PNB Credit Card Now Charges Rs 99 to Redeem Your Points

Last verified: 4 November 2026 against PNB’s “Revision in service charges applicable on credit cards” notice, its credit card MITC and its rewards page, all on creditcard.pnb.bank.in.
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The short version

From 1 November 2026, Punjab National Bank charges Rs 99 plus GST every time you redeem reward points on its credit cards. Redemption used to be free. The same notice raises late payment fees, cash withdrawal fees and the fee for a bounced payment, and adds a 1% fee when your utility bills cross Rs 50,000 in one billing cycle. It covers PNB’s regular Visa and RuPay credit cards. Cards issued against a fixed deposit keep their old late fee.

What changed on 1 November

All fees below are before GST, which PNB adds on every fee and charge. Late fees are worked out on your total amount due.

What	Before	From 1 Nov
Redeeming reward points	Free	Rs 99 per request
Utility bills above Rs 50,000 in a cycle	No fee	1% of the total, up to Rs 2,000 per transaction
Late fee, Rs 501 to Rs 1,000 due	Nil	Rs 500
Late fee, Rs 1,001 to Rs 5,000 due	Rs 500	Rs 750
Late fee, Rs 5,001 to Rs 10,000 due	Rs 600	Rs 750
Late fee, Rs 10,001 to Rs 50,000 due	Rs 750	Rs 1,000
Late fee, above Rs 50,000 due	Rs 750	Rs 1,200
Cash at a PNB ATM	2%, minimum Rs 100 or Rs 150 by card	2.5%, minimum Rs 400
Cash at another bank’s ATM	2%, minimum Rs 150 or Rs 200 by card	2.5%, minimum Rs 500
Cash at an overseas ATM	2%, minimum Rs 250 or Rs 300 by card	2.5%, minimum Rs 500
Bounced cheque or auto-debit	Rs 100 to Rs 250 by card	2% of the payment, minimum Rs 400
Duplicate paper statement	Rs 50, only for statements older than 3 months	Rs 50 for any month (e-statements free)

A due of Rs 500 or less still carries no late fee. For cards against a fixed deposit, the late fee stays at 30% of the minimum amount due, with a floor of Rs 200 and a ceiling of Rs 500 per billing cycle.

What the Rs 99 fee costs you

Take Priya in Pune. She earns Rs 40,000 a month and puts Rs 12,000 a month on her PNB RuPay Platinum card: groceries, her phone bill, medicines and a few offline shops. PNB’s rewards page says this card earns 1 point per Rs 100, and the maths assumes all of her spending earns points.

• Points a month: Rs 12,000 ÷ 100 = 120 points.
• Points a year: 120 × 12 = 1,440 points.
• Fee per redemption: Rs 99 + 18% GST = Rs 116.82.

Now the value of a point. PNB’s two pages disagree. Its MITC says a point is “presently” worth 25 paise. Its rewards page still says 50 paise. The maths below uses 25 paise, the lower figure and the one in the document PNB updated for the 1 November changes, and then shows 50 paise for comparison. Treat both as PNB’s stated values, not a promise of what you will get in the catalogue.

If Priya redeems the moment she reaches the 1,000-point minimum (about every 8 months): 1,000 × Rs 0.25 = Rs 250. Minus Rs 116.82 leaves Rs 133.18. The fee takes 46.7% of what she earned.

If she redeems once a year: 1,440 × Rs 0.25 = Rs 360. Minus Rs 116.82 leaves Rs 243.18. The fee takes 32.4%. Her real reward rate drops from 0.25% of spend to about 0.17% (Rs 243.18 on Rs 1,44,000 of spending).

If she waits 30 months, still inside PNB’s 3-year expiry: 120 × 30 = 3,600 points, worth 3,600 × Rs 0.25 = Rs 900. Minus Rs 116.82 leaves Rs 783.18. The fee takes 13%.

At 50 paise a point the same three cases lose 23.4%, 16.2% and 6.5% to the fee. Either way the rule is simple: the fee is flat, so the fewer times you redeem, the less it costs.

The late fee bites harder than the redemption fee. Miss one payment with Rs 3,000 due and you now pay Rs 750 plus GST, up from Rs 500. That is Rs 885 at 18% GST, which is more than two years of Priya’s points at 25 paise. With Rs 800 due, the fee was nil and is now Rs 500 plus GST.

Cash withdrawals got much dearer for small amounts. Rs 5,000 from another bank’s ATM used to cost 2% with a Rs 150 or Rs 200 minimum. Now it is 2.5% with a Rs 500 minimum, so Rs 500 plus GST on Rs 5,000. Interest on the cash is charged on top.

The 1% utility fee will not touch most readers. Electricity, gas, broadband and phone bills rarely cross Rs 50,000 in one billing cycle. If they do, the 1% is on the whole amount: Rs 60,000 of utility payments means Rs 600 plus GST. It is the same kind of threshold fee as SBI Card’s new 1% fuel and transport fees.

What you should do

• Redeem less often. Let points build and redeem in one go. Points expire 3 years after they are earned, so redeem before your oldest points cross that line.
• Never pay late. Set up an auto-debit for the full amount due from your savings account, and keep enough money in it. A bounced auto-debit now costs 2% of the payment, minimum Rs 400, on top of the late fee.
• Do not take cash on this card. The Rs 400 and Rs 500 minimums make small withdrawals very expensive, and interest starts on top. Use your debit card.
• Big utility month: if your bills will cross Rs 50,000 in one cycle, pay some from your bank account by UPI instead.
• Keep or move on: if this is your first card and you use it lightly, keeping it for credit history is fine. If you hold it for rewards, about 0.17% back is weak. Look at lifetime-free RuPay cards that pay more on UPI or our first-card guide for your main spending.

PNB RuPay Platinum after the change

Fee line: Rs 500 annual fee plus GST, waived if you use the card at least once each quarter, per PNB’s MITC.

What you earn: 1 point per Rs 100, plus 300 bonus points on your first retail or online transaction within 90 days. Minimum redemption 1,000 points. PNB values a point at 25 paise in its MITC and 50 paise on its rewards page.

The catch: Rs 99 plus GST on every redemption, a 1,000-point minimum that takes about Rs 1,00,000 of spending to reach, and higher late and cash fees from 1 November.

Best for: a PNB customer who wants a low-cost first card for small bills and credit history, not anyone chasing rewards.

FAQ

Does PNB charge Rs 99 every time I redeem points?

Yes. From 1 November 2026, PNB charges Rs 99 plus GST for each redemption or claim of reward points, whether you take a voucher, a product or cashback. At 18% GST that is Rs 116.82 per request.

What is the minimum number of points I can redeem?

1,000 points. On the RuPay Platinum card, which earns 1 point per Rs 100, that means about Rs 1,00,000 of spending before your first redemption.

How much is one PNB reward point worth?

PNB’s own pages disagree. The MITC says a point is presently worth 25 paise and that the value can differ by card. The rewards page says 50 paise. Check the value shown in the PNB Rewardz catalogue before you redeem.

Will I pay the 1% fee on my electricity bill?

Only if your total utility payments on the card cross Rs 50,000 in one billing cycle. Then the fee is 1% of the whole amount, capped at Rs 2,000 per transaction, plus GST. Normal household bills stay well below that.

Does the new late fee apply to my card against a fixed deposit?

No. For cards issued against a fixed deposit, PNB keeps the late fee at 30% of the minimum amount due, with a minimum of Rs 200 and a maximum of Rs 500 per billing cycle.

Do PNB reward points expire?

Yes. PNB’s rewards page says points expire if they are not redeemed within 3 years of being earned. Saving up to cut the Rs 99 fee works only inside that window.

Sources

• PNB, Public notice: revision in service charges applicable on credit cards, effective 01.11.2026, checked 4 November 2026.
• PNB, Credit card Most Important Terms and Conditions (redemption fee, point value, minimum redemption, annual fees, late fee and cash advance slabs), checked 4 November 2026.
• PNB, Rewards programme page (earning rates, bonus points, 50 paise value, 3-year expiry), checked 4 November 2026.
• Goodreturns, PNB credit card new rules from November 1, 2026, 30 October 2026 (news report; numbers above are from PNB’s documents).