ICICI Debit Cards: Your Foreign Spends Cost More

ICICI Bank is hiking fees on foreign transactions and revising annual charges on debit cards like Coral and Rubyx from June 21, 2026. If you travel abroad or shop on foreign websites, your costs are going up. Here's what to watch.

Here's what happened: ICICI Bank is revising Dynamic Currency Conversion (DCC) fees on debit cards including Coral, Rubyx, and other variants, effective June 21, 2026.. DCC is the option where a foreign merchant converts your bill into rupees at the point of sale — banks charge a fee for this convenience, and that fee is rising.. Annual fees on several ICICI debit card variants are also being adjusted — some variants will cost more to hold each year, while at least one sees a reduction..

What you should do: Check your specific ICICI debit card variant (Coral, Rubyx, Sapphiro, etc.) on ICICI's website or app to see exactly how your annual fee and foreign transaction charges change from June 21.. Always decline DCC when shopping abroad — choose to pay in the local currency (USD, EUR, GBP) instead of rupees to avoid the bank's DCC markup entirely.. Compare forex-friendly alternatives: cards like Niyo Global, HDFC Regalia, or SBI's forex prepaid card often offer zero or lower foreign transaction fees for frequent travellers..

Never accept 'pay in rupees' when a foreign POS terminal asks — that triggers DCC and adds 3–4% to your bill. Always pick local currency; your bank's standard forex rate is almost always cheaper.