If you collect Axis EDGE points or SBI Card MILES points for flights, this was the week your plans changed. Neither bank sent a notice; the transfer tables simply looked different one morning.
The short version
- Axis moved Air India, Flying Blue and Qantas into the smaller of its two yearly transfer caps, dropped Club ITC, brought Accor back and added Asia Miles, Miles & More and Hilton.
- SBI Card took Air France-KLM Flying Blue off the MILES, MILES PRIME and Miles Elite transfer list.
- SBI Card opened a paperless application on SBI's YONO app for cards secured against a fixed deposit.
What changed on your cards
Axis Bank EDGE: the same partners, much less room for three of them. Overnight on 22 September Axis moved Air France-KLM Flying Blue, Air India Maharaja Club and Qantas from Group B to Group A of its EDGE transfer partners. The ratios didn't change, but Group A carries a quarter of Group B's yearly allowance. On the Atlas, for example, the most you can send to Air India in a calendar year falls from 1,20,000 EDGE Miles to 30,000. Club ITC is gone. Accor Live Limitless is back after almost six months away, in Group A and on several cards at a less generous ratio than the airlines get; the Atlas moves 2 EDGE Miles into 1 Accor point. Cathay Asia Miles joined Group A, and Lufthansa Miles & More and Hilton Honors joined Group B. It touches the Burgundy Private, Reserve, Magnus, Select, Privilege, Rewards, Atlas, Olympus, Horizon and IndianOil Premium. If you were saving for an Air India award, check how much of this year's Group A allowance you've used before you plan a large transfer.
SBI Card MILES: Flying Blue is off the list. SBI's transfer table for the MILES, MILES PRIME and Miles Elite, re-issued on 23 September, no longer mentions Flying Blue, Air France or KLM. The copy archived on 4 August listed it at 1:1. Sixteen airlines and eight hotel programmes remain, and for long-haul awards Aeroplan, British Airways, Cathay and Qantas still transfer at 1:1. Together with Axis's move the same week, Flying Blue got noticeably harder to reach from Indian cards.
The record for this week: dates, before and after, sources
- Issuer noticeEffective 23 Sept 2026SBI Card· 1 change across 3 cards▼ Transfer
Air France-KLM Flying Blue removed as a transfer partner
Flying Blue at 1:1; 17 airline partners + 8 hotel partners (25 total)→Flying Blue removed; 16 airline partners + 8 hotel partners (24 total)
SBI dropped Air France-KLM Flying Blue from the MILES-family transfer table with no customer notice we could find. The archived copy of 4 August 2026 lists it as airline row 4 at 1:1; the PDF SBI re-issued on 23 September 2026 does not mention Flying Blue, Air France or KLM anywhere and lists 16 airlines. The change therefore lands between 4 August and 23 September 2026, dated here to the day the new PDF was created. Hotel partners are untouched at 8 and no other ratio moved. Applies identically to MILES, MILES PRIME and Miles Elite, because SBI publishes one transfer table for all three. Aeroplan, British Airways, Cathay and Qantas remain at 1:1 for the same kind of long-haul redemption.
Applies to 3 cards
SBI Card MILES · SBI Card Miles Elite · SBI Card MILES PRIME
Verification: SBI Card ↗ · Confidence: Reconstructed
- Issuer noticeEffective 22 Sept 2026Axis Bank· 4 changes across 10 cards▲ Transfer
Accor ALL returns as a transfer partner, in Group A
Accor ALL unavailable since 2 April 2026→Accor ALL back, in Group A
Accor Live Limitless is back in the EDGE transfer table, almost six months after Axis removed it on 2 April 2026. It returns in Group A, so it shares the smaller annual cap, and on several cards at a less generous ratio than the card gives its airline partners; the Atlas, for instance, moves 2 EDGE Miles into 1 Accor point where most of its airlines get 1 into 2. Check the card's own transfer table before planning a large transfer.
Applies to 10 cards
Axis Bank Atlas Credit Card · Axis Bank Burgundy Private Credit Card · Axis Bank Horizon Credit Card · Axis Bank Magnus Credit Card · Axis Bank Olympus Credit Card · Axis Bank Privilege Credit Card · Axis Bank Reserve Credit Card · Axis Bank Rewards Credit Card · Axis Bank Select Credit Card · IndianOil Axis Bank Premium Credit Card
▲ TransferCathay Asia Miles, Lufthansa Miles & More and Hilton Honors added
None of the three available→Asia Miles in Group A; Miles & More and Hilton Honors in Group B
Three new programmes joined the EDGE transfer table in the same overnight change. Cathay Pacific Asia Miles sits in Group A with the smaller annual cap; Lufthansa Miles & More and Hilton Honors sit in Group B with the larger one. Ratios vary by card.
Applies to 10 cards
Axis Bank Atlas Credit Card · Axis Bank Burgundy Private Credit Card · Axis Bank Horizon Credit Card · Axis Bank Magnus Credit Card · Axis Bank Olympus Credit Card · Axis Bank Privilege Credit Card · Axis Bank Reserve Credit Card · Axis Bank Rewards Credit Card · Axis Bank Select Credit Card · IndianOil Axis Bank Premium Credit Card
▼ TransferClub ITC removed as a transfer partner
Club ITC available→Club ITC removed
Axis dropped Club ITC from its EDGE transfer table in the same overnight change. It had been one of the better-value hotel routes left after the April 2026 cut, since ITC points redeem against stays and dining at ITC hotels in India.
Applies to 10 cards
Axis Bank Atlas Credit Card · Axis Bank Burgundy Private Credit Card · Axis Bank Horizon Credit Card · Axis Bank Magnus Credit Card · Axis Bank Olympus Credit Card · Axis Bank Privilege Credit Card · Axis Bank Reserve Credit Card · Axis Bank Rewards Credit Card · Axis Bank Select Credit Card · IndianOil Axis Bank Premium Credit Card
▼ TransferFlying Blue, Air India and Qantas moved into the smaller Group A transfer cap
Group B (the larger annual transfer allowance)→Group A (a quarter of the Group B allowance); ratios unchanged
Axis moved Air France-KLM Flying Blue, Air India Maharaja Club and Qantas Frequent Flyer from Group B to Group A of its EDGE transfer partners, overnight and without notice. The conversion ratios did not change, but Group A carries a quarter of the Group B annual allowance, so far fewer points can reach these three programmes each year. On the Atlas, for example, the most that can go to Air India in a calendar year falls from 1,20,000 EDGE Miles to 30,000.
Applies to 10 cards
Axis Bank Atlas Credit Card · Axis Bank Burgundy Private Credit Card · Axis Bank Horizon Credit Card · Axis Bank Magnus Credit Card · Axis Bank Olympus Credit Card · Axis Bank Privilege Credit Card · Axis Bank Reserve Credit Card · Axis Bank Rewards Credit Card · Axis Bank Select Credit Card · IndianOil Axis Bank Premium Credit Card
Verification: Axis Bank ↗ · Confidence: High
Rules and bank news
SBI Card: a card against your fixed deposit, applied for on YONO. SBI Card now lets State Bank of India customers apply on the YONO app, without paperwork, for an Advantage SBI Card secured against their fixed deposit; its newsroom lists the launch on 24 September. These are secured versions of existing SBI cards rather than new products. If you're building a credit history and can't get an unsecured card yet, a secured card is a sensible first step.
Coming up
- 30 September: American Express ends Reward Multiplier; ShopWise e-vouchers keep their bonus.
- 1 October: the Amex Platinum Travel's lounge spend gate and the Axis Select's narrower milestone both start.
- 26 October: most IDFC FIRST cards stop earning reward points on international spends.
- 1 November: Axis movie offers need ₹25,000 of spend in the previous three months.
Everything scheduled as this week ended, soonest first
Dates are the issuer’s effective dates; the calendar feed carries the same dates.
- Issuer noticeEffective 30 Sept 2026American Express· 1 change across 5 cards▼ Reward
Reward Multiplier discontinued; ShopWise e-vouchers keep their bonus
Bonus points on Reward Multiplier brand links and on ShopWise e-vouchers→Bonus points on ShopWise e-vouchers only (capped at 25,000 bonus points a month)
American Express is ending its Reward Multiplier programme on 30 September 2026. Bonus points on purchases made through Amex's links to individual brands, such as Apple, Myntra, Nykaa and MakeMyTrip flights and hotels, end with it; purchases made up to 11:59 PM on 29 September still earn under the old terms. Bonus points on e-vouchers continue through ShopWise, which Amex now runs as a separate platform, at the card's existing ShopWise rate and capped at 25,000 bonus points a month. Base earn and the value of a Membership Rewards point do not change.
Verification: American Express ↗ · Confidence: High
Domestic lounge access gated behind ₹1L of spend in the previous quarter
2 complimentary domestic visits per calendar quarter, unconditional→2 per quarter only if ₹1,00,000 of eligible spend in the preceding calendar quarter
From 1 October 2026 the card's two complimentary domestic airport lounge visits per calendar quarter stop being unconditional: a member has to have spent ₹1 lakh or more in eligible transactions during the preceding calendar quarter to get them in the next one. Amex is easing the first quarter in — for October–December 2026 the bar is ₹70,000 of spend across July–September 2026 rather than ₹1 lakh. The allowance itself is unchanged at up to 8 visits a year; what changed is that lumpy spenders now lose whole quarters, since the ₹1 lakh has to land inside one quarter and does not carry over. A member pacing evenly toward the ₹4 lakh milestone clears the bar automatically; one who front-loads a year of spend does not.
Verification: CardAdvisor Research · Confidence: High
- Bank-wide changeEffective 1 Oct 2026AU Small Finance Bank· 1 change across 6 cards▼ Fee
Fuel surcharge waiver cap cut from ₹150 to ₹100 a month
1% waiver, capped at ₹100 per statement month
From 1 October 2026 the Altura Plus's 1% fuel surcharge waiver (on fills of ₹400 to ₹5,000) is capped at ₹100 per statement month, down from ₹150, so the most it can save in a year falls from ₹1,800 to ₹1,200. AU announced it on the card's own page ("Effective 1st October 2026, Fuel Surcharge Waiver will be up to ₹100 per statement cycle") and moved the card into the ₹100 row of its MITC dated 30 September 2026.
Verification: AU Small Finance Bank ↗ · Confidence: High
- Bank-wide changeEffective 1 Oct 2026AU Small Finance Bank· 1 change across 2 cards▼ Fee
Forex markup raised from 1.99% to 3.49%
3.49% on international transactions
From 1 October 2026 AU raised the Zenith's cross-currency markup from 1.99% to 3.49%, so an international spend now costs about 4.1% on top once GST is added. AU announced it on the card's own page ("Effective 1st October 2026, Forex Markup will be revised from 1.99% to 3.49% for your international transactions") and moved the card into its 3.49% group in the Key Fact Statement v1.9 and the MITC dated 30 September 2026; the July 2026 editions still listed it at 1.99%.
Applies to 2 cards
Verification: AU Small Finance Bank ↗ · Confidence: High
- Bank-wide changeEffective 1 Oct 2026AU Small Finance Bank· 1 change across 2 cards▼ Lounge
Domestic lounge visits now need ₹50,000 of spend in the quarter before
2 complimentary domestic airport lounge visits per quarter on a purchase-active card→2 visits per quarter, only after ₹50,000 of spend in the previous calendar quarter
From 1 October 2026 the AU CA card's two complimentary domestic airport lounge visits a quarter follow the spend gate AU has applied to its other cards since 10 April 2026: they need net retail spend of ₹50,000 or more on the card in the previous calendar quarter, so the October to December visits depend on July to September spend. Until then a purchase-active card was enough. AU's airport lounge terms, issued on 30 September 2026, revise the condition "(for CA & CS from 1st Oct 2026)". The card is open only to Chartered Accountants.
Applies to 2 cards
Verification: AU Small Finance Bank ↗ · Confidence: High
Excluded categories stop counting toward the Rs 3 lakh milestone bar
All spend counted toward the Rs 3 lakh anniversary threshold→Nine excluded merchant categories no longer count toward it
The Select's Rs 3 lakh anniversary-year milestone — which unlocks 6 extra international lounge visits, 6 extra golf rounds and the following year's Priority Pass renewal — keeps its benefits and its threshold, but narrows what counts toward it. From 1 October 2026 spend in the categories that already earn no reward points stops contributing: insurance, rent, fuel, educational services, utilities and telecom, wallet loads, gold and jewellery, government services and gift cards. If a meaningful slice of your Rs 3 lakh came from rent or utilities, the bar is now materially harder than the headline number suggests.
Verification: Axis Bank ↗ · Confidence: High
Shopping 10% needs more than ₹15,000 of spend in the statement cycle
50 Jewels per ₹100 on every eligible purchase→5 Jewels per ₹100 instantly; 45 more only if cycle spend tops ₹15,000
From 5 October 2026 the 10% shopping rate (50 Jewels per ₹100) at Amazon, Flipkart and Jupiter's other named brands is paid in two parts. 5 Jewels per ₹100 are credited on every purchase; the other 45 are added at the end of the statement cycle only if total qualifying spend in that cycle is more than ₹15,000, and are cancelled if it is not. In a lighter cycle the named brands therefore earn 1%, the same as everyday spend. The caps of 1,000 Jewels a transaction, 3,000 a merchant and 10,000 a cycle, the 25 Jewels per ₹100 on Jupiter Flights and everyday earning are unchanged. The two issuer-side documents disagree on the start date: CSB Bank's card terms date the new table from 5 October 2026 ("Applicable 05th October, 2026 onwards"), while Jupiter's own terms page gives 10 October ("Applicable till 09th October, 2026" for the old table). This record follows CSB, the issuer; a statement from the first days of October may still show the old rate.
Verification: CSB Bank ↗ · Confidence: High
Late payment charges raised
₹500 (₹1,001–5,000) · ₹1,000 (₹5,001–25,000) · ₹1,250 (over ₹25,000)→₹700 (₹1,001–5,000) · ₹1,000 / ₹1,100 / ₹1,200 (to ₹10,000 / ₹15,000 / ₹25,000) · ₹1,300 (over ₹25,000)
From 11 October 2026 BOBCARD raises the OneCard's late payment charges. When ₹1,001 to ₹5,000 is outstanding the charge goes from ₹500 to ₹700; the single ₹1,000 slab for ₹5,001 to ₹25,000 is split into ₹1,000 up to ₹10,000, ₹1,100 up to ₹15,000 and ₹1,200 up to ₹25,000; and above ₹25,000 it goes from ₹1,250 to ₹1,300. Balances up to ₹1,000 are unchanged, and the charge applies only when the minimum amount due is not paid by the due date.
Verification: BOBCARD ↗ · Confidence: High
- Issuer noticeUpcoming · effective 20 Oct 2026American Express· 1 change across 2 cards▼ Benefit
Complimentary Ace by Times Prime membership ends
Complimentary Ace by Times Prime membership→No longer offered; current memberships run to the end of their term
American Express stops offering the complimentary Ace by Times Prime membership on the Centurion and Platinum Card from 20 October 2026. A membership already enrolled stays active until the end of its current term, and a newly approved member still waiting for a code receives it by 20 October. Amex links the change to the new technology platform its Indian cards move to on 15 November.
Applies to 2 cards
American Express Centurion Card · American Express Platinum Card
Verification: American Express ↗ · Confidence: High
Early-closure fee window widens to two years
₹499 + GST if closed within one year of activation→₹499 + GST if closed within two years of activation
From 23 October 2026 SBM charges its ₹499 + GST cancellation fee on an SBM ZET card closed within two years of activation, up from one year. The fee itself is unchanged, and the card still has no joining or annual fee, so a reader who builds a score and closes the card should plan on keeping it for two years.
Verification: SBM Bank India ↗ · Confidence: High
Late payment fee moves from ₹299 flat to 5% of the outstanding
₹299→5% of the total outstanding, minimum ₹50 and maximum ₹1,000
From 23 October 2026 the SBM ZET card's late payment fee changes from a flat ₹299 to 5% of the total outstanding, with a floor of ₹50 and a ceiling of ₹1,000, plus GST. It is cheaper than today on a balance below about ₹6,000 and dearer above it, reaching the ₹1,000 ceiling on a balance of ₹20,000 or more.
Verification: SBM Bank India ↗ · Confidence: High
- Issuer noticeObserved 9 Sept 2026 · Upcoming · effective 26 Oct 2026IDFC FIRST Bank· 1 change across 9 cards▼ Reward
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
Dates are the day a change takes effect. Spotted something we missed? The suggest form reaches us directly, and every change we've recorded is in the ledger.
Cite this
Every row referenced above is in the open change record (https://cardadvisor.in/changes), dated and sourced. The write-up is a dated document and is not edited after publication; later corrections go on the corrections page.
Source: <a href="https://cardadvisor.in/press/credit-card-changes-2026-w39">Indian credit card changes, 21 Sept – 27 Sept 2026</a>, CardAdvisor (CC BY 4.0).
I have spent over a decade on Indian credit cards, mostly for the points and miles. I am a software engineer by profession, I hold and use the cards I write about, and I redeem through airline and hotel transfer partners: Avios, KrisFlyer, Flying Blue, Air India Maharaja Club, Accor ALL, Marriott Bonvoy and Taj. What I write about is what a card is actually worth after the fine print, the caps and exclusions that decide the real return, and the changes issuers make quietly. No paid placements.
Frequently asked questions
What changed in Axis Bank's EDGE transfer partners on 22 September 2026?
Can SBI Card MILES points still go to Flying Blue?
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