• Hey there! Welcome to TFC! View fewer ads on the website just by signing up on TF Community.

How I Successfully Upgraded My Airtel Axis Bank Credit Card from Mastercard to RuPay Variant

Deepak_9155

TF Premier
Hey guys,

Just got my Airtel Axis Mastercard swapped for the Rupay variant, and thought I'd share the process and a little trick I figured out.

So, I called up Axis Bank today and asked them to switch my card from Mastercard to Rupay. The rep on the line said it was possible, but a joining fee would be charged.

I told her I had already paid the joining fee when I first got the card in September 2023, so they should waive it. She put me on hold for a couple of minutes but came back and said the fee is compulsory for a new card issuance, and a waiver is not possible.

This is where I had a thought. My annual fee for the old Mastercard was due next month (September 2025) anyway. I would have had to shell out ₹500 + GST for it regardless.

So I thought, what the heck. I might as well pay this "joining fee" now. The bright side is that my annual fee cycle for this new card will start from today, meaning the next renewal fee will only be in August 2026.

I agreed and told her to proceed. The rep then explained the card's benefits and sent me an SMS where I had to provide my consent by verifying it with an OTP. This was successfully done.

1754032974727.webp

Basically, I paid the fee I was going to pay next month anyway, got the Rupay card I wanted, and pushed my next payment out by an extra year. It seemed like a fair deal to me.

The process was very fast! The new Airtel Axis RuPay card is already showing up in my Axis mobile app. The strange part, however, is that my old Airtel Mastercard has already disappeared from the app and the net banking website.

1754033025664.webp

Now, it only shows my other cards (like my Privilege card) and the new Airtel RuPay card.

The rep confirmed that the physical card will arrive within 10-14 working days. She also clarified their official policy on the old card: my existing Airtel Axis Mastercard will be deactivated precisely on the 45th day from the new card's setup date.

Just a heads-up for anyone else in the same boat whose renewal is coming up. This might be a decent trade-off.


EDIT - customer care representative told me that no welcome benefits will be provided(as it was already provided during 1st time ). In the CIBIL report, a new account will be created and the previous account will be closed.

So, basically, they are issuing a new credit card instead of just changing the network.
 
Last edited:
Hiurrayyyy...!!!!

Again I couldn't believe the miracle from axis . Today when I checked the transaction in my new airtel rupay card, they reversed my older airtel master card annual fee+new Airtel rupay card annual fee along with gst.

I called them on 1st aug to reverse the joining fee charged for the new Airtel rupay which is unjustified. And connected to the senior they completely denied. So I sent a mail to pno yesterday to just reverse the joining fee charged only. Also in the night I just called the senior team again to check any possibility to get the joining fee reversal. He told me that" u r a very valuable customer of axis, if there would be any possibility, we will do that. But joining fee is a mandatory one and cannot be reversed". I lost my hope completely.So I leave it. But they reversed both charges with gst that too from axis😳😳

*▪️ 02/08/2025 💸 ₹500 Cr*
Description: Joining Fee Reversal :
-----------------------
*▪️ 02/08/2025 💸 ₹500 Cr*
Description: Annual Fee Reversal :
-----------------------
*▪️ 01/08/2025 💸 ₹10.24 Dr*
Description:
-----------------------
*▪️ 02/08/2025 💸 ₹90 Cr*
Description: GST Reversal Manual
-----------------------
*▪️ 02/08/2025 💸 ₹90 Cr*
Description: GST Reversal Manual
-----------------------
Share the Mail template plz !!
 
Name:
Mob no:
Credit card no(Last 4 digit): xxx(new rupay), xxx(old Master card)


Dear Sir/Madam,

I am writing to formally raise a concern regarding the joining fee of ₹500 + GST that has been charged on my newly upgraded Airtel Axis Bank RuPay Credit Card ending with xxx.

I had previously been holding the Airtel Axis Bank Mastercard Credit Card ending with xxx, which I obtained in (month year). At that time, I had already paid the applicable first-year annual fee of ₹500 + GST.

Yesterday, my card was upgraded from the Mastercard variant to the RuPay variant, and I was charged a joining fee of ₹500 + GST was debited again, solely due to the network migration.

Since this was merely a network upgrade initiated by the bank/card program and not a new credit card account , I strongly believe that the additional joining fee is unjustified. The core product remains the same, and I have maintained an active and loyal relationship with Axis Bank for 5 years.

Hence, I sincerely request you to kindly reverse this additional joining fee as an exceptional goodwill gesture, considering:

*My long-standing and responsible relationship with Axis Bank.

*The fact that I have already paid the first-year fee for the same product.

I would be grateful if you could look into this matter and ensure a reversal of the charged joining fee on 01/08/2025 at the earliest by treating it as an exceptional case.Kindly update me on the resolution.

Thank you for your understanding and support.
 
Did expect this from axis at all. Anyway really happy with that. Initially I thought that it's my previous cashback credit only. But when I checked WhatsApp statement, I came to know that it's not cashback credit

They took my request as exceptional case only. Otherwise no chance with axis.In order to get annual fee reversal we need met atleast 1.1 lakh atleast
 
Back
Top