HDFC credit card international transaction charges, card by card
Quick answer. HDFC's own terms, version 4.9 dated September 2026, set the charge card by card. Leaving out two discontinued IndiGo cards, the main fee table in those terms lists eight card entries at 2% on a foreign currency transaction and 51 at 3.5%. Once 18% GST is added, that is ₹2,360 or ₹4,130 on every ₹1,00,000 you spend. Paying in rupees abroad does not dodge it either: since 15 May 2026 HDFC charges 1.75% on rupee transactions at an international location.
Five of the six HDFC cards in Beni's own card data, last checked between 2026-08-12 and 2026-08-16, carry the same rate as HDFC's table. The sixth, Tata Neu Infinity, is covered below.
What does my HDFC card charge for an international transaction?
Find your card. The markup is a share of the transaction, converted at the rate on the day the transaction settles. Every card name below links to HDFC's terms document.
Do this: find your card in the table and read the last column — that is what ₹1,00,000 of foreign spending costs you in markup and tax.
Tata Neu Infinity: HDFC gives two answers
HDFC's terms list Tata Neu Infinity HDFC Bank at 2%. HDFC's fees page for the same card says 3.5%:
"The foreign currency transaction fee for the Tata Neu Infinity HDFC Bank Credit Card is 3.5% of the transaction value."
The table uses the terms document, which is the more formal of the two, but that row may be wrong for you. Beni's own card data still uses 3.5% for this card, so its answer abroad may overstate that card's cost.
Do this: if you hold Tata Neu Infinity, check the markup on your next foreign purchase before you rely on either figure.
Two IndiGo 6E Rewards cards are left out because HDFC's document says they are discontinued.
What is the FCY markup fee on my HDFC statement?
It appears to be the markup from the table above, together with the rupee-billing fee further down. HDFC's terms say the charge is grouped rather than listed purchase by purchase:
"FCY Markup fees will be clubbed and shared as one single entry on the credit card statement."
FCY stands for foreign currency, so one line may cover several foreign purchases from the same statement period. GST is added on top, because HDFC's terms apply it to every fee.
On ₹1,00,000 spent on a 3.5% card, that is ₹3,500 of markup and ₹630 of GST, or ₹4,130 in all. On a 2% card it is ₹2,000 and ₹360, or ₹2,360.
Do this: add up that statement's foreign purchases in rupees and multiply by your card's rate with GST — if the line is far off, it may be worth asking HDFC for a breakdown.
Does paying in rupees abroad avoid the fee?
No. HDFC's terms charge 1.75% on rupee transactions at an international location, and also on rupee transactions at merchants located in India but registered overseas:
"With effect from 15th May 2026, a Markup fee of 1.75% will be levied on all transactions carried out in Indian Currency at an international location or at merchants which are located in India but registered overseas."
With 18% GST that is ₹1,750 plus ₹315, or ₹2,065 on every ₹1,00,000. That fee may come on top of the merchant's own exchange rate, which is set by the shop's payment provider rather than by HDFC. The second case may also catch a rupee price on the website of a company registered abroad, even though you never left home.
So which is cheaper at the terminal?
It depends on the shop's exchange rate. On a 3.5% card, paying in rupees works out cheaper only if the shop's exchange rate is less than 2.02% worse than the network's. On a 2% card, the shop's rate would have to be less than 0.29% worse.
You can look up your card's rate before you travel; you likely cannot see the shop's margin until the terminal shows it. Our advice on a 2% card is to choose the local currency every time. On a 3.5% card, our advice is still to choose the local currency unless the terminal's rupee price is visibly close to the day's rate.
Do this: when a card machine or checkout offers to charge you in rupees, decline on a 2% card, and on a 3.5% card decline unless you can see the shop's rate is close.
Which HDFC cards charge only 2%?
The eight 2% rows are Infinia (Metal Edition), Infinia, Diners Black Metal Edition, Diners Black, BizBlack Metal Card, Regalia Gold, BizPower and Tata Neu Infinity HDFC Bank. Every other HDFC card in the table charges 3.5%, including Millennia, MoneyBack+, Swiggy HDFC Bank Credit Card and Marriott Bonvoy HDFC Bank Credit Card.
The name that trips people up is Regalia: Regalia Gold charges 2%, but Regalia, Regalia Activ and Regalia First charge 3.5%. HDFC moved Regalia First and Diners Club Miles to 3.5% from 1 August 2024.
The gap between the two groups is ₹1,770 on every ₹1,00,000.
Do this: if you hold two HDFC cards from different groups, use the 2% card for anything priced in a foreign currency. If you hold cards from more than one bank, remembering which one is cheapest abroad may be the annoying part. Beni asks which cards you own by name, never card numbers. Beni can tell you which of your own cards costs least on a foreign charge, if they are among the 23 Indian cards in its data, six of them from HDFC.
Frequently asked
Is GST charged on the markup? Yes. HDFC's terms apply GST to all fees and charges, and the markup is a charge.
Which exchange rate does HDFC use? HDFC's terms use the rate on the settlement date, which may be a day or two after you pay.
Does the markup apply to online purchases in dollars? It appears so: the markup appears to apply to the transaction being in a foreign currency rather than to where you are. A purchase billed in dollars from a website may therefore attract it.
Why is my card not in the table? The two IndiGo 6E Rewards cards are left out because HDFC says they are discontinued. If yours is another card that is not listed, our advice is to check the schedule of charges in your welcome kit.
How does this compare with other banks? The international transaction charges guide lists the charge on 23 Indian cards from several banks, and the forex guide works out which card comes out ahead once rewards are counted.
Each rate is HDFC's published markup from its terms document, version 4.9 dated September 2026. Figures with GST are computed from those rates at 18%. Charges may change with notice, so treat these as estimates until your own statement confirms them. Full method: how these guides are made.
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