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Freedom251 › Blog › DCC

How to Compare Forex Markups and Fees on Indian Debit and Credit Cards

By Freedom251 Team · · 5 min read

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To compare the real cost of an Indian card payment in foreign currency, look beyond the headline forex-markup percentage. The total can depend on the card network’s conversion rate and settlement timing, the issuer’s markup, GST on fees, any dynamic currency conversion (DCC) charge, and—if you withdraw cash—separate ATM or credit-card cash-advance costs. Check the current schedule for your exact card variant before relying on a quoted rate.

What makes up the cost of a foreign-currency card transaction?

A foreign-currency purchase is not priced by one universal “forex fee.” The network converts the transaction under its rules, and the card issuer may add a foreign-currency markup. GST may apply to fees. If a merchant or ATM offers to bill you in rupees, DCC creates a separate conversion path that should be evaluated independently.

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  • Network conversion: The card network’s rate and settlement rules determine the INR conversion before issuer charges. The settlement date may differ from the purchase date.
  • Issuer markup: A percentage charged by the bank for foreign-currency transactions. Rates can vary by card variant, even within one issuer.
  • GST: Tax may be added to applicable fees. Check the card’s terms to see which charges attract GST and how it is calculated.
  • DCC: A merchant or ATM may offer to convert the purchase into INR at the point of sale. That offered amount and any associated charge are distinct from the normal foreign-currency route.
  • Cash withdrawal charges: Overseas ATM withdrawals can include a fixed fee and conversion markup; a credit-card withdrawal may also trigger cash-advance fees and interest.

For example, ICICI Bank says its card conversion uses the applicable Visa, Mastercard or American Express rate on the settlement date. A non-USD transaction may be routed through USD before conversion to INR. This is an issuer-specific description, not a rule that establishes the rate or settlement date for every card transaction. ICICI Bank’s credit-card foreign-currency terms and debit-card fee schedule should be checked for the relevant product.

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How to compare the cost of a card purchase

  1. Fix the transaction amount and currency. Compare the same purchase amount in the original currency; otherwise, the results are not comparable.
  2. Check the network conversion rule. Read the card terms for the network, conversion method and settlement-date rule. Do not assume the purchase-day exchange rate will be used.
  3. Find the exact card’s markup. Use the current schedule for your card variant, not a generic bank rate or an old comparison page.
  4. Apply the markup to the converted amount. If the converted base is ₹10,000 and a card’s applicable markup is 3.5%, the markup before any applicable tax is ₹350. This is an illustration of the arithmetic, not a quote of the final billed amount.
  5. Add GST as the schedule requires. Some issuer materials say GST is extra or illustrate it on the markup. Do not treat the listed percentage as the complete cost if tax is additional.
  6. Compare any INR offer separately. If the merchant offers DCC, compare the displayed INR amount and its disclosed charges with the foreign-currency route. Do not automatically add DCC and the issuer’s foreign-currency markup together: which path applies depends on the payment currency and how the transaction is classified.

Exact classification can depend on the issuer, network, merchant or acquirer, and card variant. ICICI’s materials describe international transactions as classified as DCC or foreign currency based on network identification. ICICI’s debit-card international-use page explains its product’s international-use treatment.

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Pay in local currency or INR abroad?

When a terminal or website abroad offers to bill you in INR, compare the actual INR quote with the foreign-currency option before accepting. Paying in local currency avoids the merchant-side DCC conversion path; it does not necessarily remove your card issuer’s normal foreign-currency markup or other applicable fees. ICICI recommends local-currency payment to avoid excessive surcharge, but its published debit-card DCC figures conflict: its fee schedule states 3.5% plus GST from June 21, 2026, while its international-use page lists 1% plus GST. Because the schedule gives a specific effective date, use the terms for your exact card and verify the current charge with the issuer rather than assuming either figure applies universally. ICICI debit-card fee schedule; ICICI debit-card international-use page.

What current issuer examples show

The figures below are examples from the issuers’ published materials reviewed on October 7, 2026, not a complete survey or a ranking of Indian cards. Rates and terms can change; check the live schedule for your card before transacting.

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Issuer and card scope Published forex or DCC terms Other relevant charges
ICICI debit cards 3.5% foreign-currency markup. The fee schedule states DCC is 3.5% plus GST effective June 21, 2026; a separate international-use page lists DCC at 1% plus GST. Overseas ATM withdrawal: ₹125 plus 3.5% currency-conversion charges and GST. Balance enquiry: ₹25 plus GST. ICICI fee schedule
ICICI credit cards General foreign-currency markup: 3.5% plus GST. Published card-specific rates include 2% for Emeralde Private Metal, Emeralde Private and Emeralde; 0.99% for MakeMyTrip; and 1.49% for Times Black. Overseas ATM withdrawal: ₹125 plus GST; balance enquiry: ₹25 plus GST. Cash-advance fees and interest may also apply. ICICI credit-card terms
HDFC debit cards The schedule dated March 27, 2026 lists 3.5% plus applicable taxes for foreign-currency transactions and a 0.99% preferential cross-currency markup for Infiniti debit card. DCC markup is listed separately. Consult the schedule for the applicable DCC and other product-specific terms. HDFC debit-card fee schedule

These examples show why the card name and variant matter: an issuer’s general rate may not apply to every product it offers. They do not establish which card is cheapest overall; a meaningful ranking would also require comparable, current terms for the cards being considered.

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How to compare overseas ATM withdrawals

Use a separate calculation for cash. Add the fixed ATM withdrawal fee, the foreign-currency conversion markup, and GST where applicable. Check whether the ATM operator displays its own fee, too. For a credit card, also inspect the card’s Most Important Terms and Conditions (MITC) for cash-advance charges and interest: ICICI warns these may apply from the withdrawal date, so a low forex markup alone does not establish the cost of a cash advance. ICICI credit-card terms.

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ICICI’s published debit-card example lists an overseas ATM withdrawal fee of ₹125 plus a 3.5% currency-conversion charge and GST, and a balance-enquiry fee of ₹25 plus GST. These are the issuer’s stated charges for its debit-card schedule, not a universal ATM tariff. ICICI debit-card fee schedule.

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What to verify before you use the card

  • Confirm the exact card variant and the effective date of its current fee schedule or MITC.
  • Check whether the quoted markup is before or after GST.
  • Look for separate DCC terms, and compare the INR quote with the local-currency option if one appears.
  • For cash, identify fixed ATM fees and any credit-card cash-advance charge or interest.
  • For a large or unusual transaction, ask the issuer how it classifies the transaction and which rate date its terms use.

The Reserve Bank of India’s May 9, 2023 circular states that “fees/charges payable in India have to be denominated and settled in Rupees only.” Its subject concerns charges on forex prepaid, store-value and travel cards; it does not set debit- or credit-card forex markup rates. RBI circular on charges for forex prepaid, store-value and travel cards.

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