When you get a new credit card, one of the most important things to note is the billing date and the due date. Billing date or statement date is the date on which the card issuer will create your credit card statement for the last billing cycle. The statement will be sent to your registered email ID. Due date is the deadline for paying your credit card bills for the said cycle.
With multiple credit cards, it can be difficult to keep track of your due dates and you might miss the payments. Having all bills due at the same time can also be inconvenient for you. Though in the beginning, you do not get to set your own billing cycle, you can get it changed later by contacting your card issuer. We will talk about how you can change your credit card due date but before that let us understand how credit card billing cycle and due dates work.
What are Credit Card Billing Cycle and Due Date?
Billing Cycle
Credit card billing cycle is (usually) a month-long period on the last day of which your statement is generated. Any purchases made or amounts credited will be reflected in the next billing cycle. Let’s understand this with an example.
On your HDFC MoneyBack Credit Card offer document, the billing cycle is mentioned as 18th to 19th of every month. So, if the card has been issued to you on 18th March 2019, then your statement will be generated on the 19th of April. The billing cycle starts on the 18th of March and ends on the 19th of April. Now, if you make a purchase on the 20th of April, it will be counted in the next billing cycle, the bill for which will be generated on the 19th of May.
Due Date
This is the deadline for your credit card bill payment. Although RBI has directed the banks to give a grace period of 3 days after the due date to the cardholders, it is best to clear your dues on or before the due date. The day of payment is usually 20 days after the statement date.
In the above example, the billing date would be the 6th or 7th of May. Depending on whether there are 30 or 31 days in a month, credit card due date may vary.
Why should you consider changing credit card due dates?
As said above, the due date for your credit card bills is initially set by the bank and may not be very convenient for you. There is no perfect date for your credit card due date. A date that suits the needs of one cardholder may not suit other users’ needs. This depends on your cash inflow, other bills and several other factors.
Here are a few reasons why you could consider changing the due date of your credit cards.
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To Align Payments with Your Pay Day
Nowadays, with so many dues on us, the money in hand does not last for many days after the pay day. So, if your salary comes on the last day of the month and credit card bills are due around the 15th, paying the bills might become a problem, especially if you are not good with finances. Missed payments will result in late fees and finance charges. It is best to request a change of your billing cycle in a way that the due date falls around the beginning of the month.
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To Sync All Your Bills Together
If you are one of those people who like getting rid of all the bills at once, it will be a good idea to change your credit card billing cycles in a way that they fall around the same time of the month. With this, you will not have to remember multiple due dates and the payments will be cleared easily without the hassle of holding on to new purchases till the due date of another credit card.
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To Keep Bills Separate for Convenience
As opposed to the above category, there are people who like to keep their bills due dates separate from one another. Getting a number of bills at the same time can be overwhelming and you might end up paying only the minimum amount due as the entire month would be left. You can get your credit card due dates changed to suit your needs.
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To Ensure Timely Payment
You know your payment cycles and cash inflow. To make the most of it, you should plan the expenses around your payday and other cycles. The main idea behind rescheduling credit card due dates is to make sure you never miss a payment.
How to Change Credit Card Due Dates?
Though most of the banks would entertain your request to change your billing cycle, some banks may be strict about it and may not provide this facility. The process of changing credit card due dates would differ from one bank to another. Some banks would require you to file a request by filling an online form. However, the most common way of requesting or inquiring about it is to call the customer care department of your card issuer.
Given below is the list of credit card customer care numbers of leading banks of India.
| Credit Card Issuer | Credit Card Customer Care Number |
| HDFC Bank | For Ahmedabad / Bangalore / Chennai / Delhi & NCR / Hyderabad / Kolkata / Mumbai / Pune dial- (prefix STD Code) 61606161
For Chandigarh / Cochin / Indore / Jaipur / Lucknow dial- (prefix STD Code) 6160616 |
| SBI Card | 1860 180 1290, 1860 500 1290, (prefix local STD code) 39 02 02 02 or 1800 180 1290 (Toll-Free) |
| ICICI Bank | 1860 120 7777 |
| Axis Bank | 1860 419 5555 1860 500 5555 |
| Citibank | 1860 210 2484 (Local call charges apply) |
| YES Bank | 1800 103 1212 (Toll-Free for Mobile & Landlines in India)
+91 22 4935 0000 (When Calling from Outside India) |
You can also write to the bank requesting a change in the billing cycle. Bank representative will get in touch with you to take the process further. If the bank does not provide such a facility, the same will be informed to you. If you think that a change in credit card billing cycle would help you manage the payments better, there is no harm in trying for the same.
