BOBCARD PREMIER Review 2026: 0.5% Base, 2.5% on Travel and Dining, Utility Quirk & FAQs
BOBCARD PREMIER charges ₹1,000 and earns 2 Reward Points per ₹100 — 0.5% — with 5X on travel, dining, international spends and two utility MCCs. The utility quirk, caps, fees and FAQs.
BOBCARD PREMIER earns 2 Reward Points per ₹100 — 0.5% at the published ₹0.25 rate, rising to 5X on travel, dining, international spends and utilities.
It is the only card in BOBCARD's range whose accelerated list includes utilities — and that turns out to be more complicated than it sounds.
BOBCARD PREMIER Quick Overview
| **Card type** | Mid-tier travel and dining card |
|---|---|
| **Best for** | Mid-range spenders who travel and eat out |
| **Joining / renewal fee** | ₹1,000 + GST, same on renewal — renewal waived at ₹1.2 lakh of annual spend |
| **Network** | Visa, RuPay |
| **Base reward rate** | **0.5%** |
| **Top reward rate** | **2.5%** — Travel, dining, international spends and utilities (MCC 4812 and 4899) |
| **Reward currency** | BOBCARD Reward Points, valued at ₹0.25 each |
| **Welcome benefit** | 500 bonus Reward Points on spends of ₹5,000 or more within 60 days of card issuance |
| **Lounge access** | 1 domestic visit per quarter (4 a year) |
| **Forex markup** | 3.5% |
Reward Structure: How You Earn
BOBCARD publishes what a Reward Point is worth, which not every Indian issuer does: 1 Reward Point = ₹0.25 redeemed as statement cashback. Every percentage below uses that rate.
But there is a second, worse channel. BOBCARD's rewards terms separately state 'Reward Redemption value using Pay with Rewards 1RP = 15 Paisa'. Redeem through Pay with Rewards instead of as cashback and you get ₹0.15 a point — 40% less. Both rates are published; the card pages advertise only the better one.
2 Reward Points per ₹100 — 0.5%. 10 Reward Points per ₹100 on travel, dining, international spends and utilities — 2.5%.
Reward Points are earned only on transactions of ₹100 or more. BOBCARD's terms are explicit: 'transactions below Rs. 100 will not earn any Reward Points'. That is a per-transaction floor, not a monthly one — a run of small purchases earns nothing at all.
| Spend | Effective rate |
|---|---|
| Travel, dining, international spends and utilities (MCC 4812 and 4899) (capped at 2,000 points a month) | **2.5%** |
| Everything else | 0.5% |
| Fuel, rent, wallet loads, government, gaming | **0%** |
The caps that actually bind
Headline rates mean little until you know where they stop. These are the limits on this card:
| Cap | Limit |
|---|---|
| Accel | 2,000 points per calendar month |
The utility accelerated band covers MCC 4812 and 4899 — but NOT 4900, which is the code most utility billers use. BOBCARD states the exclusion directly: utility MCC 4900 is not eligible for accelerated points. So two utility codes earn 2.5% and the main one earns 0.5%, and a cardholder has no practical way to tell which applies before paying.
The 5X band caps at 2,000 Reward Points a statement cycle across all accelerated categories combined — ₹500 of value, binding at ₹20,000 of qualifying spend a month.
Fuel earns nothing on any BOBCARD except HPCL Energie. BOBCARD's Annexure 1 excludes fuel, ATM cash withdrawals and quasi-cash from both core and accelerated points.
BOBCARD disclaims responsibility for merchant category codes and asks cardholders to 'validate Merchant Category Code (MCC) from the merchant before making swipe on their card' — an unusual thing to expect of a consumer, and a warning that accelerated categories may simply not fire.
Category Restrictions: Where You Won't Earn
- Where you earn nothing: Earns nothing at all: fuel on every BOBCARD except HPCL Energie; cash withdrawals at ATM; and quasi-cash transactions. BOBCARD names these three in Annexure 1 of its rewards terms as ineligible for BOTH core and accelerated Reward Points. Transactions below ₹100 earn nothing either (₹150 on HPCL Energie).
- Point expiry: Reward Points are valid for 24 months from the date they are earned on most BOBCARD products. Points on BOBCARD ETERNA do not expire.
- Accel cap: 2,000 Reward Points a statement cycle across all accelerated categories combined — ₹500 of value, binding at ₹20,000 of qualifying spend a month.
Fees and Charges
| Charge | Amount |
|---|---|
| Joining fee | ₹1,000 + GST |
| Renewal fee | ₹1,000 + GST |
| Finance charges | 3.75% per month (45% per annum) on all credit cards. Micro Enterprise cards are charged 1.5% per month (18% per annum). |
| Interest-free period | 20 to 50 days, and only where there is no previous outstanding. A purchase made early in the cycle gets the longer period; one made near the statement date gets the shorter. Not available at all if the previous month's balance was not cleared in full or if cash has been withdrawn at an ATM. |
| Minimum amount due | 100% of all fees, charges, finance charges, GST and EMI amounts, PLUS 2% of retail spends and cash advances — or ₹200, whichever is higher. Revised w.e.f. 1 October 2025. Where the total amount due exceeds the credit limit and the over-limit amount is greater than the computed MAD, the MAD becomes the whole over-limit amount. Any unpaid MAD from previous statements is added to the current one. |
| Cash advance fee | 2.5% of the amount withdrawn or ₹500, whichever is higher. |
| Cash advance interest | 3.75% per month (45% per annum), charged from the date of withdrawal with no interest-free period. |
| Forex markup | Varies by card: 2% on Eterna, Tiara, Varunah Premium, ICAI, ICSI and CMA One; 2.5% on Varunah Plus; 3% on Yoddha, The Sentinel, Rakshamah and Vikram; 3.5% on every other BOBCARD. Also applies to transactions in Indian rupees at an international location or at merchants registered overseas. |
| Late payment | Graduated by statement balance: nil below ₹100; ₹100 for ₹100–₹500; ₹400 for ₹501–₹1,000; ₹750 for ₹1,001–₹10,000; ₹950 for ₹10,001–₹25,000; ₹1,100 for ₹25,001–₹50,000; ₹1,300 above ₹50,000. |
| Overlimit | 2.5% of the amount over and above the sanctioned credit limit, or ₹600, whichever is higher. Charged only where the cardholder has given explicit consent to the over-limit facility. |
| Payment return | 2% of the payment amount subject to a minimum of ₹500 for a returned cheque. The same 2%/₹500 applies to an auto-debit or standing-instruction bounce, but only ONCE per statement cycle per card and only where the failure was due to insufficient balance. |
| Rent payment | 1% of the transaction amount on all rent payments (MCC 6513), with no minimum threshold. Non-reversible. |
| Wallet load | 1% of the transaction amount on all wallet loading transactions (MCC 6539, 6540, 6541, 6542), with no minimum threshold. Wallet loading is not permitted at all on the Micro Enterprise card. Non-reversible. |
| Utility payments | 1% of the transaction amount, capped at ₹3,000 per transaction, on utility payments (MCC 4900) of ₹50,000 or more. Non-reversible. |
| Education payments | 1% of the transaction amount, capped at ₹5,000 per transaction, on online education fee payments made through third-party apps — Cheq, CRED, Ease My Deal, MobiKwik, NoBroker, Paytm, PhonePe and SuperPe — w.e.f. 1 April 2026. Non-reversible. |
| Fuel transactions | 1% of the transaction amount on fuel transactions (MCC 5172, 5541, 5542, 5983) of ₹10,000 or more. NOT applicable to HPCL Energie BOBCARD. Non-reversible. |
| Card replacement | ₹100 per replacement card. |
| Add-on card | Nil. BOBCARD charges no joining or annual fee on add-on cards. |
| Reward redemption | No per-redemption handling fee is published. Minimum redemption is Reward Points worth ₹1,000, and redemption must be initiated through the BOBCARD Portal or mobile app. |
| EMI processing | Charged per the SmartEMI scheme selected. Purchases above ₹2,500 may be converted. |
| GST | 18% on all fees, interest and other charges. |
Is the BOBCARD PREMIER Worth It?
At ₹1,000 waived at ₹1,20,000, PREMIER needs real spending to justify itself. Fill the 5X band every month and it returns ₹6,000 a year, which comfortably clears the fee.
One lounge visit a quarter is included, subject to a minimum spend BOBCARD does not quantify.
The utility quirk is worth planning around — or rather, it cannot be planned around, which is the problem. If utilities are a large part of your spending, assume the 0.5% rate and treat anything better as a bonus.
Redeem as statement cashback, not Pay with Rewards — the difference is 40%.
Three charges are worth knowing before you apply. Finance charges run at 3.75% a month — 45% a year. Late payment is graduated, from ₹100 on a balance of ₹100–₹500 up to ₹1,300 above ₹50,000. And BOBCARD levies non-reversible 1% processing fees on rent, wallet loading, large utility bills and fuel above ₹10,000 — with toll and bus, railway bookings and third-party education payments added to that list on 1 April 2026.
Reward Points lapse if the card goes unused for 365 days, and are forfeited outright on closure, settlement or dues overdue beyond 90 days.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is the BOBCARD PREMIER earn rate? 2 Reward Points per ₹100 — 0.5% — and 10 per ₹100 on travel, dining, international spends and utilities, which is 2.5%.
Do utility bills really earn 2.5%? Only under MCC 4812 and 4899. BOBCARD explicitly excludes MCC 4900 — the code most utility billers use — from accelerated points, so most utility payments earn the 0.5% base rate.
What is the cap? 2,000 Reward Points a statement cycle across all accelerated categories combined — ₹500 of value, binding at ₹20,000 of qualifying spend.
How do I avoid the fee? Spend ₹1,20,000 in the preceding card anniversary year.
What is a point worth? ₹0.25 as statement cashback, or ₹0.15 through Pay with Rewards — a 40% difference.
Cards Mentioned in This Article
