HDFC Regalia Credit Card Review: What You Need to Know

Joining benefit

In 2019, HDFC Bank discontinued complimentary Vistara Silver membership and replaced it with Zomato Gold.

You can get Zomato Gold 1-year membership on spending ₹75,000 within 90 days of card setup.

Only new cards and upgrades after 20th March 2019 are eligible for this benefit. Existing Regalia credit cardholders whose card was issued or upgraded before 20th March 2019 are not eligible.

On spending ₹75,000 within 90 days, cardmembers will receive Activation Code on email and SMS within 15 working days of qualifying. You need to use this Activation Code in the Zomato app to activate complimentary 1-year membership. Existing Zomato Gold members need to email their Activation Code to gold@zomato.com to get their membership extended by 1 year.

Reward Points

HDFC Regalia credit card gives 4 reward points per ₹100.

You also get 10,000 bonus points on spending ₹5,00,000 and an additional 5,000 bonus points on spending ₹8,00,000 in a membership year. Bonus points are automatically credited after the end of the membership year in which the spend milestone is met.

You get 10X reward points on using HDFC Smartbuy to make flight and hotel bookings (including OYO Rooms ), IRCTC and RedBus tickets, gift cards and making purchases at Amazon and Flipkart . Maximum bonus points are capped at 5000 per calendar month (or transactions totaling up to ₹20,850).

Reward points are valued at ₹0.50 per point typically if you use the HDFC portal for booking flights or hotels. I tend to prefer redeeming points for gift vouchers from Shoppers Stop instead and value it at ₹0.35 per point. You can also redeem it for a statement credit at a measly ₹0.20 per point or transfer to JPMiles or Singapore Airlines' KrisFlyer Miles in a 2:1 ratio (2 reward points equalling 1 mile).

You are charged ₹99 for each reward redemption and reward points expire 2 years from the date of accrual.

Airport Lounge Access

Lounge Access is a key highlight of Regalia credit cards.

You can access domestic airport lounges 12 times per calendar year via the Visa/Mastercard lounge program. Per calendar year instead of calendar quarter gives you more leeway to avail the benefit if you have a major chunk of travel happening at once. Compared to Visa, Mastercard lounge list is more expansive, but you lose out on Visa Signature offers like BOGO on movie tickets at BookMyShow.

For international lounge access, you get a Priority Pass that can be used 6 times per calendar year to access airport lounges abroad. Remember, Priority Pass is only for international lounge access and you’ll be charged $27 + taxes if you use it to access a domestic lounge. You can apply for Priority Pass for self and add-on after transacting at least 4 times using your Regalia card via this link.

A note on accessing lounges by add-on members.

There seems to be a lot of confusion regarding lounge access by add-on cardmembers, especially for Visa/Mastercard lounge program, since HDFC issues add-on cards with the same card numbers.

For Priority Pass, it’s relatively simple. When you apply for Priority Pass, you get separate cards for the primary member and each add-on member. At an international lounge, all members can swipe their respective cards up to the maximum shared limit of 6 times per calendar year.

The same goes for Visa/Mastercard lounge program, at a domestic lounge, all members - primary and add-on, can swipe their respective cards up to the maximum shared limit of 12 times per calendar year.

Other features

Reduced Foreign Currency Markup, Fuel Surcharge Reversal and Insurance are not the features considered when deciding which card to take but still a good to have.

Foreign Currency Markup

HDFC Regalia has a reduced Foreign Currency Markup of 2% instead of 3.5%.

Fuel Surcharge Reversal

You also get a waiver of fuel surcharge up to ₹500 per billing cycle for fuel transactions of ₹400 to ₹5000 at any petrol pump. Note that the reversal is only for the fuel surcharge component and not the GST levied. No reward points are accrued either. A fuel credit card with accelerated reward points on fuel is a better option for fuel transactions.

Insurance

Aimed at travelers, it comes with emergency overseas hospitalization cover of ₹15L, credit card liability cover of ₹9L (for fraudulent transactions) and accidental (air) death cover of ₹1Cr.

Fees

HDFC Regalia was issued Life Time Free to everyone before 2019 either straight away when applying/upgrading or if you opted for a cross-sell product like taking an add-on card, used PayZapp, etc.

But now HDFC Regalia is typically issued First Year Free. It doesn’t hurt to check with the bank though, by emailing them or through NetBanking, to see if it can be issued Life Time Free for you.

Actual joining fees and renewal fees are ₹2500 + taxes. Renewal fees are waived if you spend ₹3,00,000 in a card membership year. If you do happen to pay fees, you get 2500 reward points worth ₹875-1250 offsetting the cost by almost half.

Eligibility

Eligibility for HDFC credit cards has always been a bit of a secret. There are multiple parameters taken into account depending on the customer profile for the bank to accept or reject an application.

For existing credit card holders, a credit limit of ₹3,00,000 or above is needed. It helps to be part of a Relationship Banking Program: Preferred or Imperia by maintaining high AQB (Average Quarterly Balance) in your savings account and fixed deposits.

You can also ‘hard apply’ with a monthly income of ₹1.2L+ for salaried and ₹12L+ for self-employed by providing income proof.

In case you’re not eligible for Regalia, maybe get a lower rung credit card like MoneyBack or Regalia First instead, wait for Limit Enhancement offers and later upgrade to Regalia.

How to Apply

If you have an HDFC Bank account, first check NetBanking or visit a branch to check if you’re pre-approved. If you’re not you can still go ahead and apply for it using the online NetBanking form or a physical form at the branch. This typically is the easiest and most reliable way with minimum documentation needed as the bank already has your KYC.

When applying on account basis, ensure that the name, address, date of birth and signature matches the bank account records. If the information is outdated, it’s better to first update the information in the bank account before applying for a credit card.

If you don’t have an HDFC bank account or if you’re not eligible, you’ll need to give income proof (salary slip/Form 16 or ITR), KYC documents (PAN card, address proof) and a passport-sized photograph. HDFC Bank doesn’t issue cards on Card to Card basis as of now.

On applying, you’ll receive a Credit Card Application Reference Number on SMS using which you can track your credit card application status.

Conclusion

Some of the other cards in the same range are Yes Bank Preferred, Citi PremierMiles, and ICICI Rubyx.

HDFC is very aggressive with offers and partner tie-ups. That alone is a good enough reason to have a great HDFC credit card or debit card in your wallet.

Coupled with Smartbuy 10X ongoing offer and a fairly reasonable lounge access limit, HDFC Regalia card is a no-brainer if you can get it Life Time Free. For First Year Free or Renewal Fees waiver, you’ll need to weigh the benefits to see if you can derive positive value from this credit card.