Business
HDFC Bank Changes Lounge Access Norms For Debit Cards From January 10– Details Here
New Delhi: If you often use your HDFC Bank debit card for free airport lounge access, this update is important for you. The bank has changed how complimentary lounge entry works on its debit cards. Instead of simply swiping your card at the lounge, customers will now need a digital voucher to get access. Also, the minimum spending requirement has been increased, reported Moneycontrol. These new rules will come into effect from January 10, and will apply to eligible debit cardholders going forward.
How the New Lounge Voucher System Works
Once your eligibility is confirmed, HDFC Bank will send you an SMS or email with a link to claim your lounge access voucher. You’ll need to verify your request by entering an OTP sent to your registered mobile number. You will receive a voucher code or QR code after successful verification which must be shown at the airport lounge to get entry.
Minimum Spend Requirement Increased
Under the revised rules, HDFC Bank debit card users will now need to spend at least Rs 10,000 in a calendar quarter to be eligible for complimentary airport lounge access. Earlier, the minimum spend required was Rs 5,000.
However, this condition will not apply to HDFC Infiniti Debit Card holders. Customers using the Infiniti card will continue to enjoy free lounge access without any minimum spending requirement.
Eligible Transactions and Free Lounge Visits by Card Type
Only purchase transactions made using the debit card will be considered while calculating the quarterly spending requirement. Other types of transactions will not be counted, as noted by Moneycontrol.
Meanwhile, the number of complimentary lounge visits remains unchanged and continues to depend on the debit card variant:
Millennia Debit Card: 1 free visit per quarter
Platinum Debit Card: 2 free visits per quarter
Times Points Debit Card: 1 free visit per quarter
Business Debit Card: 2 free visits per quarter
GIGA Debit Card: 1 free visit per quarter
Infiniti Debit Card: 4 free visits per quarter
This means cardholders should check both their spending eligibility and card type to know how many lounge visits they can enjoy.
Which Transactions Count and Voucher Validity Explained
Only purchase transactions made using the debit card will be counted towards the quarterly spending requirement. As per Moneycontrol, the following transactions will not be included:
ATM cash withdrawals
UPI or wallet payments (GPay, PhonePe, Paytm, etc.)
Credit card bill payments made via debit card
Debit card EMI transactions
New debit cardholders will also need to meet the Rs 10,000 spending requirement to become eligible for complimentary lounge access.
Voucher Validity:
Once issued, the lounge access voucher will remain valid till the end of the next calendar quarter, after which it will expire if not used.
What This Means for Debit Card Users
With the updated lounge access rules, HDFC Bank is clearly encouraging higher card usage and digital verification. Customers who regularly use complimentary lounge benefits will now need to keep a close watch on their quarterly spending and complete the voucher process in advance. As per Moneycontrol, physical debit card swipes will no longer work from January 10, making it important for travellers to switch to the new digital voucher system.
Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority has amended NPS exit and withdrawal rules to give subscribers greater flexibility, choice and control over their retirement savings.
The revised rules primarily target the non-government sector, where NPS participation is voluntary, covering both All Citizen and Corporate subscribers.
Non-government subscribers with an NPS corpus of more than Rs 12 lakh can now withdraw up to 80% of their savings as a lump sum, with only 20% mandatorily allocated to an annuity.
For All Citizen subscribers, the minimum lock-in period for premature exit has been removed, easing access to accumulated pension wealth.
At normal exit, non-government NPS subscribers can now withdraw up to 80% of their corpus as lump sum, with the mandatory annuity portion reduced to 20%.
The threshold for 100% lump-sum withdrawal has been raised significantly, with greater flexibility through systematic lump-sum or unit withdrawals for mid-sized corpuses.
Individuals joining NPS after age 60 will no longer face a vesting period and will also be eligible for up to 80% lump-sum withdrawal at exit.
Up to 25% of own contribution can be withdrawn for housing, medical needs, or loan repayment, with clearer timelines.
While core annuity requirements for government subscribers remain unchanged, higher corpus thresholds and systematic withdrawal options have been introduced.
The maximum entry and exit age under NPS has been increased to 85 years, allowing subscribers to stay invested longer.
Subscribers can now seek financial assistance from regulated institutions, with lenders allowed to mark lien on up to 25% of the subscriber’s own NPS contribution.
By simplifying exits, expanding withdrawal choices and improving liquidity, the amendments aim to make NPS more inclusive while safeguarding long-term retirement income.
Business
India-US trade: Exports rebound in November; supply-chain shifts and holiday restocking drive recovery, says GTRI – The Times of India
India’s exports to the US bounced back in November after two months of dip. The rebound was largely supported by supply-chain adjustments and pre-holiday season inventory restocking, according to the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI). This recovery came despite the US imposing 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods since August.
November India-US trade snapshot amid higher tariffs
- Exports to the US rose 22.61 per cent in November to $6.98 billion, reversing declines seen between May and September.
- Smartphones (largest export item): Exports fell from $2.29 billion in May to $884.6 million in September, before rising to $1.8 billion.
- Gems and jewellery: Slumped from $500.2 million in May to $202.8 million in September, then rebounded to $406.2 million.
- Machinery and mechanical appliances: Declined to $516.8 million in September, before nearly returning to peak levels at $614.6 million in November.
- Pharmaceuticals: Shipments rose to $669.2 million in November, but remained below May levels.
- Mineral fuels and oils (tariff-exempt): Fell from $291.5 million in May to $251.5 million in September, before climbing to $274.3 million.
GTRI said the rebound came after a sharp fall in exports earlier in the year, triggered by uncertainty surrounding impending tariff hikes. GTRI Founder Ajay Srivastava said US buyers initially delayed orders and ran down inventories. “Once the higher tariffs became certain, exporters and US buyers began adjusting, absorbing part of the cost, renegotiating prices, and shifting toward less-affected or hard-to-substitute products,” he said.However, the think tank also warned that this recovery might not last. They claimed that it was more about adjusting to tougher tariffs rather than a permanent improvement. The think tank also added that businesses were using short-term strategies to cope with the new trade environment.
A social action charity has welcomed the decision to increase the living wage in Jersey to £15.10 per hour in 2026.
The new rate was approved this week and will come into effect at the beginning of January.
The living wage is £1.51 higher than Jersey’s minimum wage which is set to increase to £13.59 per hour from April 2026.
Caritas Jersey CEO, Patrick Lynch, said the living wage was the minimum islanders needed “in order to thrive, and not just survive here in Jersey”.
Mr Lynch said: “This will be good news for many at accredited organisations and their subcontractors, ahead of the new year, when many people will have increased rental costs and also face increases in the cost of some utilities and other day to day expenses.
“The Jersey Living Wage has never been as important as it is now for so many people with poverty unfortunately still increasing and a continued rise in food bank usage in our island.
“Putting that in perspective, in February 2022 one food bank was seeing 195 families; that figure has now risen to over 640 families.
“The majority of the people who form this increase are people in work, on minimum or low wages.”
He added the differential between the minimum wage and the Jersey Living Wage “remained worryingly high” and something “Assembly members should ponder as they debate the budget this week and look ahead to next June’s general election”.
Virgil van Dijk: Xavi Simons wasn’t trying to hurt me in red card challenge
Colin Jost forced to make another joke about wife Scarlett Johansson on ‘SNL’
Barcelona’s Andreas Christensen faces lengthy absence with ACL injury
Hitting The ‘High Notes’ In Ties: Nepal Set To Lift Ban On Indian Bills Above ₹100
KSE-100 index gains 876 points amid cut in policy rate | The Express Tribune
Studying Abroad Is Costly, But Not Impossible: Experts On Smarter Financial Planning
-
Business1 week ago
Hitting The ‘High Notes’ In Ties: Nepal Set To Lift Ban On Indian Bills Above ₹100
-
Business6 days ago
Studying Abroad Is Costly, But Not Impossible: Experts On Smarter Financial Planning
-
Business7 days ago
KSE-100 index gains 876 points amid cut in policy rate | The Express Tribune
-
Sports6 days agoJets defensive lineman rips NFL officials after ejection vs Jaguars
-
Tech1 week agoFor the First Time, AI Analyzes Language as Well as a Human Expert
-
Business4 days agoBP names new boss as current CEO leaves after less than two years
-
Entertainment6 days agoPrince Harry, Meghan Markle’s 2025 Christmas card: A shift in strategy
-
Business6 days agoFord to record $19.5 billion in special charges related to EV pullback