ATM service charges increase, to cost Rs.21 per transaction from today

Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) across banks are all set to increase service charges per transaction from Saturday, following an order from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and customers will have to Rs.1 more beyond the permissible free transactions for cash as well as non-cash purposes.

As per the RBI notification dated June 10, 2021, from January 1, 2022, banks have been permitted to charge Rs. 21, instead of Rs. 20 with applicable taxes, if any, shall be additionally payable.

However, the customers are eligible for five free transactions (inclusive of financial and non-financial transactions) every month from their own bank ATMs.

They are also eligible for free transactions (inclusive of financial and non-financial transactions) from other bank ATMs viz. three transactions in metro centres and five transactions in non-metro centres.

The last change in interchange fee structure for ATM transactions was in August 2012, while the charges payable by customers were last revised in August 2014.

The RBI has notified the changes from January 1, 2022, citing the increasing cost of ATM deployment and expenses towards ATM maintenance incurred by banks or white-label ATM operators.