For many customers, this means higher costs on certain transactions and reduced rewards on categories that were earlier considered highly beneficial.
Higher Charges on High-Value Travel Spending
One of the most significant changes relates to travel-related expenses. From January 2026, ICICI Bank will levy an additional 1% charge on transportation expenses exceeding ₹50,000 in select merchant categories. This includes high-value bookings such as train and bus tickets.
In addition to higher charges, the bank has also tightened reward point limits on travel spending. Premium credit cards like Emeralde, Sapphiro, and Rubyx will now earn reward points only on travel expenses up to ₹20,000 per month. Any spending beyond this cap will not be eligible for rewards. For mid-range cards such as Coral, Platinum, and other similar variants, the reward eligibility limit has been reduced to ₹10,000 per month.
This move is likely to impact frequent travelers who rely on credit cards to accumulate reward points on large travel bookings.
Changes to Entertainment Benefits
ICICI Bank has also revised rules around its popular entertainment offers. The widely used BookMyShow Buy-One-Get-One (BOGO) movie ticket offer will no longer be unconditional. To qualify for this benefit, cardholders must now spend at least ₹25,000 in the previous three months using their credit card.
Moreover, from February 2026, the BookMyShow BOGO offer will be completely discontinued for Instant Platinum credit card users. This is a major downgrade for customers who primarily used the card for movie and entertainment-related perks.
Impact on Super-Premium Emeralde Cards
Even super-premium credit card users have not been spared. ICICI Bank has increased the Dynamic Currency Conversion (DCC) fee on Emeralde cards to 2%. This fee applies when international transactions are billed in Indian rupees instead of foreign currency.
Additionally, Emeralde Metal cardholders will no longer earn reward points on several commonly used categories. These include government services, tax payments, fuel purchases, rent payments, and transactions made through third-party wallets. The bank has also introduced a one-time fee of ₹3,500 for issuing new add-on cards under the Emeralde Metal category.
Wallet Loads and Online Gaming to Become Costlier
Loading money into digital wallets will also become more expensive. From mid-January 2026, users will be charged 1% for loading ₹5,000 or more into popular wallets such as Amazon Pay, Paytm, and Mobikwik using ICICI Bank credit cards.
Online gaming transactions are set to attract even higher charges. Payments made on gaming platforms like Dream11, MPL, and similar services will now incur an additional 2% fee. This change may discourage frequent gaming-related transactions through credit cards.
Implementation Timeline
Most of the revised charges and transaction-related fees will come into effect from January 15, 2026. However, certain changes related to reward points and card benefits will be implemented from February 1, 2026. ICICI Bank has advised customers to review the updated terms carefully to avoid surprises.
What Cardholders Should Do
With these changes, credit card users may need to reassess their spending patterns and card usage strategies. Customers who frequently spend on travel, entertainment, wallet loads, or gaming may find their overall costs increasing while rewards decrease.
As banks across India continue to rebalance credit card benefits amid rising costs and regulatory scrutiny, ICICI Bank’s latest move reflects a broader industry trend of tightening perks while increasing fees. Cardholders are advised to stay informed, compare alternatives if necessary, and plan their expenses wisely in the new year.
