Banks have introduced a set of fresh rules and according to it from January 1 old debit and ATM cards with a magnetic stripe will stop working.
Customers are advised to replace their old cards with a new EMV chip debit and ATM card from their respective banks free of cost.
According to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) guidelines, all banks have been directed to convert old debit cards into the new EMV-based cards.
“You need to get a new ATM card if your card is a magstripe card, as it will get blocked due to RBI directives to discontinue the operation of magstripe cards,” SBI said in a Facebook post
“If your card is an EMV chip card, please get in touch with your branch and ascertain that,” the post added.
EMV cards have a small microchip that protects buyers against fraudulent transactions as it creates dynamic data every time a transaction is made.
The microchip makes cloning of the card ‘impossible’.
To prevent fraudulence, SBI will issue a one time password (OTP) for withdrawals in late hours. and accordingly, from January 1, an OTP will be issued for transaction over Rs 10000 from 8 am to 8 pm.
In another important change, the NEFT charges for online funds transfers have been waived.
RB) has made NEFT online transfers a 24×7 system with effect from December 16 and beginning January 1, banks have been instructed to waive off online NEFT charges for savings bank account holders.
For RuPay, UPI charges, it has been mandated that merchant discount rate (MDR) charges will not be applicable on transactions through homegrown RuPay and UPI platforms from 2020.
All companies with a turnover of Rs 50 crore or more will be mandated to provide the facility of payment through RuPay Debit card and UPI QR code to their customers.
If one misses the August 31 deadline to file income tax return (ITR) filing, then it can be done by the end of this financial year. However, for all belated ITRs filed from January 1, a penalty of Rs 10,000 will be imposed.