Disclaimer: All details given below are known best to my knowledge through various sources and are not verified with the bank involved.
1. What’s new with HDFC Infinia Metal Edition?
As seen already in the HDFC Infinia metal edition launch, the metal form factor with the higher renewal fee is the only difference. All other features remain the same.
2. Should I upgrade my Infinia to Metal edition?
It’s your personal preference plus a few other aspects related to your annual cycle. Ideally, if your spending is over 10L, you can upgrade as it makes no difference for you.
3. Are you upgrading to Infinia Metal Edition Sid?
Not now, because my annual cycle just ended last month, and I can continue to use the card for the next 2 yrs without meeting the spend criteria for a waiver if I upgrade to FYF metal after 11 months.
Moreover, the plastic design is much better than the metal design. Yet, I intend to have my hands on the metal via an Add-on card. Let’s see.
4. My Infinia is LTF. Can I take Infinia Metal Edition as LTF too?
No, all the metal upgrades are available for FYF only as of now. However, you may make it LTF in the future via branch if your BM/RM is pleased with your NRV.
Maybe after few months we may find LTF metal cards. But as of now, no.
5. My annual “cycle” on Infinia is renewing next month. Will I get the metal Edition?
No, your existing Infinia will remain on 10K pricing or whatever pricing you’re currently on. Nothing is expected to change.
However, you can enjoy all the Infinia Metal Edition benefits on the existing card itself, except the welcome/renewal benefit.
6. My Infinia “card” is expiring soon. Will I get upgraded to metal edition?
Not for now, but this may change in the future.
One way to extend your card expiry date is to request for card block (as lost/stolen) and replace it 3 months before card expiry. This may extend the card expiry at times.
But if HDFC intends to make all infinia cards as metal, this may not work. However, I doubt about it, as not everyone will be happy to carry a metal and most importantly no one likes the new design.
7. Can I upgrade my Regalia to Infinia Metal Edition?
As of now only Infinia is getting upgraded to Infinia Metal edition. Other cards are being upgraded only to the plastic Infinia as I just noticed one of my friend who got upgraded to Infinia plastic a week ago.
8. Whats the criteria for Infinia Metal Edition upgrade?
It appears that those who did annual spends >15L were given the upgrade offer on net-banking initially. This “maybe” reduced to 10L for the next round of upgrades.
That aside, you may still request for one by calling Infinia support line.
9. What is this Galaxia Credit card?
I may know a thing or two about the galaxies in the universe and their significance, but sorry, I have no new info on the Galaxia.
Though, as per the rumours circulated on social media, it comes with >4% return on spend, 20K fee, and 25L spend for the waiver.
And I highly doubt its existence due to various reasons!
10. What is Infinia Reserve?
As per multiple updates shared by some of our readers, traces of Infinia Reserve were found to be tested on the Mastercard platform a few months back. Yet, this neither went to MITC nor do we have any other details about the features.
Maybe the Mastercard ban is delaying this card launch or maybe we could find it on Visa Infinite, we never know.
For me Infinia Reserve makes more sense over Galaxia because HDFC has the habit of strengthening the existing product names unless the product is completely different.
11. Shall I wait for the Ultra Premium Credit card?
One Ultra premium card is definitely coming due to 100’s of reasons. However the name/benefits is what we don’t know.
So if you aim for Ultra-premium credit cards like Infinia Reserve or whatever they call it, then yes, you may skip the Infinia metal upgrade, as the system usually puts you on a cooling period (soft rule) for about a year once you do an upgrade.
12. When can we expect the new HDFC Ultra premium credit cards?
I would expect it approx. in under ~6 months if the planetary positions of HDFC and those of cardmembers are good. 😀
But there is no official/confirmed/expected dates on the same. This this purely my personal prediction and may be wrong as well.
Hello Sid, any idea when we can expect the lifting of bans from mastercard, Diners and Amex?
Tough to comment at this time, Vipul. We may need time till end of 2021 to get some clarity.
Apt comment on planetary for Galaxia Sid 😉
“I intend to have my hands on the metal via an Add-on card. ”
How? I don’t think you can get 2 infinia cards right?
Infinia can have up to 4 add on cards. I placed request for 2nd add on card just a few days ago, if only I read this article would have placed request for metal add on card.
Yeah I did receive email saying your infinia experience has been upgraded I’m glad they have upgraded infinia to same metal infinia ..my annual cycle end in Feb 2022 let c what happened it will my first metal card if I get any upgrade let c
i was talking to customer care regarding the new card and my chances of upgrading from infinia to that card, they did mention the new card will come only in 2022 and they were still unsure when in 2022. a few people i know including me got pushed to metal infinia without requesting it (obviously my spends are >10 L in the previous anniversary year)… this is is a bit thicker than amex plat charge , so i think it has greater chances of scratches
Strange my Infinia metal is lighter and thinner than the Plat Charge.
Amex Plat is quite heavy and feels a lot more premium.
Infinia metal is lighter
Also on the Amex charge there feels like a layer is stuck to the metal which has card details printed while on Infinia metal it is seamless.
I just got my metal infinia and to change the pin when i tried to insert it in ATM, i couldn’t. It’s too thick to insert. Did you face the same problem at PoS or other places?
My Metal card never had such issue
My upgrade from PVC to Metal was very strange, it was auto upgraded and I only knew when the limits on my existing card became 0 in netbanking.
Was your PVC chargeable?
Hi Sid, if I report my card as lost and take a new card does my annual cycle get reset or it remains as old one?
It remains the same.
Sid and other experts here,
I was wondering what card hdfc would issue if the diners ban isn’t lifted and Diners card (read DCB variant) expires. In a normal scenario, auto renewal is triggered upon card expiry and same variant is issued with new validity.
If, in today’s scenario, a DCB expires, will they issue a higher variant (Infinia) with the same pricing (eg. LTF DCB – >LTF Infinia) or they may even offer a lower variant or even not renew the card at all.
Not only Diners, if any of your card (debit/credit) validity expires, you’ll get the same card with same network (AMEX/MC/Diners). The restrictions is only towards acquiring new customers, not on existing customers.
My Master card variant of Axis priority debit card was due for expiry in 10/2021, but new card issued to me was Visa verient.
Hi Prabhash,
This is wrong. They should issue the same variant card to the customer as the ban is applicable only for new customers. This yr. Jan, my Diners Club Miles credit card was upgraded to Diners Privilege and even my wife’s Diners Club Miles was renewed this yr.
My ICICI Wealth Debit Card which was originally MasterCard was renewed to Visa after expiring two months back. So, it is not only Axis changing platforms. Maybe the ban on MasterCard and Diners is different that allows Diners to be issued for renewal…
Thanks for the FAQs Sid.
After chatting with my HDFC Card advisor last week once I got the Metal Upgrade offer on Netbanking , decided to wait a bit for Galaxia or the Infinia Titanium (metal) variant as there would a cooling of period otherwise.
Strangely, despite it primarily being a cosmetic makeover, the Infinia Metal is still considered an upgrade over Infinia.
Ideally HDFC bank should announce that changing to this should not incur a cooling of period as the most eligible clients for Galaxia who have got this upgrade offer would be in 2 minds whether to upgrade or not.
Btw even if you replace your card earlier your expiry date gets pushed forward by 3 years.
I just had mine replaced this week and the date got pushed forward
for replacement card – you get new card number, new expiry date. However, the annual cycle to calculate annual limits remain the same as the old cycle.
Hi Sid,
I didn’t understand the 6th question on card expiry.
Why would I report the card as lost/stolen to extend the validity when the bank automatically sends the new card 1 month before expiry?
Is there a difference between the new card issued by bank upon expiry and card validity extended by reporting it as lost / stolen.
It is possible that by the time your card actually expires, plastic version would totally go away and so will be the LTF benefit as they will renew your infinia with metal. As of now, that’s not the case and for LTF infinia customers, plastic remains the prescribed card – for expired as well as lost/stolen replacement. You never know if tomorrow plastic is totally replaced by metal(already HDFC website is hinting this) , they may take away LTF thing also completely.
Hi.. Can anyone please tell me how to check status on the apple product we ordered through smartbuy portal using infinia reward points?
It’s been already 6-7 days still no update on that
It takes 10 days for the apple product to get delivered. Delivery from Bangalore.
i ordered ipad pro and received after 10 days. We dont get any notification of the process, all of sudden bluedart agent will give u surprise
Hi Sid,
Little disagree with the 1 year cooling period.
I upgraded to Regalia in Jan’19. Since Jul’19, I could see the upgrade to DCB/Infinia was showing in netbanking. I opted for the upgrade in Aug’19
Auto eligibility is bit different. Moreover, almost all such rules by HDFC comes with an exception.
I have received metal card , in the box booklet mentioned after Dec-2021, Existing pvc card also annual fees waiver will be 10L. However if annual fee revised for pvc , not much different either pvc or metal. Then why wait to get metal?
7. Can I upgrade my Regalia to Infinia Metal Edition?
Yes, I got my Business Regalia upgraded to Infinia Metal after a couple of emails via RM. Upgrades can be done on credit limit basis, I think 10L limit on Regalia is the criteria. First year free and 12500+gst renewal fee if spent criteria not met.
Finally spotted: that most endangered, almost impossible to find species – an efficient HDFC Bank RM!! You can’t imagine how lucky you are to have such an RM!
😅 After getting the card approved, he is calling me daily to opt a ULIP plan.
😁😁Chalo, at least now I feel a bit better.
I have had 4 different RMs over the years and yet to spot one who can do what I want. They are more interested in their targets and asking for favours all the time…I prefer calling the Customer Care who can sort out my issues more efficiently…
Any expect suggestions on how can i upgrade from DCB TO DCB LTF. Holding the card for more than 2 years now with more than 12 l credit limit. Spend limits are being met annually (more than 9-10 lacs) . How can i get a Ltd ? Any suggestions?
Dear Sid,
Request to get the better insight of the card you are providing info of, there are not much but some useful and much used benefits which are added in Infinia Metal ex-the benefit of ITC hotels and better conversation rates on specific product.
Just an advice- analyse before post as lot of ppl read and make their final decision
Kudos to good work keep it on👍
What do you think the probability of diners leaving India is? They only have a tie up with HDFC, and even that isn’t working now.
Wild Guess: 40%
If diners leaves india then what would happen to all existing points / customers. Went to bank few days back and RM told Diners and Mastercard are still banned and might take 6 months or so to resume.
Per today’s report Diners Ban is lifted with immediate effect.
Hopefully they would come back strongly and not leave india all-together
“Hopefully they would come back strongly” – We can’t expect much from a payment network. The game is more in the hands of a credit card issuer. But still we can expect few new launches from HDFC Bank on diners platform.
“Not leave India all-together” – Hopefully. Diners is still a marginal player, not been able to expand much even after 10 years of India presence.
Hi Siddharth
I got upgraded to Infinia Metal from diners black, most thanks to your telephonic consultation. Firstly they approved Infinia PVC on 18th Oct morning and same day I requested again for the metal, they approved my Infinia metal.
Congrats. 🙂
Hi everyone
Need info on Tanishq vouchers. I plan to redeem about 85k worth of points on Tanishq vouchers.
Can someone guide on the procedure? Is it though smartbuy? Are those vouchers similar to what we get for amazon etc.? Do we get e vouchers or physical ones? Are vouchers accepted in all Tanishq stores?
Sorry for asking too many questions. Wanted to be sure as it’s a big amount
Hi Chirag, I bought 32k (3 x 10k + 1 x 2k) worth of E-vouchers from Smartbuy (Privileges > Infinia > Rewards). Paid 30% (9.6k) from my card. Received E-vouchers on email in 1 min. Went to an offline store nearby and bought a ring for myself.
They asked me to forward the vouchers mail to their email ID which I did and they took printout of the mail as well as a copy of my Aadhaar.
How are you guys so comfortable in sharing your aadhar, more so in places where it’s not even mandatory?
What do you foresee would happen if you share your aadhaar card details?
@Abhi,
Nowadays, you can mask all digits of Aadhaar except the last four. Also Aadhaar virtual ID is enough which you can change anytime.
You can mask the digits yourself, or download the masked Aadhaar from official site (I recommend) as well.
As we can only pay 70% via points and rest needs to be paid via card, do we get 10x point on the balance payment?
Yes. You get incremental reward points for 30% of the payment.
yes – ofcourse
@Vipul
I do THINK we get 5x on normal days and 10x during Smartbuy 10x offer days on remaining 30% paid by card. Haven’t confirmed from my end though.
Yes, for a couple of Tanishq voucher redemptions I did in this month, I have received 10x on the 30% paid through card even though customer care reps have always mentioned that it should be 5x. Not sure if it is an one-off instance I got lucky with.
Folks, please share your experience as well.
Hi Gautham, Did u purchase the Voucher thru Smart Buy or it was thru Infinia smartbuy Section.. Are u sure we get 10X
Hey Leo/Chirag,
So we can use multiple vouchers on a single bill of jewelry purchase from Tanishq offline store?
@PB_Babu,
Yes, you can use any number of vouchers on a single bill.
Yes you can
I also had about 360 points in my Tata Encircle points when I bought my specs from Titan Plus last year, redeemed those as well. E-vouchers are not valid on Gold coin purchases.
Didn’t pay a penny in the store. There is a 7 day exchange period if you didn’t like the product.
Overall an excellent experience.
Is there any way to check the annual cycle?
The only option is to call Customer Care. It will not reflect anywhere else like Netbanking, statement etc.
Hi Sid,
Looks like HDFC Bank is providing credit limit increase on Diwali. Today, I got an email to increase my DCB limit from 6.6 lacs to 8.04 lacs. The offer is reflecting in internet banking as well. I am yet to claim it.
Anyone else received LE ?
Received CLE on my DCB from 5.26 to 6.83 lacs
Got my Infinia as well. Just waiting for my physical card now.
Quick question though: my DCB bill is due in a couple of weeks. Against which card do I make payment? HDFC net banking shows the statement against the Infinia, not the DCB.
Make payment to Infinia for quick processing, payments made to DCB will take few extra days to get reflected in the statement.
Hi, is it FYF if you upgrade from diners to infinia?
How do we avail 1:1 points redemption on Apple products? Couldn’t find the way yet
Go to Smart Buy> Privileges>Infinia>Login>Rewards and then filter by apple to see all the products.
I did upgrade to infinia metal and got courier with mine and 2 addons
Mibe was activated by ivr.
Here is the problem: customer service generated green otp for activation of addon.
Went to hdfc atm but the card is too thick to go inside atm slot and generate pin using green otp.
Any suggestions or ideas?
You can request for a physical PIN for addon card from net banking.
I was lucky enough that in my local branch ATM , the card did go in and was able to reset pin after otp generation , try another branch atm
Actually, the issue is not the thickness, it’s the stiffness… The thickness is same as plastic. but, as metal won’t bend easily, if inserted in an angle, it won’t go in. Just align it straight and won’t be any issue in any ATM…
People experiencing the issue, just need to wiggle the card a little to align the slot to get inserted..
Hi,
Slighly off topic. I am travelling outside India and my phone is not working. I used to receive OTP on email from Diners Black (which made online transactions possible), but now it seems to have stopped quite randomly. Anyone had such experiences before? and who to contact for this?
@Prashant Bhushan
You can set static password instead of OTP. SO every time you do a purchase when page opens to enter otp there you will have an option to give static password. This is the biggest advantage of hdfc bank unlike icici bank which has no such option.
With staic password I was able to book hotels from Indian sites like make my trip etc.
You can get OTP via email. Call Customer Care if you are not already getting it.
I recently (6 days back) asked for DCB addon cards for my family. Our RM suggested and processed the upgrade. Since Dinners platform cant issue new cards. They upgraded my DCB to Visa Infinia Intl. I guess the old cards are still getting issued via offline process. I can see the Infinia Card listed in HDFC app.
My RM asked for 60 lakhs ITR 😂😂😂
FIT for nothing. I will have to get it myself.
Is there any way we have have RM of our choice ?
Received the card too. Its a PVC card with new infinia design!
Hi,
anyone knows how to register addon priority pass.while registering addon pp its shows you have have already registered.
coz number on pp is same , but name on primary card and addon is different.
so do i need to use same login id on pp app ?
My understanding is that Priority Pass is only for the primary credit card holder. I don’t think there is a free add on card of Priority Pass…You can email to Priority Pass Customer Care or call HDFC Customer Care for clarification…
Call the customer care number on back of your card. They will issue a separate priority pass for add on card
Though not directly related, I strangely found that Infinia Rewards redemption towards Hotel booking is not offering Taj hotels in most cities. In fact, the many 5 Star hotels are no longer available in the search result. I was trying to book Taj Palace, Mumbai for a Staycation and I found no Taj property listed. Same for Pune, Goa.
Is this some update, Sid?
Not just Taj, I see most hotels are missing in the list. Seems they gradually making it worse since past an year or so.
Hi Sid,
HDFC bank is removing Taj properties from its portal. Neither they have Hyatt. Reward points spending has become a challenge as redemption of rewards for vouchers is utter waste. Taj properties are showing available in CRED app Travel section at throwaway prices.
@nilesh desai
Not only taj other hotels just compare the price . It’s in the ratio of 1: 70 to 80 paise odd When you compare it with make my trip. I have also noticed that popular stays like zostel is also not available in most cities.
Hello
Is Metal in your pocket… does it cause issue when passing under metal detector machine or any other detectors?
What happens when you buy a big ticket item ( say iPhone Pro) on no cost emi?
Does HDFC still give you reward points while your EMI is running? Or do you stop earning points till the purchase is fully paid up?
I want to purchase iPhone 13 by redeeming infinia points but not showing new products only old phones or tabs are their what to do
Pls suggest
How to set static password for online transaction in place of OTP ??
@hardik
I did it some 4 years ago. As far as I know it is an easy process to register or create static password. Just follow the on screen instructions.
Hdfc Infinia smartbuy offering buy 1 get 1 offer on selected products redemption using the points. Check it out before the expiry.
@pavan
I think it’s a waste offer. Who spends 11k points on check in bag. Same bag you can get at big bazaar for 2.5k.
I just hope they bring 0.70 conversion to voucher again. With new omricon variant International travel is again going to be impossible.
I applied for Regalia on HDFC LTF offer banner around 3 months ago. The status on their tracking website was being shown as INPROGRESS but has suddenly disappeared last week and it shows no records found. Not able to get in touch with their cc team, their helpline number don’t mention any option to talk to an agent. What should I do?
HDFC launched 5 Paytm co-branded cards, live on HDFC site.
Looks like ICICI amazon pay and Flipkart Axis competitors.
HDFC Diners has removed Swiggy from the 10x program, Diners 10x is completely useless now.
@Rohit
For me once international travel ban is in place both Infinia and DCB is waste. Never used any of the bonus 10x so for me its all waste. Once there was tatacliq and once bank started issuing DCB to all they cleverly removed it. Hope they bring amazon or flipkart on that which would never happen 🙂
For all asking, if your Infinia expires they are not replacing it automatically with metal. The new card sent is new design but PVC.
Any updates on Galaxia? Not upgrading to metal just to avoid being stuck in the cool off upgrade period for when galaxia is launched.
Hi Thalaiva,
How about an article on Card Tokenization now that the deadline is nearing.
Can any one plz let me know :Suppose if i make a purchase thru Smartbuy Portal under Imagine Stores and if I enter GST Details will I get Smartbuy Reward Points or not. As there is no proper Info on this.
Also confirm on Amazon Business and Flipkart
Purchase..
@Anil
1) Flipkart. GST billing no restrictions on SmartBuy.
2) Amazon Business Account is now mentioned in exclusions, since past few months. Earlier I have received Bonus rewards and at that time it was not mentioned in exclusions. Now a days it’s clearly mentioned.
This looking has been highlighted by Siddharth earlier, maybe a couple of months ago.
3) Earlier this month in Dec’21 I have made a purchase for Macbook and yesterday 25Dec I have received Bonus rewards with Max cap. This was GST billing.
If Imagine does not require a business account for such purchases, you will receive rewards points as I know otherwise not possible like amazon and flipkart.
Hi Mahadev, U confirmed that u have purchased a MacBook was it thru Flipkart or thru Smartbuy Imagine.
Also if it’s thru Flipkart can I enter the gst details and make the Purchase..
As long as it does allow you to do a GST purchase on a personal account, you are good to go. Be it Flipkart or Imagine.
Purchased MacBook through Smartbuy Imagine Tresor.
GST billing.
December 2021.
I received upgrade from regalia first to infinia metal with credit limit increment to 8L.
Document submited ITR more than 50L
Hi,
1) In infinia maximum points that can be earned per month in smart buy is 15000
So max 1x reward spend amount for which we receive RPs = 15000/ 3.3 = Rs5000 (normal value back is 3.3 percent)
Similarly
For 5x, maximum spend amount for which we receive RP is Rs1000 (16.5 value back)
For 10x , maximum spend amount for which we receive RP is 454 (33.5 value back)
2) my hdfc manager agreed to give infinia manually since not available for upgrade from net banking. But have to pay 12500. Is the WELCOME BENEFIT of 12500 RP worth the joining fee paid?
3) Is the max cap of 15000 is only for smart buy or for all spend outside smart buy also?
2) 12500 joining/ annual fees doesn’t include GST amount. So, total would be around 12,500 + GST (18%)= 14,750 Rs. And 1 RP is just 50 Paisa usually (1 RP = 1 Rs only if you book flight tickets/hotel, etc. )
Now you can calculate yourself
3) only for Smartbuy
Had anyone received MC metal variant of Infinia?
Yes I Have
I was upgraded for Regalia MasterCard JAN 22
My father has been offered visa signature regalia last week and bank said still there is ban on master card and diners.
Master is still ban.
Only existing MC holders are getting upgrade to MC.
Has anyone faced issue for some online transaction with new Infinia metal series?
It failed for me in 2 different websites, while worked fine for many.
I checked with HDFC bank they told nothing wrong with card or setting. Also other VISA card worked fine.
Again Amazon vouchers have been limited to 5k per month through HDFC Smartbuy.
But Flipkart still is 10k
Yes
Hi All, any news on Galaxia/next variant of Infinia? My card is up for renewal, would taking FYF Infinia Metal be better? as I didn’t make that much spends last year due to lucrative spend based offers from Amex 😉 I was waiting for Galaxia 🙂
Can anyone help how to reset the PIN of the Infinia Metal Supplementary Card? The metal card is quite thick and does not fit into the HDFC ATM slot. It almost got stuck inside when I tried doing so. I need to change the PIN (received through courier) to a PIN of choice. I believe it can only be done through ATM for supplementary cards.
@Anshul
Looks like there is some authentication issue. 4 digit pin neither worked me for my father’s regalia . Just call to customer care from primary holders phone and once you authenticate they will send you a six digit otp. Make sure you say it’s for add on card. With that you would be able to set pin.
Mistake I did was I called from add on number and they were about to reset and send my card pin. Luckily they clarify the card details or things would have gone different. Also in atm give primary card holders mobile number.
Was your infinia an upgrade or new card? If an upgrade can you share your experience how you got upgraded.
I think Infinia is no more a invite only card.
If net income (for salaried) is more than 2.75lakh/month then you will get option to choose infinia from cards deck.
Thats probably true, but when you apply through the site, nothing happens
Yes I can see Infinia after punching that salary range.
Are Infinia 5X rewards being withdrawn from July 1, 22.
Just read this on Smartbuy website – ticker tape on top.
Amazon accelarated rewards for Infinia withdrawn as of end of July. Not just for Smartbuy, Amazon India has withdrawn from all credit card portals including Amex rewards. Bonus points on Amazon voucher (till 5k cap) still available though.
Infinia now seems to be devaluing rapidly. There are caps on each and every offer and now Amazon shopping offer is also gone. Aside from the reward rate of 3.33% and 10x on travel, there is no reason to hold this card 🙁
End of June. My bad
@AVINASH
hotels 10x is over priced by atleast 20 to 30% so I don’t find that has useful.. Only good thing now is instant vouchers and flight 5x. For DCB holders it’s more waste.
Dilemma: Lifetime Free Diners Black v/s FYF Infinia Metal card
Any suggestions
Depends on your spends..If you are able to meet the 10L requirement, go for Infinia otherwise stick with LTF Diners Black
@vaibhav
Can you please share your relationship with bank. I was told that bank has stopped giving LTF Dcb and infinia where else on other hand many regalia users got LTF INFINIA during Jan 2021.. That’s very disappointing with bank.