Update (9 Sept 2026): If you hold an IDFC FIRST credit card, paying abroad just got cheaper — zero forex markup from 9 September 2026. It covers trips abroad, shopping on international websites, subscriptions, and fee payments overseas. The bank says this can save you up to 3.5%.
From 26 October 2026, one trade-off: you won’t earn reward points on international spends — except on these 7 cards, where points continue as usual: Ashva, Mayura, [name as printed in notice — visual confirm pending], FIRST Private, FIRST WOW!, FIRST WOW! Black and IndiGo IDFC FIRST Bank Credit Cards.
Sources: IDFC FIRST notice PDF · Updated MITC PDF
Forex markup is the fee your bank adds over the Visa/Mastercard exchange rate on foreign-currency spends. Most Indian credit cards charge 3–3.5% plus 18% GST on that fee. IDFC FIRST says it has cut this markup to 0% on all its credit cards.
That is the short answer. Now the details, in plain words.
What changed on 9 September 2026
Effective 9 September 2026, per press coverage of the bank’s newspaper ad (BW Marketing World, 9 Sept 2026) — the bank’s MITC and fees pages still showed old rates at last check, so treat fine print as provisional.
Never heard of MITC? It stands for Most Important Terms and Conditions, the bank’s official document of card fees and charges.
Three things make this different:
- It covers all IDFC FIRST cards, not just premium ones.
- Existing customers are included. No new application, no upgrade, no spend target.
- Online foreign shopping counts too, not just travel. If a foreign website bills you in dollars, it counts.
Earlier, only four cards had 0%: WOW!, Mayura, FIRST WOW! Black and Diamond Reserve. Others charged a fee: Ashva 1%, IndiGo IDFC FIRST 1.49%, FIRST Wealth 1.5%. Now all go to 0%, as announced.
The maths: Rs 1 lakh example
Say you spend Rs 1,00,000 of foreign-currency value in a year. A hotel stay abroad, an online course from a US site. It adds up.
On a 3.5%-markup card:
- Markup: Rs 3,500
- GST at 18% on that fee: Rs 630
- Extra you pay: Rs 4,130
On an IDFC FIRST card now:
- Markup: Rs 0
- GST: Rs 0
- Extra you pay: Rs 0
That is ~Rs 4,130 saved versus a 3.5%-markup card. On Rs 2–3 lakh a year, the illustration is ~Rs 8,260–12,390 saved versus a 3.5%-markup card.
One honest warning, because this trips people up. You still pay the converted ~Rs 1,00,000 equivalent at the network rate on settlement date — only the extra fee goes to zero. This is not “zero cost forex”: the network’s exchange rate and its small spread still apply.
And if you rarely spend in foreign currency, this changes little for you.
Who benefits
- Students paying college or exam fees abroad.
- Travellers: hotels, food, shopping in the local currency.
- Anyone buying from international sites billed in dollars.
- Families supporting kids studying outside India.
General information, not personal advice.
One tip: pay in local currency
At a foreign shop or ATM, the card machine may ask: bill me in rupees, or the local currency? Pick the local currency. Dirhams in Dubai, dollars in the US.
Choosing INR triggers Dynamic Currency Conversion at a poor rate, and IDFC’s zero markup on that DCC route is not yet confirmed in writing (the MITC lists it as a distinct row).
Risks and fine print
- Bank website not yet updated. Based on MD announcement + newspaper ad + press report. Recheck before you rely on it (links below).
- Rewards vs fees trade-off: some premium cards charge ~2% but give strong rewards — zero markup does not automatically mean cheapest overall. If you stack multiple cards for rewards, see our credit card stack guide.
- Other charges stay: cash withdrawal fees, interest, late fees unchanged.
- Date edge case: “effective Sept 9” likely means transactions settled on/after that date; authorisation-vs-settlement lag can cause small disputes. Education only, not personal advice — verify with the updated MITC before large spends.
Where to verify the fine print
- IDFC FIRST press releases hub — check for the official announcement
- Forex benefits page — check each card’s markup row
- MITC PDF — the official fees document
Key takeaway: Zero forex markup means you stop paying the ~3.5% + GST penalty on foreign spends. On Rs 1 lakh, that is ~Rs 4,130 saved versus a 3.5%-markup card. The exchange rate still applies — but the extra fee is gone.
