New Rules: Top 5 Financial Changes in February 2025:

New Rules: Top 5 Financial Changes in February 2025 In February there are several financial changes you should keep in your mind. Including such as UPI ID blocking, IDFC First Bank credit card new rules, and changes in Kotak Mahindra Bank saving account service charges. People should always stay updated on important financial announcements coming in the Union Budget 2025 on February 1 and the RBI’s monetary policy review, which will be announced by the new RBI Governor, Sanjay Malhotra. UPI (Unified Payments Interface) Transaction IDs The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has directed everyone involved in the payment system to create UPI transaction IDs using only alphanumeric, without any special characters. UPI payment apps will no longer be able to create transaction IDs with special characters, starting February 1, 2025. If a UPI app generates a transaction ID with special characters, the central system will reject the transaction. Keep in mind that a UPI transaction ID is different from your UPI ID. Kotak Mahindra Bank 811 Saving Account From 1 February 2025, Kotak811 has declared updates to its General Schedule of Features and Charges (GSFC). Kotak Bank has made some changes to its charges. After the first free cash transaction or a deposit of Rs. 10,000 in a month, there will be a fee of Rs. 5 for every Rs 1,000 deposited at branches or cash deposit machines, with a minimum charge of Rs. 50. And there are no charges for PIN re-generation via courier, cash/instrument pickup for senior citizens, and balance statements. The ATM decline fee is still Rs. 25 but will now apply only when using non-Kotak ATMs. The SI (Standing Instruction) failure fee has been decreased from Rs. 200 to Rs. 100. The free ATM transaction limits have been changed on the basis of the type of card you have. If you go over these limits, extra charges will apply. Customers should check these changes to see how they might affect their banking transactions. IDFC First Credit Card Updates IDFC FIRST bank introduced various updates to its credit card rules which is beneficial from 20, 2025. The statement date for IDFC FIRST Millennia, FIRST Wealth, and FIRST SWYP Credit Cards will now be revised to the 20th of each month. The payment due date will still be 15 days after the statement date. A 1% fee (minimum Rs. 249) will be charged for education fee payments made through third-party platforms such as CRED, PayTM, and MobiKwik. However, there will be no fee if the payment is made directly through school or college websites or POS machines. IDFC FIRST Bank has updated its fees. The cost of replacing any credit card is now Rs. 199 plus taxes. For Image Personalization cards issued after February 20, 2025, there will be a joining fee and annual fee of Rs. 499 plus taxes. RBI Monetary Policy Statement on Feb 7 The next meeting of the RBI Monetary Policy Committee is scheduled for February 5-7, 2025, as part of the 2024-25 financial year plan. Many experts expect a reduction in the repo rate. If the repo rate is changed, banks will follow and apply the new rates. Budget Announcement on February 1 Union Budget is going to be presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on 1 February 2025. There are various financial updates coming up that may affect your taxes, savings, and investment plans.