Zero Forex Markup Credit Cards in India 2026

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Recent changes to these cards

The latest source-verified changes to the cards ranked above, from their value timelines. A strong zero forex cards card can be devalued overnight — this is how each pick has actually behaved.

▼ RewardObserved 9 Sept 2026 · Upcoming · effective 26 Oct 2026IDFC FIRST Select Credit Card

International spends stop earning reward points

Reward points on international spends at the card's own rate→No reward points on international spends

From 26 October 2026 IDFC FIRST Bank credit cards stop earning reward points on international spends, except the Ashva, Mayura, Gaj, FIRST Private, FIRST WOW!, FIRST WOW! Black and IndiGo cards. IDFC announced it in its 9 September 2026 letter to cardmembers, the same letter that removed the forex markup, so paying abroad still costs no markup but earns nothing. On the Classic, Millennia, Select and FIRST Wealth this ends the 10X rate on international spends.

Verification: IDFC FIRST Bank ↗ · Confidence: High

Same change also applies here to LIC Select Credit Card, LIC Classic Credit Card, IDFC FIRST SWYP Credit Card, IDFC FIRST Power Credit Card.

▼ RewardObserved 8 Oct 2026 · Upcoming · effective 26 Oct 2026IndiGo IDFC FIRST Credit Card

International spends cut to 1 BluChip per ₹100

3 BluChips per ₹100 (base rate)→1 BluChip per ₹100

From 26 October 2026 international purchases earn 1 IndiGo BluChip per ₹100, down from the card's 3-per-₹100 base: a two-thirds cut on exactly the spend its zero forex mark-up draws in. The zero mark-up itself is unchanged. IDFC announced it on the card's own page ahead of the date.

Verification: IDFC FIRST Bank ↗ · Confidence: High

▲ FeeEffective 9 Sept 2026IDFC FIRST Select Credit Card

Forex markup removed

1% to 3.5%, depending on the card→0% (nil)

IDFC FIRST Bank stopped charging a markup on foreign-currency spends on all its credit cards from 9 September 2026, the effective date its letter to cardmembers gives. Its Key Fact Statement dated 15 September 2026 lists the markup on foreign-currency and currency-conversion transactions as nil, with no card-by-card exception, where the January 2026 edition charged 3.5% on most cards and less on a few (1.99% on the FIRST Select, 1.5% on the FIRST Wealth, 1.49% on the IndiGo card and 1% on the Ashva). The same letter says international spends stop earning reward points from 26 October 2026 on most IDFC FIRST cards; that is recorded as its own change.

Verification: IDFC FIRST Bank ↗ · Confidence: High

Same change also applies here to LIC Select Credit Card, IDFC FIRST Ashva Credit Card, IndiGo IDFC FIRST Credit Card, LIC Classic Credit Card, IDFC FIRST SWYP Credit Card, IDFC FIRST Hello Cashback Credit Card, IDFC FIRST EA₹N Credit Card, IDFC FIRST Power Credit Card.

◆ NetworkEffective 3 Sept 2026Scapia Credit Card

Axis Bank becomes a third issuer, on Mastercard and RuPay

On 3 September 2026 Scapia and Axis Bank launched the Scapia Axis Bank Credit Card, making Axis the third bank to issue the card after Federal Bank and BOBCARD. Axis issues the main card on Mastercard rather than Visa, with a RuPay edition for UPI. The headline terms match the other two banks: no joining or annual fee, zero forex markup, 10% in Scapia Coins on the main card and 5% on the RuPay edition, 20% on flights, hotels and buses booked in the Scapia app, and unlimited domestic lounges once ₹20,000 is spent in a billing cycle. Cards already issued by Federal Bank and BOBCARD are unaffected.

Verification: Axis Bank ↗ · Confidence: High

▼ RewardEffective 22 Jul 2026IndiGo IDFC FIRST Credit Card

FASTag, railway, government and education cut to 0.5 BluChips

3 BluChips per ₹100 (base rate)→0.5 BluChips per ₹100

Under a fair-usage update effective 22 July 2026, FASTag recharges (MCC 4784), railway spends (MCC 4111/4112), government services (MCC 9000-9999) and education (MCC 8211-8299) drop from the card's unusually generous 3 BluChips per ₹100 base to 0.5 per ₹100 — a ~83% cut that moves them into the same reduced bucket as fuel, rent, utilities and UPI. IDFC frames it as targeting very high or unusual usage; everyday spending is untouched.

Verification: IDFC FIRST Bank ↗ · Confidence: High

1. Show 10 more changes

   ▼ RewardEffective Jul 2026IndiGo IDFC FIRST Credit Card

   BluChips now forfeited if the minimum due is missed

   Credited regardless of payment behaviour→Credited on due date + 1 only if the minimum amount due is paid on time

   From the July 2026 statement, a cycle's BluChips are posted the day after the payment due date and only for holders who paid at least the minimum amount due on time — miss it and that cycle's BluChips lapse entirely rather than being deferred. A single missed minimum can now wipe out a month of earning on a card built around milestone accumulation, and it also delays every credit to after the due date.

   Verification: IDFC FIRST Bank ↗ · Confidence: High

   ▲ MilestoneEffective 1 Jul 2026IDFC FIRST SWYP Credit Card

   Education added to special-category milestones, ₹40k tier added

   FASTag + railway only; ₹20,000 → 400 points→Education added; ₹20,000 → 400 points, ₹40,000 → 800 points

   A rare positive. From the July 2026 statement cycle IDFC widened SWYP's special-category milestone programme: education spends (MCC 8211, 8220, 8241, 8244, 8249, 8299) now count alongside FASTag (MCC 4784) and railway (MCC 4111/4112), and a second tier was added — ₹40,000 of cumulative special-category spend in a cycle earns a further 400 points, doubling the ceiling to 800. Worth up to ₹200 a cycle at ₹0.25 a point, and genuinely useful on a Gen-Z card where tuition and fees are real spend. Date marked reconstructed: IDFC specifies the "July 2026 statement cycle" rather than a calendar date, so the change bites from each holder's own cycle.

   Verification: IDFC FIRST Bank ↗ · Confidence: Reconstructed

   ▼ RewardObserved 13 May 2026 · Effective 18 Jun 2026IDFC FIRST Select Credit Card

   Points get 24-month expiry + credit-limit earn cap

   Points never expired; no per-cycle earn cap; movie BOGO ungated; 10X only on incremental spend above ₹20,000/cycle→24-month expiry; credit-limit earn cap; movie BOGO needs ₹20k spend; 10X now category-based (dining/travel/international) from the first rupee

   Reward points earned from the July 2026 statement cycle expire 24 months after being credited (previously lifetime-valid), and points accrue only on spends up to the assigned credit limit per billing cycle. The Buy-1-Get-1 movie benefit (up to ₹125) now needs ₹20,000 of prior-month spend to activate. The same revision replaced the ₹20,000 incremental spend tier with category-based earning: 10X now applies to dining, travel and international spends from the first transaction, 3X to other eligible spends, and 1X to utilities, insurance, railway and FASTag. The FIRST Select was confirmed among the affected cards, though IDFC did not publish a Select-specific dated notice.

   Verification: CardAdvisor Research · Confidence: High

   ▼ BenefitEffective 18 Jun 2026IDFC FIRST WOW! Black Credit Card

   Movie discount gated on staying spend-active

   25% off up to ₹100, once a month→Same, but only if you transacted in the previous calendar month

   From 18 June 2026 the 25%-off-up-to-₹100 monthly movie discount requires the holder to stay "spend-active" — at least one transaction on the card in the previous calendar month unlocks the benefit for the next. A light condition compared with the ₹20,000 monthly spend IDFC imposed on FIRST Wealth's movie benefit on the same date, but it ends the card's unconditional movie perk. Marked reconstructed: the launch press release listed the benefit without a condition, but IDFC's notice words it as "continue enjoying", so we cannot fully rule out that the condition predated the notice.

   Verification: IDFC FIRST Bank ↗ · Confidence: Reconstructed

   Same change also applies here to IDFC FIRST SWYP Credit Card, IDFC FIRST EA₹N Credit Card.

   ▼ RewardEffective 18 Jun 2026IDFC FIRST WOW! Black Credit Card

   Reward earning capped at your credit limit per cycle

   All eligible spends earned points→Only spends up to the credit limit per cycle earn points

   From 18 June 2026 reward points are earned only on spends up to the assigned credit limit in a billing cycle; anything beyond — including spend enabled by repaying and re-using the limit within the same cycle — earns nothing. On an FD-backed card whose limit is tied to the deposit, this bites hardest on holders with a small FD who cycle their limit more than once a month. Points on WOW! Black remain never-expiring, unlike the 24-month expiry imposed on FIRST Wealth on the same date.

   Verification: IDFC FIRST Bank ↗ · Confidence: High

   Same change also applies here to IndiGo IDFC FIRST Credit Card, IDFC FIRST SWYP Credit Card, IDFC FIRST EA₹N Credit Card.

   ▼ BenefitEffective 18 Jun 2026IDFC FIRST Ashva Credit Card

   Movie BOGO spend-gated; earn capped to credit limit

   A second trim: from 18 June 2026 the buy-one-get-one movie-ticket benefit required ₹20,000 of spend in the previous calendar month to unlock (previously unconditional), and reward points were earned only on spends up to the credit limit within a billing cycle.

   Verification: CardAdvisor Research · Confidence: Reconstructed

   ▼ LoungeObserved 18 Dec 2025 · Effective 1 Apr 2026IDFC FIRST Select Credit Card

   Domestic airport lounge halved to 1/quarter

   2 per quarter→1 per quarter

   From 1 April 2026 the complimentary domestic airport lounge quota was halved from 2 to 1 visit per quarter, still gated on ₹20,000 of prior-month spend — a third successive trim to the card's lounge benefit. Railway lounge access continues.

   Verification: IDFC FIRST Bank ↗ · Confidence: High

   ▲ FeeEffective Apr 2026IDFC FIRST Hello Cashback Credit Card

   Zero-joining-fee introductory offer extended to 31 August 2026

   ₹0 intro offer, originally slated to end 31 March 2026→₹0 intro offer extended — now valid till 31 August 2026 (standing fee ₹1,000)

   IDFC FIRST kept the Hello Cashback's introductory ₹0 joining fee running past its original 31 March 2026 end date; the card's page now states the offer is valid till 31 August 2026. The card's standing schedule remains ₹1,000 joining / ₹1,000 annual, with a 50% annual-fee reversal at ₹1–2 lakh of spend and a full reversal at ₹2 lakh.

   Verification: IDFC FIRST Bank ↗ · Confidence: Reconstructed

   ▼ RewardEffective 27 Feb 2026Scapia Credit Card

   Insurance and utility spends dropped from earning

   Effective 27 February 2026 Scapia stopped awarding coins on insurance (MCC 6300) and on utility spends — electricity, mobile, broadband, gas and water (MCCs 4900, 4812, 4814, 4816, 4899). With fuel and rent already excluded, this removed the easiest routes to both earn coins and hit the lounge spend target, ending the card's no-catch era.

   Verification: Federal Bank ↗ · Confidence: High

   ▼ LoungeEffective 27 Feb 2026Scapia Credit Card

   Lounge spend gate doubled to ₹20,000/month

   ₹10,000/month→₹20,000/month

   From 27 February 2026 the preceding-month spend needed to unlock unlimited domestic lounge and airport privileges doubled again from ₹10,000 to ₹20,000, tracked jointly across the Visa and RuPay variants. Below the threshold, lounge visits are self-paid. This is the current live requirement per Federal Bank.

   Verification: Federal Bank ↗ · Confidence: High

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