IRCTC SBI Card Premier – Benefits, Fees & Eligibility

IRCTC SBI Card Premier

Introduction

The IRCTC SBI Card Premier is a co-branded credit card issued by SBI Card in partnership with IRCTC, designed for frequent travelers, particularly those using Indian Railways. This card offers a range of exclusive benefits, including a welcome bonus of 1,500 Reward Points upon fee payment, accelerated reward earnings on IRCTC transactions, dining, and utility spends, and complimentary railway lounge access. Cardholders can also enjoy significant savings on railway and flight bookings, fuel transactions, and hotel stays, with the added advantage of an annual fee waiver on achieving specific spending milestones. It is chip and PIN enabled for enhanced security and provides a complimentary fraud liability cover.

Welcome Benefits

• Get 1500 Reward Points, equivalent to INR 1500, on payment of the first annual fee. (1 Reward Point = ₹ 1).
• Bonus Reward Points will be credited to the IRCTC SBI Premier Card account within 45 days of the eligible transaction.
• To redeem reward points on the IRCTC Website and Mobile App (Android only), link your IRCTC SBI Card loyalty number with your IRCTC login ID.

Fees

• Joining Fee (one-time): Rs. 1499 + GST/Taxes
• Renewal Fee (per annum): Rs. 1499 + GST/Taxes
• Spend-Based Waiver: Renewal fee is waived on annual spends of Rs. 2 Lakhs.
• Add-on Fee (per annum): Nil
• Rewards Redemption Fee: Rs. 99 per redemption request.
• Foreign Currency Markup: 3.5% on all international transactions.
• Interest Rates: 3.5% per month.
• Fuel Surcharge Waiver: 1% fuel surcharge waiver on transactions between Rs. 500 and Rs. 4,000, exclusive of GST and other charges. The maximum surcharge waiver is Rs. 250 per statement cycle per credit card account.
• Cash Advance Charges: 2.5% of the cash advance or Rs. 500, whichever is higher.
• Railway Ticket Cancellation Charge: In case of online railway ticket cancellation booked via irctc.co.in using the card, a charge of 1% of the total refund amount will be debited to your card.
• All taxes would be charged as applicable on all fees, interest, and charges.

Rewards

Value Back & Earning Rewards

• Earn up to 10% Value Back as Reward Points when buying tickets through irctc.co.in & IRCTC Mobile App for AC1, AC2, AC3, Executive Chair car, and Chair Car.
• Get 5% back on Air ticket purchases on www.air.irctc.co.in.
• Receive 5% back on E-catering purchases on www.ecatering.irctc.co.in.
• Earn 3 Reward Points per Rs. 125 spent on Dining and standing instructions on Utility spends.
• Earn 1 Reward Point per Rs. 125 spent on other non-fuel retail purchases.
• No Reward Points are earned on fuel transactions.
• W.e.f. 26 Dec'24, the accrual of Reward Points on ticket purchases at www.irctc.com will be based on the booking amount, including the primary cardholder’s individual fare and that of all other co-travelers.

Milestone Benefits

• Earn 2,500 Reward Points on annual travel spends of Rs. 50,000.
• Earn 5,000 Reward Points on annual travel spends of Rs. 1,00,000.
• Reward Points will be credited within 15 days of achieving the specified spends.

Travel Benefits

• Railway Lounge Access: Enjoy 8 complimentary railway lounge access in a year to participating lounges in India (maximum 2 per quarter). This is applicable only for primary cardholders.
• Transaction Charges Waiver:
  • Save 1% transaction charges (exclusive of GST) on railway ticket bookings on irctc.co.in. This waiver will be reviewed & credited monthly based on the updated Merchant ID / Terminal ID list.
  • Save 1.8% transaction charges (exclusive of GST) on airline ticket bookings on www.air.irctc.co.in. This waiver will be reviewed & credited monthly based on the updated Merchant ID / Terminal ID list (applicable only on bookings made at www.air.irctc.co.in and not through any IRCTC partner website).
• IRCTC Travel Offers:
  • Book airline tickets with IRCTC at unbeatable prices.
  • Access a wide range of tailor-made packages including adventure, wildlife, pilgrimage, and leisure tours across India.
  • Avail accommodation at over 5,000 hotels, covering 350 cities in India.
• Visa Privileges:
  • Savings of up to 10% on Hertz car rental and up to 35% on Avis Car Rentals.
  • Exclusive benefits across 900 luxury hotels worldwide.
  • Earn up to 10,000 miles per night on hotel stays plus 25% extra miles on Kaligo.com.

Insurance

• Complimentary Fraud Liability Cover: Get a complimentary credit card fraud liability cover of Rs. 1 lakh. This cover is liable from 48 hours prior to reporting of loss until 7 days post reporting of loss.
• Overseas Accident Insurance: Get complimentary Overseas Accident cover of Rs. 50 lakh.
• Air Accident Insurance: Complimentary Air Accident insurance coverage of Rs. 50 lakhs (will be discontinued from 26th July’25).
• Rail Accident Insurance: Complimentary Rail Accident insurance coverage of Rs. 10 lakhs (will be discontinued from 26th July’25).

Lifestyle & Other Benefits

• Dining: Earn 3 Reward Points per Rs. 125 spent on Dining.
• Utility Bill Payment: Earn 3 Reward Points per Rs. 125 spent on standing instructions on Utility spends. The card offers an Easy Bill Pay facility for electricity, telephone, mobile, and other utility bills.

Rewards Redemption Guide

• 1 Reward Point = Re. 1.
• Reward Points will be transferred to the cardholder’s IRCTC Loyalty A/c (w.e.f. 01 Apr'21).
• Reward Points can be redeemed at the IRCTC Website or Mobile App (Android only) by linking your IRCTC SBI Card loyalty number with your IRCTC login ID.
• You can also redeem your reward points at the SBI Rewardz website against a variety of categories including shopping, gifts & vouchers, merchandise, etc.
• A rewards redemption fee of Rs. 99 is applicable per redemption request.
• The Reward Points accrued in a customer’s SBI Card account will not be credited to their IRCTC loyalty account if the loyalty account status is blocked, inactive, or suspended.

Card Review

The IRCTC SBI Card Premier is a strong credit card offering significant saving opportunities, particularly for individuals who frequently travel by rail and air via IRCTC, and those who spend on dining and utility bills. A key advantage is the 1:1 value proposition for reward points, where 1 Reward Point equals Re. 1. The welcome bonus of 1,500 Reward Points effectively offsets the joining fee of Rs. 1,499. Furthermore, the card provides substantial savings through milestone benefits, allowing users to earn up to 5,000 bonus Reward Points annually on reaching specific travel spend thresholds. Benefits extend to complimentary railway lounge access, waivers on IRCTC railway and airline transaction charges, and a fuel surcharge waiver, making it a comprehensive travel and lifestyle card. The renewal fee waiver on spending Rs. 2 Lakhs per year adds to its value.

Important Product Details

• Joining Benefit: 1,500 Reward Points (worth Rs. 1,500) on payment of first annual fee.
• Accelerated Rewards: Earn up to 10% value back on IRCTC railway bookings (AC1, AC2, AC3, Executive Chair car, Chair Car), 5% back on IRCTC air tickets, and 5% back on IRCTC e-catering.
• Dining & Utility Rewards: 3 Reward Points for every Rs. 125 spent on dining and standing instructions for utility bills.
• General Spends: 1 Reward Point for every Rs. 125 spent on other non-fuel retail purchases.
• Milestone Rewards: Up to 5,000 bonus Reward Points annually on achieving travel spend targets (Rs. 2,500 for Rs. 50,000 spends, Rs. 5,000 for Rs. 1,00,000 spends).
• Annual Fee Waiver: Renewal fee waived on spending Rs. 2 Lakhs in an anniversary year.
• Travel Perks: 8 complimentary railway lounge accesses per year (max 2 per quarter) for primary cardholders.
• Transaction Charge Waivers: Save 1% on railway ticket bookings and 1.8% on airline ticket bookings on IRCTC platforms.
• Fuel Benefit: 1% fuel surcharge waiver (max Rs. 250 per cycle) on transactions between Rs. 500 and Rs. 4,000.
• Insurance Coverage: Rs. 1 lakh complimentary fraud liability cover. Complimentary Overseas Accident cover of Rs. 50 lakh.
• Discontinued Insurance: Complimentary Air Accident insurance (Rs. 50 lakhs) and Rail Accident insurance (Rs. 10 lakhs) will be discontinued from 26th July’25.
• Global Acceptance: Accepted at over 24 million outlets globally, including 3,25,000 outlets in India.
• Enhanced Security: Chip and PIN enabled for secure transactions.
• Additional Benefits: Flexipay option for converting large transactions into EMIs, Add-on cards for family members.
• Fees & Charges: Annual Fee, Renewal Fee of Rs. 1499 + GST. Rewards Redemption Fee of Rs. 99. Foreign Currency Markup of 3.5%. Monthly Interest Rate of 3.5%. Cash Advance Charges of 2.5% or Rs. 500 (whichever is higher).

Other Details

• Contactless Advantage: Daily purchases are made easy by simply waving the card at a secure reader. This feature offers fast, convenient, and secure transactions, reducing the risk of card loss and fraud.
• Flexipay: Convert transactions of Rs. 2,500 or more into easy monthly installments by logging onto sbicard.com within 30 days of purchase.
• Add-on Cards: Empower parents, spouse, children, or siblings above 18 years of age with add-on cards.
• Cash Access: Withdraw cash from over 1 million Visa locations across the globe.
• Emergency Card Replacement: Get your card replaced anywhere in the world with a 24x7 helpline for emergencies. Call 39 02 02 02 (prefix local STD code) or 1860 180 1295 for card loss in India.
• AutoPay Registrations: New AutoPay registrations on SBI Card platforms (Website / Mobile App / Helpline) have been disabled w.e.f. 01 Apr 2021. However, Standing Instruction (SI) Transactions pertaining to Autopay registration(s) made on your IRCTC SBI Card Premier on or before 31 Mar 2021 will continue to be processed.
• Payment Settlement Order: All payments made for a cardholder account will be settled as per the order mentioned in the official payment settlement link.
• Payment Acceptance: Cheques payable outside clearing zones are not accepted; only local cheques or drafts payable in Delhi are accepted.
• Value Proposition: The value proposition of this co-brand product may be funded jointly by SBI Card and IRCTC based on their financial arrangement, which may include fee and revenue sharing between the two parties.
• Helpline: For assistance, call SBI Card helpline at 1800 180 1295 (from BSNL/MTNL) or 39 02 12 12 (from all other numbers, prefix local STD code if using a mobile phone).