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Federal BankSBI is one of the most trusted banks in India with branches all over the country and crores of credit card holders. The bank has credit cards across various categories ranging from super-premium, travel, to basic ones. If you are someone who lives a lavish lifestyle and regularly travel to foreign countries, then you must be using your credit card for foreign currency spends as well.
Whenever you make foreign currency spends, the bank charges a forex markup fee, which is generally 3 to 4% of the transaction amount. No doubt, a credit card helps you make payments conveniently anywhere but if you add up these forex markup charges, you will spend a lot of extra money over a year. Therefore, you must get a credit card with low forex markup charges if you are regularly going to make international transactions.
Most of the SBI credit cards charge a 3.5% forex markup fee but there are some premium cards for high net-worth individuals that charge a lower fee as well. Some cards even have accelerated reward points on foreign currency spends. In this article, we will learn about the forex markup charges of top SBI credit cards and other information related to this category.
Table of Contents
Forex Markup Charges of Major SBI Credit Cards
Let’s check out the forex markup fees charges by some of the most popular SBI credit cards:
Fees
Joining Fee
Renewal Fee
Best Suited For
Movies
Reward Type
Reward Points
Welcome Benefits
Card Details +
The SBI Aurum is a super-premium offering by the bank that replaced SBI Elite as the topmost offering by the bank. The card has a high joining fee of Rs. 10,000 and features a metal design with black finishing and elegant golden stripes. This invite-only card has a high reward rate and provides complimentary subscription to popular services and lounge access. The card also has a 1.99% forex markup fee which is lower than other SBI credit cards.
- Bonus 40,000 reward points as welcome benefit
- 4 RPs per Rs. 100 spent with the card
- Rs. 1500 worth Tata Cliq voucher on monthly spending above Rs. 1 Lakh
- Complimentary subscription to Discovery Plus, Amazon Prime, BBStar, and Lenskart Gold
- Complimentary EazyDiner and Zomato Pro membership
- 4 complimentary domestic lounge access and unlimited international lounge access
- Up to 4 BookMyShow movie tickets per month
- Low forex markup fee of 1.99% of the transaction amount
Fees
Joining Fee
Renewal Fee
Best Suited For
Movies
Reward Type
Reward Points
Welcome Benefits
Card Details +
The SBI Elite credit card is another offering in the premium category by the bank and it charges a joining fee of Rs. 4999 from the cardholders. The card is packed with top-class privileges including complimentary airport lounge access, discount on hotel stays, shopping vouchers, and much more. The card offers 2 RPs per Rs. 100 spent with accelerated 5x RPs on grocery, departmental store, and dining spends. The SBI Elite card has a forex markup fee of 1.99% on foreign spends.
- Rs. 5000 worth gift voucher as welcome benefit
- 2 RPs per Rs. 100 spent and 5x RPs on dining, grocery, and departmental store spends
- 50,000 bonus reward points on reaching the annual spend milestone
- Complimentary Trident Privilege and Club Vistara membership
- 2 domestic airport and 6 international lounge visits per year
- Exclusive benefits based on the card variant – Amex, Mastercard, or Visa
- Low forex markup charges of 1.99% of the transaction amount
Fees
Joining Fee
Renewal Fee
Best Suited For
Travel
Reward Type
Reward Points
Welcome Benefits
Card Details +
A lifestyle offering by SBI, the Prime credit card charges a joining fee of Rs. 3000 and can be considered as lower variant to the SBI Elite credit card. The card offers 2 RPs per Rs. 100 spent and up to 10 RPs on your grocery and dining spends. You can redeem your reward points against a host of products or vouchers. Available in the American Express, MasterCard, or Visa variant, the card has a 3.5% forex markup fee on foreign spends.
- Rs. 3000 worth gift voucher as welcome benefit
- 2 RPs per Rs. 100 spent and 10 RPs on your departmental store, dining, and grocery spends
- 20 RPs per Rs. 100 spent on your birthday
- Rs. 7000 worth Pantaloons or Yatra voucher on spending Rs. 5 Lakhs or more in the year
- Rs. 1000 worth Pizza Hut voucher on spending Rs. 50,000 and above in quarter
- 8 complimentary domestic lounge and 4 international lounge access per year, maximum twice per quarter
- Complimentary Trident Privilege Red Tier and Club Vistara Silver membership
- Forex markup charges of 3.5%
Fees
Joining Fee
Renewal Fee
Best Suited For
Shopping
Reward Type
Cashback
Welcome Benefits
Card Details +
A newly-launched card, the Cashback SBI credit card provides cashback to the cardholder on almost every spend, as the name suggests. The card comes at a joining fee of Rs. 1000 and offers 5% cashback on your online and offline spends. The cashback is automatically credited to the cardholder’s account but you can only earn a maximum cashback of Rs. 5000 in a month. This card is nice for people who regularly use their card for online shopping and it charges a 3.5% forex markup fee.
- 5% cashback on online spends made with the card
- 1% cashback on offline spends and utility bill payments with the card
- 1% fuel surcharge waiver at fuel stations across the country
- Renewal fee waiver on spending Rs. 2 Lakhs or more in the previous year
Fees
Joining Fee
Renewal Fee
Best Suited For
Shopping
Reward Type
Reward Points
Welcome Benefits
Card Details +
The SimplyCLICK credit card is an entry-level, basic offering by SBI and is the ideal option for people using a credit card for the first time ever in their life. If you love online shopping, you can get up to 10x reward points on Lenskart, DIneout, Apollo 24×7, Netmeds, and other popular merchants. With a low joining fee of Rs. 500, the card does not have a lot of travel, dining, and other benefits, but you can get a gift voucher on exceeding the annual spend milestone. Also, the card has a forex markup charge of 3.5% of the transaction value.
- Rs. 500 worth Amazon gift voucher as a welcome benefit
- Rs. 2000 worth ClearTrip gift voucher on spending Rs. 1 Lakh and 2 Lakhs in the year
- 10x reward points on partner merchants like BookMyShow, Lenskart, Apollo 24×7, etc.
- 5x RPs on online spends and 1 RP per Rs. 100 spent offline with the card
- 1% fuel surcharge waiver and spend-based renewal fee waiver
Fees
Joining Fee
Renewal Fee
Best Suited For
Fuel
Reward Type
Reward Points
Welcome Benefits
Card Details +
The upgraded version of the BPCL SBI card, the BPCL SBI Card Octane comes at a higher joining fee of Rs. 1500, but it also offers better offers and rewards for the cardholder. With this card, you can get up to 6.5% back as reward points on fuel spends along with a 1% fuel surcharge waiver at outlets across India. Other than fuel, you even get 10x RPs on movie and dining spends along with complimentary lounge access. The card has a forex markup fee of 3.5%.
- 6000 bonus RPs as a welcome benefit
- 25 RPs per Rs. 100 spent at BPCL fuel stations
- 10 RPs per Rs. 100 spent on dining, groceries, departmental stores, and 1 RP on other spends
- 4 complimentary domestic lounge access, max once per quarter
- Rs. 2000 worth gift vouchers from top brands on spending Rs. 3 Lakhs or more annually
- 1% fuel surcharge waiver and spend-based renewal fee waiver
Fees
Joining Fee
Renewal Fee
Best Suited For
Travel
Reward Type
Reward Points
Welcome Benefits
Card Details +
The IRCTC SBI Card Premier is co-branded by IRCTC and SBI, charging a joining of Rs. 1500 from customers. With the card, you get 1500 reward points as a welcome benefit and up to 3 RPs per Rs. 125 spent. Also, you get multiple travel privileges with the card including complimentary railway lounge access, benefits at hotels across the world, discounts on flight/train ticket booking, and more. The card has a 3.5% forex markup fee which is standard for most SBI credit cards.
- 1500 reward points as a welcome benefit
- Up to 3 RPs per Rs. 125 spent and 1 RP on other non-fuel spends
- Up to 5000 bonus RPs on reaching the spend milestone
- Complimentary railway lounge access
- Exclusive privileges at over 900 hotels across the globe
- 1% fuel surcharge waiver and spend-based renewal fee waiver
Fees
Joining Fee
Renewal Fee
Best Suited For
Travel
Reward Type
Reward Points
Welcome Benefits
Card Details +
One of the two co-branded credit cards by SBI and Vistara, the Club Vistara SBI card is the mid-level variant and comes at a joining fee of Rs. 1500. Being a travel card, you get various privileges like complimentary domestic lounge access, complimentary Priority Pass program, discounted hotel stays, car rentals, and more. You can earn up to 3 CV Points per Rs. 200 spent with the card and it charges a forex markup fee of 3.5% on foreign transactions.
- Complimentary economy class flight ticket voucher as a welcome benefit
- Bonus 1000 CV Points on spending Rs. 50,000 or more within 90 days card issuance
- Rs. 5000 worth Yatra gift voucher on spending Rs. 5 Lakhs or above
- Complimentary economy class flight ticket on spending Rs. 1.5 Lakhs, 2.5 Lakhs, and 5 Lakhs in the year
- 4 Complimentary domestic lounge access per year and Priority Pass membership
- Exclusive discounts on hotel and resort stays, and on Rentalcars.com and Hertz Rental
What is the Forex Markup Fee?
Card networks like MasterCard or Visa charge a 1% as forex markup on international transactions whenever you swipe your credit card. The card issuer then adds extra charges that increases the total fee to 3 to 3.5%. This forex markup fee is charged in addition to the transaction amount, and you will have to pay a lot of extra money if you regularly make foreign currency spends with your credit card.
In addition to forex markup, you will be also be charged a 1% currency conversion fee by the payment processor where you swipe your card. This further increase the total amount you have to pay for international spends with your card.
You will have to pay Rs. 3000 extra if you make a Rs. 1 Lakh foreign transaction with your credit card. Thus, if you spend a lot on foreign transactions, it is recommended to go for a credit card that has a low forex markup fee. This way, you can save a lot of money in the long run.
Eligibility Criteria and Documents Required
You should meet the following eligibility criteria to apply for SBI credit cards –
- The applicant must be between 21 to 70 years of age.
- The applicant must be an Indian citizen.
- The applicant must have a decent credit score.
- The applicant should be self-employed or salaried with a stable income.
The following documents must be provided when applying for the cards –
ID Proof – Aadhar Card, PAN Card, Driver’s License, Passport, etc.
Address Proof – Aadhar Card, Rent Agreement, Ration Card, Passport, Latest Utility Bills, etc.
Income Proof – Salaried individuals need to provide the latest months’ salary slips and bank statements. Self-employed individuals need to provide their audited ITR of the previous year.
How to Apply for SBI Credit Cards
To apply for an SBI Card, you can visit the nearest SBI branch or you can fill the online application form as follows:
- Click on Apply Now.
- Fill out the given form.
SBI Credit Cards Comparison
| Category | SBI Aurum Credit Card | SBI Elite Credit Card | SBI Prime Credit Card | Cashback SBI Credit Card |
| Joining/Annual Fee | Rs. 10,000 | Rs. 5000 | Rs 3000 | Rs. 1000 |
| Welcome Benefit | 40,000 reward points and complimentary EazyDiner, Lenskart Gold, Amazon Prime, and BBStar membership | Rs. 5000 worth gift vouchers from top brands like Yatra, Hush Puppies, Shoppers Stop, etc. | Rs. 3000 worth gift vouchers from top brands like Pantaloons, Hush Puppies, etc. | NA |
| Reward Earning | 4 RPs per Rs. 100 spent | 2 RPs per Rs. 100 spent on retail 5x RPs on grocery, dining, and departmental store spends | 10 RPs per Rs. 100 spent with the card on dining, groceries, and movies. 2 RPs per Rs. 100 on other retail spends | 5% cashback on online transactions 1% cashback on offline and utility bill spends |
| Reward Redemption | Reward Points are redeemable for gift vouchers, hotel reservations, flight tickets, etc. on dedicated AURUM Rewards portal | Reward Points are redeemable against gift vouchers on sbicard.com or SBI mobile app or for paying the outstanding balance of the card, 1 Reward Point = Rs. 0.25 | Redeem reward points on Sbicard.com for gift vouchers or for settling the card’s statement balance. 1 RP = Rs. 0.25 | Earned cashback is automatically credited to the next month credit card statement |
| Dining/Movie Benefits | Complimentary EazyDiner Prime and Zomato Pro membership. 4 BookMyShow movie tickets per month. | Free movie tickets per month, capped at Rs. 6000 per month Up to 25% discount at partner restaurants | 10 RPs per Rs. 100 spent on dining. Up to 25% discount at partner restaurants | NA |
| Travel Benefits | Complimentary unlimited international and 4 domestic lounge access | Complimentary Club Vistara and Trident Privilege Red tier membership. Complimentary international and domestic lounge access | Complimentary Club Vistara Silver and Trident Privilege Red tier membership. Complimentary domestic and international lounge access | NA |
| Forex Markup Fees | 1.99% | 1.99% | 3.5% | 3.5% |
Conclusion
SBI is one of the top credit card issuers in the country and you can use your SBI credit card to make international transactions in foreign currency. However, whenever you do so, you have to pay a forex markup fee along with the transaction amount. People who regularly visit abroad or spend money online in foreign currency with their credit card spend a lot of extra money for it.
Thus, you should consider getting a credit card with low forex markup fees if you want to save money over a long period. SBI currently offers the Aurum and Elite credit card that have a 1.99% forex markup fee while other cards by the bank have a standard 3.5% forex markup fee. Let us know if you plan on getting any of these cards in order to save money on foreign currency transactions.
FAQs:
- Visit the official SBI card website
- Click on the Credit Cards button on the top of the page
- You can search for credit cards based on your income and card categories.
- Click on Learn More under the credit card that you want to apply for to know about its details, features, and offerings.
- Click on Apply Now to submit your application for the credit card you want to get.
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