HDFC Bank Freedom Credit Card

Classification - Internal

Published on 1

Feb 2024

1) What are the key features of Freedom Credit Card?

• Earn 10X CashPoints i.e., 10 CashPoints per ₹150 spent - BigBasket, BookMyShow,

OYO, Swiggy & Uber (Applicable on non-EMI/ Retails spends)

• Earn 5X CashPoints i.e., 5 CashPoints per ₹150 spent on EMI spends at Merchant

locations

• Earn 1 CashPoint per ₹150 spent (Excluding Fuel transactions, Wallet loads / Gift or

Prepaid Card Loads / Vouchers)

2) What is Freedom 10X CashPoints feature?

• The Freedom 10X feature gives the cardholder 10 times CashPoints for spending on -

BigBasket, BookMyShow, OYO, Swiggy & Uber

• 10X CashPoints feature is applicable on non-EMI / retail spends across App, Website

on these merchants

• EMI transactions on these merchants will be eligible under 5X CashPoints feature

• The Maximum CashPoints that can be earned under this feature is 2,500 CashPoints

per Calendar Month

3) What is Freedom 5X CashPoints feature on EMI Spends?

• The Freedom 5X feature gives the cardholder 5 times CashPoints for EMI Spends.

• Below types of EMI’s are considered for the 5X CashPoints feature.

o Merchant EMI/EasyEMI

o Aggregator EMI

o Brand EMI

• SmartEMI/Dial an EMI (DAE) is not considered under this feature

• If the cardholder did a transaction from the merchants under 10X CashPoints feature

and opted for an EMI, then the cardholder will get 5X CashPoints only

• Only EMI principal amount will be rewarded with CashPoints. Interest & processing

fees, Tax amounts will not be eligible for CashPoints

• The Maximum CashPoints that can be earned under this feature is 2,500 points per

Calendar Month

• If the EMI transaction is preclosed, the cardholder will be awarded only 1 CashPoint

Per ₹150 on the remaining outstanding amount

In case of Cancellation/reversal/refund of EMI transactions, CashPoints posted will

get reversed from the cardholder’s account

4) What are the benefits the Cardholder will get by paying at least Minimum Amount

Due (MAD) of the total outstanding amount?

Customers are advised to pay at least the Minimum Amount Due regularly before the

payment due date. Doing so shall ensure:

• Late Payment Charges are not levied on the card account

Classification - Internal

Published on 1

Feb 2024

• Pay the balance amount in subsequent months without any impact on credit history/

score

• Manage your finances better in the event of a crisis

To note, by paying MAD, interest will still be applicable on the balance outstanding amount

(Total Amount Due – Minimum Amount Due). Therefore, customers are advised to make

payment in full within the payment due date to avoid interest charges being applied

5) What are the Welcome and Renewal benefits on the Freedom Credit Card?

• Cardholder will receive a welcome benefit of 500 CashPoints (Applicable only on

payment of Joining membership fee)

• Cardholder will receive a renewal benefit of 500 CashPoints (Applicable on payment

of membership fee)

6) What are CashPoints?

• CashPoints are an exclusive Rewards metric system created for our Credit

cardholders. CashPoints can be utilized towards Cashback redemption against the

statement at the rate of 1 CashPoint = ₹0.15

Please note that CashPoints will be posted as Reward Points only

7) How can a cardholder use the CashPoints earned?

• The CashPoints earned by the cardholder can be redeemed against the statement

balance at the rate of 1 CashPoint = ₹0.15, and can be done via Net Banking login,

Phone Banking, or physical redemption form

• CashPoints can also be used for redemption against travel benefits like Flight &

Hotel bookings and also on Rewards Catalogue at the SmartBuy Rewards Portal,

wherein Credit Card members can redeem up to a maximum of 50% of the

booking value through CashPoints at a value of 1 CashPoint = ₹0.15 and rest of

the amount will have to be paid via the Credit Card

• For redemption as cashback against statement outstanding, Cardholder must have

CashPoints equivalent to ₹500 (i.e., 3,334 CashPoints)

• Minimum transaction of ₹150 and multiples of ₹150 is considered for CashPoints

posting

• Unredeemed CashPoints will expire/lapse on or after 2 years of accumulation

8) What are the other benefits on Freedom Credit Card?

• 1% Fuel Surcharge Waiver

o 1% Fuel Surcharge waiver on fuel transactions (Minimum transaction of ₹400,

Maximum transaction of ₹5,000 & Maximum waiver of ₹250 per statement

cycle)

o Fuel surcharge varies from 2.5% to 1% of fuel transaction amount. The rate of

surcharge may vary depending on the fuel station and their acquiring bank.

Taxes as applicable shall apply further

Classification - Internal

Published on 1

Feb 2024

• Exclusive Dining Privileges

o Experience the Good Food Trail Dining program at premium restaurants

across top cities

▪ Up to 15% off at 2000+ premium restaurants in select cities. Refer

https://offers.smartbuy.hdfcbank.com/offer_details/16768 for more

details

9) Cardholder is not getting CashPoints posted on all the spends, why so?

• CashPoints posting shall not eligible for the following spends/transactions on the

card,

o Fuel Spends

o Wallet/Prepaid Reloads and voucher purchases

o Cash Advances

o Payment of Outstanding Balances

o Payment of card fees and other charges

o SmartEMI / DAE

10) Is there any capping for CashPoints earned on Freedom Features?

• Please note that there is a calendar month capping on CashPoints accrued on the

below mentioned features.

o Maximum capping for spends under 10X feature is 2,500 CashPoints per

calendar month

o Maximum capping for spends under 5X feature on EMI spends is 2,500

CashPoints per calendar month

11) What will happen to cardholder existing CashPoints earned in the Freedom?

• The available CashPoints in cardholder account will be intact and there would be no

changes to it

12) Cardholder did a transaction on merchants under 10X feature category, but didn’t

get CashPoints as per feature, why so?

• CashPoints on 10X feature will be calculated basis the Terminal / Merchant IDs (TIDs

& MIDs) shared by the respective merchants. If in case the TID / MID is not available

in the set-up, such transactions shall not qualify for the benefit

13) How does a cardholder calculate CashPoints earned on monthly spends?

CashPoints are calculated on the spends made within the calendar month cycle. Only

settled transactions within the calendar month will be considered for CashPoints

posting.

To check for the CashPoints accrued, refer to current and previous statement

received.

For example: Cardholder statement is received on every 18th of the month. The

CashPoints accrued for transactions from 1st of January till 31st of January will be

calculated and posted on the 1

week of February and the same can be seen when

Classification - Internal

Published on 1

Feb 2024

cardholder receive the statement on 18th of February. For calculating the same on

cardholder end, refer to January month statement and February month statement.

Below shows an illustration on how to calculate CashPoints earned:

14) How much CashPoints will the cardholder earn if he/she does Prepaid/Wallet loads

and Voucher purchases?

• The cardholder will not be eligible for any CashPoints on prepaid/wallet loads and

voucher purchases. All the transactions carried out through the Merchant Category

Code (MCC) of 6540 (as defined by card networks Visa, MasterCard & RuPay) will be

considered under 1% CashPoints

15) If a cardholder places an order in Uber Eats, whether cardholder will be eligible for

5% CashPoints as per product feature?

S.NO

TRANSACTION

DATE

TRANSACTION AT:

AMT

(In Rs.)

CASHPOINTS

ACCRUED

COMMENTS

1 21th Dec Restaurant Bill Payment 900 6 Eligible for CashPoints in Dec'20 calendar month

2 22nd Dec

Rent Payment via

PayZapp

12,000 80 Eligible for CashPoints in Dec'20 calendar month

3 01st Jan Big Basket Grocery 6,000 400 Eligible for CashPoints posting

4 04th Jan

Merchant EMI Flipkart

Principal amount

4,500 150 Eligible for CashPoints posting

5 04th Jan

Merchant EMI Flipkart

Interest amount

400 - 0

Interest component of EMI is not eleigible for

CashPoints posting

6 7th Jan

BookMyshow - Normal

Purchase

600 40 Eligible for CashPoints posting

7 9th Jan Fuel Transaction 500 0 Fuel transaction is not applicable for CashPoints

8 10th Jan

Big Basket grocery

reversal

1,500 -100 To be considered under reversal of Cashpoints.

9 11th Jan Myntra Shopping 1,500 10 Eligible for CashPoints posting

10 12th Jan Uber Travel 450 30 Eligible for CashPoints posting

11 13th Jan Netflix Subscription 450 3 Eligible for CashPoints posting

12 14th Jan Swiggy 150 10 Eligible for CashPoints posting

13 14th Jan Swiggy 120 0

Not considered, Minimum transaction amount is

Rs.150

Jan CashPoints

earned

Total

Points

543

10X CashPoints

1 Point Per Rs. 150

10X CashPoints

1 Point Per Rs. 150

10X CashPoints

1 Point Per Rs. 150

10X CashPoints

5X CashPoints

JAN STATEMENT : Billing Cycle - 18th of every month

CASHPOINTS TYPE:

TRANSACTION CATEGORY

1 Point Per Rs. 150

S.NO

TRANSACTION

DATE

TRANSACTION AT:

AMT

(In Rs.)

CASHPOINTS

ACCRUED

COMMENTS

1 19th Jan Restaurant Bill Payment 1,200 8 Eligible for CashPoints posting

2 22nd Jan Bill Payment via PayZapp 1,500 10 Eligible for CashPoints posting

3 24th Jan

Big Bazaar - Normal

Purchase

3,000 20 Eligible for CashPoints posting

4 27th Jan Fuel Transaction 400 0

Fuel transaction is not applicable for CashPoints

posting

5 11th Feb

Rent Payment via

PayZapp

15,000 100 Eligible for CashPoints in Feb'21 calendar month

6 12th Feb Amazon Grocery 3,000 20 Eligible for CashPoints in Feb'21 calendar month

7 13th Feb Netflix Subscription 400 3 Eligible for CashPoints in Feb'21 calendar month

8 14th Feb Swiggy 450 30 Eligible for CashPoints in Feb'21 calendar month

Jan CashPoints

earned

Total

Points

Total Points

earned for

Jan'21

Total

Points

581

Total 581 CashPoints of Jan'21 will be available for

redemption post Feb'21 month statement

generation.

10X CashPoints

1 Point Per Rs. 150

FEB STATEMENT : Billing Cycle - 18th of every month

CASHPOINTS TYPE:

TRANSACTION CATEGORY

1 Point Per Rs. 150

Classification - Internal

Published on 1

Feb 2024

• A cardholder will be eligible for 1 CashPoint per ₹150 spent in Uber Eats. The 10X

feature on Uber is eligible for travel/commute related spends only. The Uber

transactions carried out through the MCC code of 4121 (as defined by card networks

Visa, MasterCard & RuPay) will only be considered for 10X feature

16) When will the earned CashPoints be posted in the cardholder statement?

• The total CashPoints earned in a calendar month will reflect in the subsequent

statement of the cardholder

17) How much CashPoints will be earned if cardholder spends through

SmartBuy/PayZapp?

• All the transactions through SmartBuy/PayZapp will get 1 CashPoint per ₹150 spent.

All other existing SmartBuy/PayZapp offers will be applicable as per

SmartBuy/PayZapp Terms & Conditions

18) Who is eligible for a Freedom Credit Card?

Cardholder Profile

Criteria

Salaried

Age: Min 21 Yrs. & Max 60 Yrs., Income: Gross Monthly

Income> ₹ 12,000

Self Employed

Age: Min 21 Yrs. & Max 65 Yrs., Income: ITR > ₹ 6 Lakhs

per annum

19) Can contactless transactions be done on the Freedom Credit Card?

• The HDFC Bank Freedom Credit Card is enabled for contactless payments, facilitating

fast, convenient and secure payments at retail outlets (Check for the contactless

network symbol on the card plastic)

Please note that in India, payment through contactless mode is allowed for a maximum

of ₹5,000 for a single transaction wherein Cardholder is not asked to input Credit Card

PIN. However, if the amount is higher than or equal to ₹5,000, the Card holder has to

enter the Credit Card PIN for security reasons.

20) What are the Fees and Charges applicable on the Freedom Credit Card?

• First Year Membership Fee – ₹500/- + Applicable Taxes, Renewal Membership Fee – ₹

500/- + Applicable Taxes

• Spend ₹50,000 in 12 Months and get Renewal Fee waived for next year

Goods and Services Tax (GST)

Effective 1st July 2017, Goods & Services Tax (GST) is applicable on all Fees, Charges and

Interest transactions.

Classification - Internal

Published on 1

Feb 2024

The applicable GST would be dependent on place of provision (POP) and place of supply

(POS). If POP and POS is in the same state then applicable GST would be CGST and

SGST/UTGST else, IGST.

GST for FEE & Charges / Interest transactions Billed on statement date will reflect in next

month statement.

GST levied will not be reversed on Any dispute on Fee & Charges / interest.

=================================================