How Can I Change My Credit Card Billing Cycle?

If you are a credit card user, you would surely be aware of some basic terms like payment due dates, billing cycle, minimum amount due, etc. A Credit Card Billing Cycle is one of the most important terms that you need to understand when you start using a credit card or even before that. It is a period equivalent to around a month and all your transactions made during a billing cycle are calculated to generate the final bill. The payment due date is also decided on the basis of the billing cycle. Many people want to change their credit card payment due date, but that is not directly possible. You need to get your billing cycle changed in order to change the due date. However, not every card issuer allows you to change the billing cycle, but it can be done in a few ways. In this article, we are going to discuss how you can change your credit card billing cycle:

What is Credit Card Billing Cycle?

A Credit Card billing cycle can simply be defined as the period between two consecutive statement generation dates. It starts on the day when you activate your credit card or when you receive it and is generally of 30 days. So, if you received a new card on the 5th of every month, your billing cycle will start on the 5th and end on the 4th of every month. All the transactions made on your credit card during this period are calculated and based on this, your monthly billing statement is generated.

All the transactions made during a particular billing cycle are added up, and you are given 15-20 days to pay your bills. So, if your bill is generated on the 5th of February, you will have to pay it by 20 or 25th of the same month. This is how a credit card billing cycle and all the process works.

Can You Change Your Credit Card Billing Cycle?

Talking about changing the credit card billing cycle, it might not be possible always. Not every card issuer allows you to change the statement cycle of your credit card. However, you can get it done if you convince your card issuer for the same. If your payment due date doesn’t coincide with your salary date, i.e. the day you get your salary is far away from the payment due date of your credit card. In such a case, it becomes difficult to pay the dues n time as the amount in your savings account might already be ended. This is why many people want to change their billing cycle and coincide it with their salary date. Sometimes there might be other reasons behind it. Many multiple credit cardholders want all their credit card due dates to arrive on the same day, so that they can pay all the bills at once.

How To Change the Billing Cycle of Your Credit Card?

Firstly, you will have to understand whether your card issuer allows changes in the credit card billing cycle or not. If they allow it, just contact your credit card customer care and request them to change your credit card billing cycle as you want. They will ask you for a few details and if possible, they will change your billing cycle as per your wish. When you get your billing cycle changed, keep in mind that your current billing cycle may get affected, i.e. it may be longer or shorter than 30 days. However, it will again work properly once the new cycle starts.

If your card issuer doesn’t agree with your request of changing the credit card billing cycle, the best you can do is set up auto payments for your credit card. Or just pay your bills as soon as you get your salary, so that you don’t spend it elsewhere. Delaying credit card payments can be very harmful to your financial health as well as your credit score. So, just make sure that you pay your full bills by the payment due dates.

Bottom Line

Changing your credit card billing cycle might seem to be very essential sometimes, but even if it doesn’t work, you can find alternative ways to manage your card well. You can try to get your statement cycle changed if your card issuer allows it. But, if they don’t allow it, you can simply set up auto payments and pay even before the payment due dates. Just make sure that you don’t make any payment mistakes as it can affect your credit score badly. If you have any further doubts, you can freely ask us in the comment section below!