As many cardholders know, the HDFC Infinia card offers a popular dining perk: 2X reward points on dining spends at standalone restaurants. When I first got the card I used this benefit frequently — getting an effective return of around 6.6% on dining is hard to ignore.
Over time my usage tapered off after the initial honeymoon period, and I now use the benefit more while travelling. Food delivery platforms such as Zomato and Swiggy have also replaced many of my outings to standalone restaurants.
New Daily Cap
HDFC has introduced a daily cap on the previously unlimited accelerated dining rewards, effective 1 July 2020. The updated limits for 1X bonus rewards on select HDFC cards are:
- HDFC Infinia: 1000 reward points per day
- HDFC Diners Club Black: 1000 reward points per day
- HDFC Diners Club Privilege: 500 reward points per day
These caps still allow substantial dining spends — roughly up to Rs.30,000 per day — to earn full rewards under the stated limits.
Note that Infinia’s 2X dining benefit applies every day of the week, while Diners Black and Diners Privilege offer the accelerated rewards only on weekends.
- Source: Updated terms and conditions from HDFC for the Infinia reward program and respective pages for other cards.
Does the capping matter?
It depends on your spending pattern.
For most regular cardholders, the new daily caps will have little practical effect because daily dining spends rarely exceed Rs.5,000–10,000. The change is unlikely to impact typical users.
However, for ultra-high-net-worth individuals or those who occasionally book very large dining events, the caps can reduce the reward potential. I recall advising a very high-spending acquaintance about the Infinia’s dining benefit. He mentioned spending Rs.7 lakh on dining during a single month while entertaining colleagues in Singapore — a scale of spend that most of us seldom imagine. For such users, the new limits are clearly a negative development.
Final Thoughts
There’s no need to panic: HDFC Infinia remains one of the most rewarding premium cards available, even amid the challenges of the Covid-19 period. The card still delivers substantial benefits beyond the capped dining rewards.
This isn’t limited to dining acceleration: HDFC has adjusted other accelerated rewards features as well. For example, the MoneyBack card’s 2X reward feature for online spends will also be capped. From 15 July 2020, the maximum earning under MoneyBack’s 2X RP feature for online spends will be 500 reward points per statement cycle.
In short, HDFC has introduced limits across several accelerated reward programs. For most cardholders the practical impact will be minimal, but very high spenders should review the new caps and consider how they affect their overall rewards strategy.
Did these changes affect your dining usage on Infinia or other HDFC cards? Share your experience in the comments.