New debit card, credit card rules from today: 10 things to know

In an attempt to make digital debit and credit card payments more secure, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has issued several new guidelines that will come into effect from today, 1 October 2020. Let's take a look at RBI's new guidelines for credit and debit cards starting today.

1) At the time of issue / re-issue, all credit and debit cards must be enabled for use only at ATMs and point of sale (PoS) machines within India.

2) If customers want to use their debit and credit cards outside of India, they should request banks for the facility. Before the notification, most banks issued cards that, by default, could be used anywhere in the world.

3) For existing debit and credit cards, issuers can make a decision, based on their perception of risk, whether transactions with non-existent cards (national and international), transactions with existing cards (international), and the contactless transaction rights.

4) The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has required all banks and card issuing companies to disable online payment for all debit and credit cards that have never been used for online transactions or for transactions Contactless in India or abroad.

5) According to the new rules, people will now be able to register for preferences such as subscription or unsubscribe services, spending limits, and other services for online transactions, international transactions, and contactless transactions.

6) Users will have 24/7 access to turn on / off or change all transaction limits through all available channels: mobile app/internet banking / ATMs / Interactive Voice Response (IVR).

7) Several banks have also issued cards based on Near Field Communication (NFC) technology. The merchant does not need to swipe or insert these cards at the point of sale. They are also known as contactless cards. Cardholders will also have the option to enable or disable the NFC function.

8) Holders of both debit and credit cards will have new facilities to establish a transaction limit.

9) The new regulations apply only to debit and credit cards. Prepaid gift cards or those used in public transport systems (such as the metro) are not covered by this.

10) “These directions are issued under Section 10(2) of the Payment and Settlement Systems Law of 2007 (Act 51 of 2007)," RBI said.

These measures assume significance amid the increasing instances of cyber frauds and will make debit, credit cards more secure and curb their misuse.

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