Minimum amount due: how fourteen card issuers calculate it
Updated 31 Oct 2026 · by SwipeWise editorial team · how we write
The minimum amount due (MAD, or minimum payment due at HSBC) is the smallest payment that keeps a card account from being charged a late fee and reported as missed. It is not the cost of using the card: interest keeps running on everything you do not pay. Issuers calculate it differently, and the share of your balance it asks for ranges from 1% to 5%. This page sets out the formula in each of fourteen issuers’ Most Important Terms and Conditions (MITC), read on 31 October 2026. The interest and minimum due guide explains how interest builds on an unpaid balance, with worked examples for HDFC Bank and SBI Card; this page is the cross-issuer comparison.
The formulas
Every formula has the same two parts. The first is an amount that is always due in full: EMI instalments, fees and charges, taxes, interest (finance charges) and any over-limit amount. The second is a percentage of the balance you spent, which is where the issuers differ.
| Issuer | Percentage of the balance | Always due in full | Other terms |
|---|---|---|---|
| HDFC Bank | 5% of (finance charge + retail spends + cash advance) | GST, EMI, fees and charges, over-limit amount | If that 5% is below the finance charge, 100% of the finance charge plus 5% of retail and cash balances instead. Rule marked “WEF June’25” |
| American Express India | 5% of the principal, minimum ₹100 | All card fees, charges, taxes and interest, plus any instalments | The MITC’s illustration says paying only the minimum on a ₹5,000 purchase at 3.5% a month takes up to 44 months |
| RBL Bank | 5% of (retail spends, cash advances and interest) | 100% of fees and charges (the 5% plus fees part is at least ₹200), GST, EMI, any unpaid earlier MAD and over-limit amount | If the MAD would exceed the total due it equals the total due |
| ICICI Bank (Amazon Pay card) | 5% of the outstanding amount | instalments, over-limit amount, fees and GST | “Or such other amount as may be determined by ICICI Bank”; any fee billed over the limit counts twice |
| SBI Card | 2% of the remaining balance outstanding | GST, EMI, fees and charges, finance charges, over-limit amount | SBI’s own illustration treats ₹200 as the minimum payment |
| Axis Bank | 2% of the remaining balance outstanding | instalments, fees, interest, taxes, over-limit amount | Subject to a minimum of ₹100; if the total due is under ₹100 the MAD is the total due |
| IDFC FIRST | 2% of the principal balance (purchases, cash, balance transfers) | EMI, interest, fees and other charges, taxes, over-limit amount | Was 5% before statements generated from 1 September 2024; total due if under ₹100 |
| IndusInd | 2% of retail spends, cash advances and remaining balance | EMI, GST, fees and charges, finance charges, over-limit amount | The MITC adds “or such other amount as may be determined by” the bank |
| Standard Chartered | The higher of 5% of the statement balance, or instalments + interest + fees + over-limit + 1% of principal, or ₹250 | included in the second limb | If the statement balance is under ₹250 the whole balance is due |
| Federal Bank | 2% of the outstanding principal | 100% of interest, fees and GST | From the MITC’s worked example (₹1,792.27 = ₹1,662.27 + ₹130) |
| YES Bank | 2% of the retail and cash outstanding | 100% of finance charges and the GST on them | From the MITC’s worked example |
| Kotak (League Platinum) | 1% of all purchases and cash advances | 100% of EMI, finance charges, fees and charges, tax | Minimum ₹100, otherwise up to the total due, whichever is lower |
| HSBC India | 1% of the billed statement balance (excluding EMI balance, fees and interest) | 100% of interest, fees, taxes and EMI | Plus the higher of any past-due amount and the over-limit amount |
| AU Small Finance | 5% of principal outstanding if you paid the previous statement’s total due on time; 2% if you did not | 100% of fees, interest, instalments, annual fee and GST | Rounded up to the next ₹10; unpaid earlier MAD is added |
What the percentage means on a ₹10,000 and a ₹40,000 balance
The table below applies only the percentage part to a purchase-only balance, with no interest, fees, EMI or GST outstanding. Those items are added at 100% on top, so a real statement asks for more.
| Issuer | On ₹10,000 of purchases | On ₹40,000 of purchases |
|---|---|---|
| HDFC Bank | ₹500 | ₹2,000 |
| ICICI Bank (Amazon Pay card) | ₹500 | ₹2,000 |
| American Express India | ₹500 | ₹2,000 |
| RBL Bank | ₹500 | ₹2,000 |
| Standard Chartered | ₹500 | ₹2,000 |
| AU Small Finance (previous bill paid on time) | ₹500 | ₹2,000 |
| SBI Card | ₹200 | ₹800 |
| Axis Bank | ₹200 | ₹800 |
| IDFC FIRST | ₹200 | ₹800 |
| IndusInd | ₹200 | ₹800 |
| Federal Bank | ₹200 | ₹800 |
| YES Bank | ₹200 | ₹800 |
| AU Small Finance (previous bill not paid on time) | ₹200 | ₹800 |
| Kotak (League Platinum) | ₹100 | ₹400 |
| HSBC India | ₹100 | ₹400 |
Three things follow from the numbers. A 5% issuer asks for five times what a 1% issuer asks on the same balance, so the first month’s minimum payment can differ by ₹400 on a ₹10,000 bill and by ₹1,600 on a ₹40,000 one. AU’s two-tier rule is the opposite of what most people expect: a customer who paid the previous bill on time is asked for 5%, and one who did not is asked for 2%, so the lower figure goes to the account that is already behind. And a small minimum is not a cheap one. SBI’s own illustration says that on a ₹10,000 transaction, paying only the minimum every month (with a ₹200 floor) takes up to 52 months to clear the balance, and interest runs for all of that time. At 3.75% a month the interest on ₹10,000 in the first month alone is about ₹375, almost twice the ₹200 minimum, which is why a minimum of 2% barely reduces the balance once interest is added back.
Rules that change the answer
- The minimum clears the late fee, nothing else. Every MITC we read says the late payment charge is triggered by missing the MAD, and several add that paying less than the MAD also triggers it. See the late fee comparison for what that costs.
- Interest is unaffected. All fourteen issuers charge finance charges on the revolving balance if the total due is not paid, from the transaction date at the issuers that say when. HSBC’s MITC adds that the interest-free credit period is suspended on new spends while any balance from the previous bill is outstanding.
- Unpaid minimums accumulate. Axis, Standard Chartered and AU say an unpaid MAD from an earlier statement is added to the current one, and Standard Chartered adds that missing it for 150 days classifies the account as a default reported to credit bureaus, which is a much bigger cost than the fee.
- The formula can change. IDFC FIRST cut its percentage from 5% to 2% for statements generated from 1 September 2024 and HDFC’s rule is marked as effective from June 2025, so a table older than your statement may be wrong.
- Some products have no minimum. IDFC FIRST’s MITC says its SWYP card’s total due equals its minimum due: you pay in full or convert to EMI.
How to use this
- Pay the total due whenever you can. It is the only payment that avoids both the late fee and interest.
- If you must pay less, pay as much above the minimum as you can and pay before the due date, since the late fee depends on the due date and not on how close to the minimum you came.
- Check your own card’s statement for the MAD it actually asks, and your issuer’s MITC for the current formula, before relying on the figures here. The documents we read cover specific card families in some cases (Kotak’s is the League Platinum statement; IndusInd’s covers its premium cards; Standard Chartered’s is the Smart card MITC).
ICICI’s row comes from the MITC for its Amazon Pay card rather than the general ICICI document, which could not be read. This is general information, not financial advice.
Sources
- HDFC Bank, Key Fact Statement cum MITC for credit cards, version 4.17: minimum amount due (WEF June 2025) and illustrations. Read 31 Oct 2026.
- ICICI Bank, MITC for the Amazon Pay ICICI Bank credit card (10 Jul 2026): minimum amount payable, 5% of the outstanding amount. Read 31 Oct 2026.
- American Express India, Most Important Terms and Conditions for American Express credit cards (file dated 23 Mar 2026): minimum amount payable and the 44-month illustration. Read 31 Oct 2026.
- RBL Bank, MITC cum key fact statement for credit cards: minimum amount payable formula. Read 31 Oct 2026.
- SBI Card, Most Important Terms and Conditions: section G, minimum amount due, and the 52-month illustration. Read 31 Oct 2026.
- Axis Bank, MITC for credit cards: MAD computation and illustration. Read 31 Oct 2026.
- IDFC FIRST Bank, credit card MITC: MAD computation, 5% and 2% versions (file dated 2025). Read 31 Oct 2026.
- IndusInd Bank, MITC for premium credit cards: minimum amount due definition. Read 31 Oct 2026.
- Standard Chartered, Smart credit card MITC: minimum amount due clause 4 and default classification. Read 31 Oct 2026.
- Federal Bank, MITC (7 September 2026): MAD illustration. Read 31 Oct 2026.
- YES Bank, credit card MITC V18 (October 2026): minimum amount due illustration. Read 31 Oct 2026.
- Kotak Mahindra Bank, League Platinum key fact statement: minimum amount due definition. Read 31 Oct 2026.
- HSBC India, credit card MITC: minimum payment due definition and illustration. Read 31 Oct 2026.
- AU Small Finance Bank, MITC with schedule of charges: MAD computation methodology for retail cards. Read 31 Oct 2026.