Cash advance, over-limit and bounced-payment fees compared
Updated 30 Oct 2026 · by SwipeWise editorial team · how we write
Three charges catch cardholders out because they are rare, not because they are large: withdrawing cash at an ATM, spending past the credit limit and a payment that fails. Each issuer prints its own fee in its Most Important Terms and Conditions (MITC), usually as a percentage with a rupee minimum, and the minimum is what you pay on small amounts. This page sets fourteen issuers’ published fees side by side. Every figure comes from the issuer’s own document, read on 30 and 31 October 2026. The balance transfer and cash advance guide explains how cash advances accrue interest; the late fee and interest comparison covers the other two charges you pay for missing a due date.
The fees side by side
| Issuer | Cash advance fee | Over-limit fee | Bounced payment or failed auto-debit |
|---|---|---|---|
| HDFC Bank | 2.5% or ₹500, whichever is higher (not on Infinia) | 2.5% of the excess, minimum ₹550 (not on Paytm or PhonePe cards) | 2% of the payment, minimum ₹450 (capped at ₹4,999 on Infinia) |
| SBI Card | 2.5% or ₹500, whichever is higher, at domestic and international ATMs | 2.5% of the excess or ₹600, whichever is higher, once per cycle | not in the MITC text we read |
| Axis Bank | 2.5%, minimum ₹500 (2%, minimum ₹300 on Olympus; waived on Burgundy Private, Reserve, Magnus and Primus) | 2.5% of the excess, minimum ₹500 (waived on Burgundy Private, Primus and Olympus) | 2% of the payment, minimum ₹500 (waived on Burgundy Private and Primus) |
| IDFC FIRST | flat ₹199 | 2.5% of the excess, minimum ₹550 (nil on FIRST EA₹N, Private and WOW!) | 2% of the payment, minimum ₹500 |
| ICICI Bank (Amazon Pay card) | 2.5%, minimum ₹500 | 2.5% of the excess, minimum ₹550 | 2% of the total amount due, minimum ₹500, for returned cheques and auto-debits |
| Kotak (League Platinum) | 2.5%, minimum ₹500 | ₹500 if the excess is ₹500 or more | 2% of the bounced amount, minimum ₹500 |
| American Express India | 3.5%, minimum ₹250 (cash withdrawal in India temporarily suspended) | not available: over-limit transactions disabled since 1 Oct 2022 | ₹250 per returned instrument |
| RBL Bank | 2.5%, minimum ₹500 | nil | ₹500 for cheque return or auto-debit reversal |
| IndusInd (premium cards) | 2.5%, minimum ₹300 (waived on several variants) | 2.5% of the excess, minimum ₹500 (waived on a few variants) | ₹250 per returned payment |
| Standard Chartered | 3%, minimum ₹300 | ₹500 per instance, or 2.5% of the excess with a ₹500 minimum | ₹500 cheque bounce charge |
| Federal Bank | 2.5%, minimum ₹500 (not on Wave) | 2.5% of the excess, minimum ₹500, for eligible customers only | 2% of the payment, minimum ₹450 |
| YES Bank | 2.5% or ₹650, whichever is higher, from 15 Jun 2026 (₹500 before) | ₹550 plus GST per transaction that exceeds the limit (facility reintroduced 1 Jun 2026) | ₹450 per instance |
| AU Small Finance | 2.5%, minimum ₹500 | 2.5% of the excess, minimum ₹500 | 2% of total amount due or ₹500 |
| HSBC India | 2.5%, minimum ₹500 | 2.5% of the excess or ₹500, whichever is higher | not in the MITC text we read |
GST at 18% is added to these fees; IDFC FIRST’s own illustration shows its ₹199 cash advance fee billed as ₹235. Several fees are waived on the top-tier or private cards of the same issuer, as the table notes, so the row for your issuer may not describe your card.
What a ₹10,000 withdrawal and a ₹5,000 excess cost
Because the percentage is small and the minimum is large, the minimum sets the price on everyday amounts. A ₹10,000 ATM withdrawal at 2.5% would be ₹250, but the fee actually charged is:
| Issuer | Fee on ₹10,000 cash | Fee on ₹40,000 cash | Fee on ₹5,000 over limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| HDFC | ₹500 | ₹1,000 | ₹550 |
| SBI Card | ₹500 | ₹1,000 | ₹600 |
| Axis (most cards) | ₹500 | ₹1,000 | ₹500 |
| ICICI (Amazon Pay card) | ₹500 | ₹1,000 | ₹550 |
| IDFC FIRST | ₹199 | ₹199 | ₹550 |
| American Express India | ₹350 | ₹1,400 | not available |
| RBL Bank | ₹500 | ₹1,000 | nil |
| Kotak | ₹500 | ₹1,000 | ₹500 |
| IndusInd | ₹300 | ₹1,000 | ₹500 |
| Standard Chartered | ₹300 | ₹1,200 | ₹500 |
| Federal | ₹500 | ₹1,000 | ₹500 |
| YES Bank | ₹650 | ₹1,000 | ₹550 |
| AU Small Finance | ₹500 | ₹1,000 | ₹500 |
| HSBC | ₹500 | ₹1,000 | ₹500 |
Two things stand out. A ₹10,000 cash advance costs 5% to 6.5% in fees at most issuers before any interest, and IDFC FIRST’s flat ₹199 is the outlier and the cheapest on any amount. On a ₹40,000 withdrawal the percentage takes over and eleven of the fourteen land on ₹1,000, with Standard Chartered’s 3% giving ₹1,200. The fee is only part of the cost: in the MITCs that say when interest starts (SBI, Axis, YES Bank and HSBC among them), interest on a cash advance runs from the day of withdrawal at the revolving-credit rate, with no interest-free period. A ₹10,000 withdrawal held for 30 days at 3.75% a month adds about ₹375 on top of a ₹500 fee, a combined cost of 8.75% before GST.
Over-limit fees apply only if you have opted in
Going over the credit limit is not automatic at the issuers that explain the rule. SBI’s MITC says it “may approve overlimit transactions” subject to policy and customer consent, Axis says it will collect explicit consent from the cardholder, AU says the same, and YES Bank describes an overlimit facility that it reintroduced from 1 June 2026 and that depends on the customer’s credit profile. Without the facility, a transaction that would exceed the limit is declined and no over-limit fee arises. If you have opted in, the fee is charged on the excess, and at SBI only once per billing cycle.
Failed payments cost more than they look
A bounced payment is charged by percentage with a minimum (₹450 to ₹500 at HDFC, Axis, IDFC, Kotak, Federal, YES, Standard Chartered and AU) or as a flat ₹250 at IndusInd. The fee is separate from, and often arrives with, the late payment fee: a failed auto-debit on the due date can cost a returned-payment charge of ₹450 or more and then a late fee of ₹600 to ₹1,300 on the same bill. Paying by an instrument that clears on the due date, rather than the last day of the grace period, avoids both. The billing cycle and due date guide explains how issuers count the due date.
How to use this
- Avoid cash advances on a credit card. Use a debit card or UPI for cash; the minimum fee plus interest from day one makes even a short advance expensive.
- Do not opt in to over-limit unless you accept the fee. The consent is optional at the issuers that say so.
- Check the card-specific schedule. The waivers listed above are by card variant, and some documents cover only one card family (Kotak’s is the League Platinum statement, IndusInd’s the premium cards, Standard Chartered’s the Smart card).
- Treat the dates as part of the figure. YES Bank changed its cash advance fee and over-limit rules in June 2026; an older table will be wrong.
RBL Bank charges no over-limit fee at all, and American Express has switched over-limit transactions off, so neither can charge one. Amex’s cash advance fee is the highest percentage in the table (3.5%) but has the lowest minimum (₹250), and its MITC says cash withdrawals in India are temporarily suspended while the facility remains abroad. ICICI’s row comes from the MITC for its Amazon Pay card (last updated 10 July 2026) because the general ICICI MITC PDF could not be read, so other ICICI cards may differ. This is general information, not financial advice.
Sources
- HDFC Bank, Key Fact Statement cum MITC for credit cards, version 4.17: cash advance, over-limit and payment return charges. Read 30 Oct 2026.
- American Express India, Most Important Terms and Conditions for American Express credit cards (file dated 23 Mar 2026): cash advance fee, returned-instrument fee and over-limit status. Read 31 Oct 2026.
- RBL Bank, MITC cum key fact statement for credit cards: cash advance fee, overlimit fee (nil) and cheque return fee. Read 31 Oct 2026.
- SBI Card, Most Important Terms and Conditions: cash advance fee, over-limit fee and consent wording. Read 30 Oct 2026.
- Axis Bank, MITC for credit cards: cash withdrawal, over-limit and return fees by card variant. Read 30 Oct 2026.
- ICICI Bank, MITC for the Amazon Pay ICICI Bank credit card: cash advance, over-limit and returned-payment fees. Read 31 Oct 2026.
- IDFC FIRST Bank, credit card MITC: schedule of charges (file dated 2025). Read 30 Oct 2026.
- Kotak Mahindra Bank, League Platinum key fact statement: other charges table. Read 30 Oct 2026.
- IndusInd Bank, MITC for premium credit cards: other financial charges. Read 30 Oct 2026.
- Standard Chartered, Smart credit card MITC: tariff of charges. Read 30 Oct 2026.
- Federal Bank, MITC (7 September 2026): fee schedule and cash advance clause. Read 30 Oct 2026.
- YES Bank, credit card MITC V18 (October 2026): cash advance, over-limit and payment return clauses. Read 30 Oct 2026.
- AU Small Finance Bank, MITC with schedule of charges: cash advance, over-limit and payment return charges. Read 30 Oct 2026.
- HSBC India, credit card MITC: cash advance and overlimit fees. Read 30 Oct 2026.