In-depth review
ICAI Exclusive BOBCARD Credit Card
Only active ICAI members can get this card, whatever they earn. For a Chartered Accountant it's lifetime free and still brings a 2% forex markup, 12 domestic lounge visits a year and free professional indemnity cover of ₹5 lakh, which is a lot for no fee. Earning is ordinary, with 0.25% on most spends, 1.25% on dining, online and utility bills under a single 1,000-point cap per statement, and a wide exclusion list that takes in fuel and groceries.
Read the full review →Key features
What this card is built to do — the highlights that actually matter.
Welcome Benefit
~₹125 in vouchers, points or cashback in year one — usually conditional on a first spend within 30–90 days
1.25% on Dining
5 points per ₹100 (~1.25%) on dining, under a 1,000-point/statement cap SHARED with online and utilities; past it, spends drop to 1 point per ₹100. Fast-food outlets (MCC 5814) earn nothing
1.25% on Online Shopping
5 points per ₹100 (~1.25%) on online spends, under a 1,000-point/statement cap SHARED with dining and utilities; past it, spends drop to 1 point per ₹100. UPI spends earn core points only
Airport Lounge Access
12 complimentary domestic lounge visits a year (3 per quarter), unlocked only by ₹40,000 of spend in the preceding calendar quarter. No international lounge access
Lifetime Free
No annual fee — ever. Keep this card long-term without any recurring cost.
Milestone Bonus
~₹4,000 in bonus rewards on hitting annual spend milestones
UPI Linked
Pay UPI QR codes from your credit line. What UPI payments earn can depend on the app you pay through, so check the rewards details.
Insurance Cover
Free professional indemnity cover up to ₹5 lakh, air accident death cover of ₹15 lakh and non-air accident death cover of ₹5 lakh — contingent covers, not an annual cash benefit; withdrawable by BOBCARD without notice, and lapses if the card is unused for 90 days before death
✈️ TRAVEL BENEFITS
Lounge access, miles, forex rates and travel perks at a glance.
AIRPORT LOUNGE ACCESS
12 visits/yr
Domestic lounges
₹6,000
Estimated annual value
2%
Forex markup
- Domestic airport lounge access (12 domestic visits/yr, worth ~₹6,000)
- Low forex markup: 2.0%
- Travel insurance cover included
For practising Chartered Accountants who want a free card with a low forex markup and some lounge access, and who spend enough on dining, online and utilities to use the 5X cap — plus ₹1 lakh a quarter to trigger the milestone.
Full reward structure
What you earn on every rupee, per spend category — as of 11 Oct 2026. Rates assume 1 pt = ₹0.25. How we value points →
| Category | Type | Rate | Monthly cap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dining | reward points | 1.25%5 pts/₹100 × ₹0.25 | ₹250one cap shared with Online Shopping, Utility Bills |
| Online Shopping | reward points | 1.25%5 pts/₹100 × ₹0.25 | ₹250one cap shared with Dining, Utility Bills |
| Utility Bills | reward points | 1.25%5 pts/₹100 × ₹0.25 | ₹250one cap shared with Dining, Online Shopping |
| Other | reward points | 0.25%1 pts/₹100 × ₹0.25 | — |
Dining: 5 points per ₹100 (~1.25%) on dining, under a 1,000-point/statement cap SHARED with online and utilities; past it, spends drop to 1 point per ₹100. Fast-food outlets (MCC 5814) earn nothing
Online Shopping: 5 points per ₹100 (~1.25%) on online spends, under a 1,000-point/statement cap SHARED with dining and utilities; past it, spends drop to 1 point per ₹100. UPI spends earn core points only
Utility Bills: 5 points per ₹100 (~1.25%) on utility bills, under a 1,000-point/statement cap SHARED with dining and online; past it, spends drop to 1 point per ₹100. Utility spends of ₹50,000+ attract a 1% fee
Other: 1 reward point per ₹100 (~0.25%) on other eligible spends; a long list of MCCs earns nothing
Earns nothing on: Fuel · Groceries · Rent · Education · Government & Tax · Insurance · Hospitals · Wallet Loads · Rail / bus / toll · Fast-food outlets
These spends earn no rewards at all — not a reduced rate, and not the base rate. They are also normally left out of any milestone or fee-waiver calculation.
Fees & charges
The numbers that matter beyond rewards — verify on the issuer site before applying. Fees below are shown inclusive of 18% GST, as of 11 Oct 2026.
| Charge | Amount |
|---|---|
| Annual fee (incl. 18% GST) | Lifetime free |
| Joining fee (incl. 18% GST) | Free |
| Finance charge (APR) | 3.75% p.m. |
| Forex markup | 2% |
Perks & benefits
Estimated annual value beyond rewards — ~₹13,000/yr in total.
1% fuel surcharge waiver at all fuel stations on transactions of ₹400–₹5,000 (max ₹250 per statement cycle). Fuel spends themselves earn no reward points
Free professional indemnity cover up to ₹5 lakh, air accident death cover of ₹15 lakh and non-air accident death cover of ₹5 lakh — contingent covers, not an annual cash benefit; withdrawable by BOBCARD without notice, and lapses if the card is unused for 90 days before death
12 complimentary domestic lounge visits a year (3 per quarter), unlocked only by ₹40,000 of spend in the preceding calendar quarter. No international lounge access
4,000 bonus reward points each quarter you spend more than ₹1 lakh (or your credit limit, whichever is higher) — up to 16,000 points (~₹4,000) a year at ₹1 lakh every quarter
Should you get it?
- Best for: Practising Chartered Accountants, Members who spend on dining, online and utilities, Occasional international spenders wanting a low forex markup
- Mid tier — a solid all-rounder for steady monthly spend.
- Strongest value if you spend heavily on Dining (1.25% back).
- Frequent travellers benefit from the included airport lounge access.
Pros & cons
✓ Pros
- Lifetime free — no joining fee and no annual fee
- 2% forex markup, well below the 3.5% most BOBCARDs charge
- 12 complimentary domestic lounge visits a year (3 per quarter)
- Free professional indemnity cover up to ₹5 lakh — relevant to a practising CA
- 4,000 bonus points a quarter on ₹1 lakh of spend — the card's biggest reward lever
- Up to 3 lifetime-free add-on cards for family
✕ Cons
- Only active ICAI members can apply — the card is closed to everyone else
- 0.25% base earn rate is weak; the 5X categories are capped at ₹250/month of value
- The 1,000-point 5X cap is shared across dining, online and utilities, not per category
- Fuel, groceries, rent, education, government and insurance payments earn nothing
- Lounge access needs ₹40,000 of spend in the preceding quarter, and is domestic only
Eligibility & documents
This is the figure for salaried applicants. Where BOBCARD sets a separate one for the self-employed, its own eligibility page gives it.
Documents required
- 📄ICAI membership number and proof of active membership
- 📄PAN card
- 📄Aadhaar / valid address proof
- 📄Income proof — salary slips (salaried) or ITR (self-employed)
- 📄Recent passport-size photograph
How to redeem rewards
Ways to convert what you earn into real value.
- 🎁Cashback / statement credit at 1 reward point = ₹0.25
- 🎁Online rewards catalogue (vouchers, merchandise)
What your BOB Reward Points are worth
Realistic value per point by redemption route — the difference is what most people leave on the table.
Standard redemption
Brand & e-gift vouchers
The reward exclusions are unusually wide — fuel, groceries, rent, education, government payments, insurance and wallet loads earn nothing, and the 1,000-point 5X cap is shared across dining, online and utilities rather than granted per category.
Frequently asked questions
Can I apply if I am not an ICAI member?
Which network or rail does this card come on?
What is a BOBCARD reward point worth?
What do fuel and grocery spends earn?
What does the card cost?
How has the ICAI Exclusive BOBCARD Credit Card changed over time?
Has the ICAI Exclusive BOBCARD Credit Card been devalued recently?
When did the ICAI Exclusive BOBCARD Credit Card's fees last change?
How did the ICAI Exclusive BOBCARD Credit Card change in 2025?
The bottom line
For a Chartered Accountant judged on cost, this is a strong free card: 2% forex, 12 lounge visits and professional indemnity cover normally cost a fee somewhere. As a rewards card it is ordinary, with a weak 0.25% base and a 5X cap that tops out at ₹250 a month. Most of its value sits in the ₹1 lakh/quarter milestone and the forex rate, so it rewards an ICAI member who travels abroad and spends steadily far more than a light user.
How this page was built
Counted from this card’s own record: 4 earn rules, 3 of them capped, the spends listed as earning nothing and 4 recorded perks.
Last updated 11 Oct 2026.
Sources & verification
Fees, reward rates, and benefits for the ICAI Exclusive BOBCARD Credit Card are taken from BOBCARD's official Most Important Terms & Conditions (MITC) and fee schedule — see the card's official page. Last updated 11 Oct 2026. Reviewed by Devchandra Sah. Always confirm current details on the issuer's site before applying. How we research →
Independence. CardAdvisor is an independent editorial publication. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, sponsored by, or authorised to act for BOBCARD. All issuer names, product names, and payment-network marks are the property of their respective owners and appear here for identification and comparison only. Card faces shown on this site are our own original illustrations — we do not display or host issuer card artwork or logos.
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Guides and reviews related to this card.
ICAI Exclusive BOBCARD Credit Card
Only active ICAI members can get this card, whatever they earn. For a Chartered Accountant it's lifetime free and still brings a 2% forex markup, 12 domestic lounge visits a year and free professional indemnity cover of ₹5 lakh, which is a lot for no fee. Earning is ordinary, with 0.25% on most spends, 1.25% on dining, online and utility bills under a single 1,000-point cap per statement, and a wide exclusion list that takes in fuel and groceries.
ICSI Diamond BOBCARD Credit Card
Only Company Secretaries with active ICSI membership can get the ICSI Diamond, and no income level changes that. It never charges a fee, yet includes free professional indemnity cover of ₹5 lakh, a dozen domestic lounge visits a year and a 2% markup on foreign spends, which is strong value. The rewards are ordinary. Most spends return 0.25%. Dining, online and utility bills return 1.25% until together they hit 1,000 points in a statement, and fuel and groceries sit on the exclusion list.
CMA One BOBCARD Credit Card
CMA One asks ₹1 at joining and no annual fee, and only active ICMAI members can apply, whatever they earn. In return a Cost Accountant gets up to ₹5 lakh of free professional indemnity cover, 12 domestic lounge visits and a 2% forex markup, strong for what is in effect a free card. Points are ordinary, at 0.25% on most spends and 1.25% on dining, online and utility bills up to a 1,000-point cap per statement shared by all three, and fuel and groceries are excluded.
Value timeline
Every real-world change to this card's rewards, fees and benefits we've tracked — newest first, each linked to its source.
Tracking since 2020 · last change Jul 2025
2025
- ▼ FeeEffective 1 Jul 2025
Finance charge raised to 3.75% per month
3.25% per month (39% p.a.)→3.75% per month (45% p.a.)
Effective 1 July 2025 BOBCARD revised the monthly finance charge on carried balances and cash advances to 3.75% (45% a year) for all card variants except Eterna, Eterna FD and Tiara. This is the change behind the card's current 3.75%/month rate — it only applies if you revolve a balance or take a cash advance.
Verification: BOBCARD ↗ · Confidence: High
- ▼ RedemptionEffective 1 Jul 2025
Minimum redemption raised to 1,000 points
Lower / no fixed minimum→1,000 points minimum
Effective 1 July 2025 redeeming reward points against the statement balance requires a minimum of 1,000 points, applied across all BOBCARD credit-card variants — a small delay to when points become usable.
Verification: BOBCARD ↗ · Confidence: High
- ▲ RewardEffective 1 Jul 2025
Utility bill payments earn reward points again
No reward points on utility bills→Core reward points restored on utility bills
From 1 July 2025 BOBCARD restored core reward points on utility bill payments (MCC 4900 — electricity, gas, water) across all variants, partly reversing the July 2024 special-category cull that had zeroed them out. Earning is at the card's core base rate, not an accelerated rate.
Verification: BOBCARD ↗ · Confidence: High
- ▼ LoungeEffective 1 Jan 2025
Domestic lounge access gated to ₹40,000/quarter spend
3 visits/quarter, no spend gate→3 visits/quarter after ₹40,000/quarter spend
Effective 1 January 2025 the card's 12 complimentary domestic lounge visits a year (3 per quarter) became conditional on spending ₹40,000 in the preceding calendar quarter, waived only for the quarter the card is issued. BOBCARD names the ICAI Exclusive explicitly in the notice table; previously the visits carried no spend requirement. The ₹40,000 threshold still stands — the later 15 July 2026 raise to ₹75,000 applied only to Eterna, Eterna (FD), Tiara and Varunah Premium, not to this card.
Verification: BOBCARD ↗ · Confidence: High
- ▼ FeeEffective 1 Jan 2025
Processing fees added on wallet-load, high-value utility and fuel spends
No processing fees→1% on wallet-load, ₹50k+ utility and ₹10k+ fuel
From 1 January 2025 BOBCARD added processing fees across the portfolio that reach this card: 1% on wallet-load transactions, 1% (maximum ₹3,000) on utility payments of ₹50,000 or more, and 1% on fuel transactions of ₹10,000 or more. Core reward points on wallet-load MCCs were also withdrawn on the same date.
Verification: BOBCARD ↗ · Confidence: High
Each change links to the issuer's own document — bank T&C, MITC, notice, press release or product page — where one is public. Where the bank published nothing, it's marked CardAdvisor Research and verified against the card's current terms. Independent of the live terms shown above. This timeline is one card's slice of our market-wide change record across every tracked card.
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