IDFC FIRST Ashva vs HDFC Bank Regalia Gold: Zero Forex or Milestones?

HDFC Bank's Regalia Gold returns more for most people who spend mainly in India: its points are worth up to ₹0.65 on the Gold Catalogue, the ₹2,500 fee is waived at ₹4 lakh, and quarterly and yearly milestones add up to ₹16,000 of vouchers. IDFC FIRST Ashva costs ₹2,999 with no waiver but has zero forex markup, more lounge visits and points that never expire, so it suits people who spend a lot abroad.

By Abhishek Kumar · Content Writer Updated 5 November 2026 Reviewed by BankCreds Financial Experts

In short

Regalia Gold is the better earner for domestic spenders who redeem on HDFC's Gold Catalogue or travel and reach its milestones, while Ashva wins for heavy spending abroad, more lounge visits and stronger insurance.

Best for

HDFC Regalia Gold: salaried earners above ₹1.5 lakh a month who spend ₹5 lakh or more a year
IDFC FIRST Ashva: frequent international travellers, with zero forex markup and 2 global lounge visits a quarter
IDFC FIRST Ashva: people who want points that never expire while the card is active

Skip it if

You spend under ₹20,000 a month, where Ashva's ₹2,999 fee takes most of its value
You want cashback, since Regalia Gold pays only 15 paise a point as statement credit
You buy fuel or railway tickets often on Regalia Gold, which has no fuel waiver and a 1% railway fee

Highlights

IDFC FIRST Ashva: ₹2,999 plus GST, no waiver, 0% forex markup
HDFC Regalia Gold: ₹2,500 plus GST, waived at ₹4 lakh, 2% forex markup
Ashva: 5 points per ₹150 up to ₹20,000 a cycle, 10 per ₹150 above it
Regalia Gold: 5 points per ₹200, worth up to ₹0.65 each on the Gold Catalogue

Side by side

Every term from the banks' own pages, last verified 5 November 2026.
Term	Ashva Credit Card	Regalia Gold Credit Card
Bank	IDFC FIRST Bank	HDFC Bank
Joining fee	₹2,999 + GST	₹2,500 + GST
Annual fee and waiver	₹2,999 + GST. No fee waiver. Annual fee payment benefit: spend ₹8 lakh in the previous card anniversary year and get 7,500 Reward Points on paying the next annual fee.	₹2,500 + GST. Retail spends of ₹4 lakh within 12 billing cycles of your anniversary year waive the next year's renewal fee
Base reward	5X Reward Points (5 points per ₹150) on eligible spends up to ₹20,000 in a... (about 0.833% value)	5 Reward Points for every ₹200 spent on eligible retail spends
Best category	Hotel bookings via the IDFC FIRST Bank app: about 5% value	Myntra, Nykaa, Reliance Digital, Marks & Spencer: 5X Reward Points
Lounges	Domestic: 4 complimentary Indian airport lounge visits every quarter; 4 complimentary railway lounge visits per quarter International: 2 complimentary global airport lounge visits every quarter (with the DreamFolks card)	Domestic: 3 complimentary domestic lounge visits per calendar quarter, by swiping the card International: Up to 6 visits per calendar year outside India via Priority Pass, for primary and add-on members
Forex markup	0% (no markup)	2% of the amount
Network	Visa	Not stated by the bank
Published minimum income	Not published by the bank	₹1,50,000 a month
Status	Taking applications	Taking applications
Add-on card fee	₹2,000 + GST	Nil
Earned as	Reward Points	Reward Points
Higher-reward categories	Eligible incremental spends above ₹20,000 in a statement cycle: 10X Reward Points (10 points per ₹150), about 1.667% value (No cap ('unlimited reward points')) International spends: 2X Reward Points per ₹150 effective 26 Oct 2026 (earlier 5X); counts towards the ₹20,000 10X threshold, about 0.333% value (No cap published) Hotel bookings via the IDFC FIRST Bank app: 30 bonus Reward Points per ₹150 on top of base (up to 40 points per ₹150 in total), about 5% value (15,000 bonus Reward Points a calendar month, ₹15,000, calendar month) Flight bookings via the IDFC FIRST Bank app: 15 bonus Reward Points per ₹150 on top of base (up to 25 points per ₹150 in total), about 2.5% value (15,000 bonus Reward Points a calendar month (shared), ₹15,000, calendar month) UPI via linked FIRST Digital RuPay card, transactions above ₹2,000: 3 reward points per ₹150 (UPI spends count towards the ₹20,000 threshold), about 0.5% value (No cap published)	Myntra, Nykaa, Reliance Digital, Marks & Spencer: 5X Reward Points (5X Reward points will be capped at 5000 RP per month across all brands combined. Base reward points continue with no capping., calendar month)
No rewards on	Fuel EMI transactions Fees and charges and GST Loan on card Balance transfer Cash withdrawals Transactions below ₹150	Fuel Rent payments Government related transactions Wallet loads and gift or prepaid card loads (MCC 6540) EasyEMI transactions; points reversed if a purchase is converted to SmartEMI Education payments through third-party apps (from 1 Sep 2024) Online skill-based gaming (from 1 Jul 2025) Cash advances Payment of outstanding balance Card fees and charges
Value of a point	Hotel and flight bookings in the IDFC FIRST Bank app: 1 Reward Point = ₹0.4; points can pay up to 70% of the booking Gift vouchers, products, pay with points online: 1 Reward Point = ₹0.25 everywhere else	Exclusive Gold Catalogue (SmartBuy): 1RP = ₹0.65 Global flights and hotels: 1RP = ₹0.5; up to 70% of a travel booking; max 50,000 RP a month Airmiles: 1RP = up to 0.5 miles; max 50,000 RP a month Vouchers and catalogue: 1RP = up to ₹0.35 Cashback against statement balance: 15 paise per point from 1 Nov 2025; max 50,000 RP a month
Redemption fee	₹99 + GST per redemption	₹99 + GST per catalogue redemption request; ₹50 + GST per cashback redemption request
Expiry	Never expire while the card is active.	Reward points valid for 2 years from accumulation
Welcome benefits	Joining fee payment benefit (cards generated on/after 1 Sep 2025): 2,500 Reward Points on joining fee realisation, 2,500 on ₹20,000 net spends in the 2nd statement cycle, 2,500 on ₹20,000 in the 3rd statement cycle (up to 7,500 points, stated worth up to ₹3,000); once per customer	Complimentary Swiggy One and MMT Black Gold memberships on spends of ₹1 lakh within the first 90 days
Milestone benefits	7,500 Reward Points on ₹8,00,000 spends in a card anniversary year, credited on payment of the next annual fee	₹1,500 voucher (Marriott, Myntra, Marks & Spencer or Reliance Digital) on ₹1.5 lakh spends in a calendar quarter ₹5,000 SmartBuy flight voucher on ₹5 lakh annual spends, and another ₹5,000 on ₹7.5 lakh Renewal fee waiver on ₹4 lakh annual spends
Fuel surcharge waiver	1% waiver on fuel transactions between ₹200 and ₹5,000, up to ₹300 per statement cycle	Fuel surcharge waiver not applicable (MITC fee table); fuel earns no reward points
Insurance cover	Air accident cover ₹1 crore, personal accident cover ₹10,00,000, lost card liability ₹50,000 (valid if the card had a transaction in the last 30 days); travel insurance up to USD 1,200 (checked-in baggage loss USD 500, baggage delay USD 100, passport loss USD 300, flight delay USD 300); trip cancellation cover up to ₹25,000 twice a year.	Primary cardholder: air accident cover USD 125,000; emergency medical expenses abroad USD 18,750; card liability ₹9,00,000; credit shield ₹9,00,000; missed connection and flight delay USD 313 each (group policy 23 Jul 2026 to 22 Jul 2027)
Interest on unpaid balances	Up to 3.85% a month (46.2% a year)	Up to 3.75% a month (45% a year)
Late payment fee	15% of the Total Amount Due as of the previous statement minus payments received before the due date, minimum ₹100 and maximum ₹1,300 (none if the amount due is below ₹100). Charged when the Minimum Amount Due is unpaid by the due date.	Late payment charges (excl. GST), basis the bill amount, w.e.f. 1 Aug 2024: nil up to ₹100; ₹100 for ₹101 to ₹500; ₹500 for ₹501 to ₹1,000; ₹600 for ₹1,001 to ₹5,000; ₹750 for ₹5,001 to ₹10,000; ₹900 for ₹10,001 to ₹25,000; ₹1,100 for ₹25,001 to ₹50,000; ₹1,300 above ₹50,000. Charged when the Minimum Amount Due is not paid; account is reported past due and late fee levied only after 3 grace days from the due date.
Cash withdrawal	₹199 per cash withdrawal (plus GST). Card pages say ATM withdrawals carry no interest for up to 45 days (until the due date); after that, interest at the card's rate applies.	2.5% of the amount withdrawn or ₹500, whichever is higher, plus finance charges at the revolving rate from the date of withdrawal until full payment.
Age (salaried)	Not published by the bank	21 to 60 years
Income (salaried)	Not published by the bank	Gross monthly income greater than ₹1.5 lakh (government employees: greater than ₹1 lakh)
Income (self-employed)	Not published by the bank	Income Tax Return (ITR) greater than ₹18 lakh per annum
Documents	Identity proof Income proof KYC verification (Video KYC in the online journey)	Identity proof, address proof and income proof (HDFC Bank general guidance; the card page's document list could not be read) Existing HDFC Bank customers may not need to submit them again
Last verified	5 November 2026	5 November 2026

Two mid-premium cards that reward different habits

Ashva is IDFC FIRST Bank's entry metal card, a 12 g Visa Infinite card at ₹2,999 plus GST a year. It earns 5 Reward Points per ₹150 on the first ₹20,000 of each statement cycle and 10 per ₹150 on everything above, and points are worth ₹0.40 on hotels and flights booked in the bank's app and ₹0.25 everywhere else. The forex markup is zero.

HDFC Bank's Regalia Gold cost ₹2,500 plus GST, waived on ₹4 lakh of retail spends in your anniversary year. Since 15 May 2026 it earns 5 points per ₹200, and what a point fetches depends on where it goes: as much as ₹0.65 on the Gold Catalogue, half a rupee on flights and hotels, and just 15 paise as statement cashback. Its forex markup is 2%.

Who each card is for

Ashva: someone who runs ₹50,000 or more a month through a single card, travel abroad often and is happy booking trips in IDFC's app.
Regalia Gold: a salaried earner above ₹1.5 lakh a month, spending ₹5 lakh or more a year mostly in India, who will redeem on HDFC's catalogue or for flights.

The verdict in two sentences

For spending at home, Regalia Gold came out ahead in both domestic profiles we ran, mostly because its milestones add up to ₹16,000 of vouchers a year and its points are worth more. Ashva earn its place when a lot of money goes abroad, where its zero markup against 2% decides the matter, or when you value more lounges and stronger insurance.

Both cards are active. HDFC moved Regalia Gold to 5 points per ₹200 on 15 May 2026 and tied its domestic lounges to ₹60,000 of quarterly spends from 1 July 2026, while IDFC removed Ashva's markup altogether from 9 September 2026 and cut its international earn to 2 points per ₹150 from 26 October 2026.

₹2,999 with no waiver against ₹2,500 with one

Ashva's joining fee and annual fee are ₹2,999 each, plus GST, so ₹3,538.82 a year (₹2,999 plus ₹539.82). You pay the joining fee upfront before the metal card is sent, and it isn't refunded. No spend waiver are there. What IDFC gives instead is 7,500 Reward Points when you pay the next annual fee, if you spent ₹8 lakh in the previous anniversary year: ₹1,875 at ₹0.25 a point (7,500 times ₹0.25) or ₹3,000 at ₹0.40.

On Regalia Gold you pay ₹2,500 plus GST to join and the same to renew, so ₹2,950 a year (₹2,500 plus ₹450). Put ₹4 lakh of retail spends on it inside the anniversary year's 12 billing cycles and the next renewal is waived, about ₹33,333 a month (₹4,00,000 divided by 12). Add-on cards are free on Regalia Gold. On Ashva they cost ₹2,000 plus GST to join for metal or ₹1,500 for plastic, and ₹1,000 plus GST a year per card, which add up quickly for a family.

Charge	IDFC FIRST Ashva	HDFC Regalia Gold
Interest	Set per person between 0.71% and 3.85% a month; 3.99% when the minimum due is missed	3.75% a month, 45% a year
Late fee	15% of the amount due, minimum ₹100, maximum ₹1,300	Slabs from ₹100 to ₹1,300
Cash withdrawal	₹199 plus GST per withdrawal	2.5% or ₹500, whichever is higher, plus interest
Rent	1%, minimum ₹249	1%, capped at ₹4,999 per transaction
Railway tickets	1% above ₹25,000 a cycle	1% plus GST on every purchase
Forex markup	0%	2%
Card replacement	₹1,500 for the metal card	₹199 for a non-metal card

The railway row are the one people miss. HDFC's MITC charges 1% plus GST on railway ticket purchases with every card except its IRCTC card, so a ₹3,000 train booking on Regalia Gold costs ₹30 more (1% of ₹3,000) before GST. Ashva charges only once railway spends pass ₹25,000 in a cycle, though those spends earn just 1 point per ₹150.

Both bank levy 1% on large utility, fuel, wallet and third-party education payments. HDFC has also added a 1.75% markup on rupee payments to overseas merchants since 15 May 2026, while IDFC's MITC puts the markup on currency conversion transactions at nil, same as on foreign currency spends.

How each card's points add up

Ashva's earn has two steps each statement cycle. The first ₹20,000 of eligible spends earn 5 points per ₹150, and anything beyond earns 10 per ₹150 with no cap. At ₹0.25 a point that is 0.83% and then 1.67% (5 or 10 points times ₹0.25, per ₹150), and at the ₹0.40 travel value 1.33% and 2.67%. International spends earn 2 points per ₹150 since 26 October 2026, and they still counts towards the ₹20,000. Rent, government, wallet and education get 3 per ₹150 without counting towards the threshold; FASTag, railways, insurance and utilities get 1 per ₹150; fuel and EMIs get nothing.

Hotels booked in IDFC's app add 30 bonus points per ₹150 and flights 15, sharing a cap of 15,000 bonus points in an calendar month. Points never expires while the card is active. You pay ₹99 plus GST whenever you redeem, and spends beyond your credit limit earn nothing.

Regalia Gold earns 5 points per ₹200 on eligible retail spends, counted in multiples of ₹200. Their worth depends on the redemption: ₹0.65 each on the Gold Catalogue, which make the base 1.625% (5 points times ₹0.65, per ₹200); flights and hotels at ₹0.50, covering up to 70% of a booking; vouchers at up to ₹0.35; and cashback at 15 paise since 1 November 2025. Four brands, Marks & Spencer, Reliance Digital, Nykaa and Myntra, earn 5X, with the 5X points held to 5,000 a month across the four while base points carry on.

Regalia Gold has more small caps to watch. Grocery, insurance, utilities and telecom is each held to 2,000 points a month, UPI to 500, and the whole card to 50,000 points a statement cycle. Fuel, rent, government, wallets and third-party education earn nothing. Points last 2 years, and redemptions cost ₹99 plus GST on the catalogue and ₹50 plus GST as cashback.

Where Regalia Gold pull ahead is milestones: a ₹1,500 voucher for ₹1.5 lakh of spends in a calendar quarter, a ₹5,000 SmartBuy flight voucher at ₹5 lakh a year and another ₹5,000 at ₹7.5 lakh. That is up to ₹16,000 a year (₹1,500 times 4, plus ₹5,000 twice).

Three spenders, both cards

Year two, fees charged or waived as the spends decide. Ashva is shown at ₹0.25 and at its ₹0.40 travel value, Regalia Gold at ₹0.65 on the catalogue and ₹0.50 on travel. The heavy profile has ₹20,000 a month spent abroad, and Ashva's domestic spends are taken first in each cycle.

Per year	₹30,000 a month	₹70,000 a month	₹1,20,000 a month, ₹20,000 abroad
Ashva points	16,000	55,500	82,700
Ashva net at ₹0.25	₹461.18	₹10,336.18	₹17,136.18
Ashva net at ₹0.40	₹2,861.18	₹18,661.18	₹29,541.18
Regalia Gold points	9,000	21,000	36,000
Regalia Gold vouchers	None	₹16,000	₹16,000
Regalia Gold forex markup	None	None	₹4,800
Regalia Gold net at ₹0.65	₹2,900	₹29,650	₹34,600
Regalia Gold net at ₹0.50	₹1,550	₹26,500	₹29,200

₹30,000: Ashva earns about 667 points on the first ₹20,000 (₹20,000 divided by 150, times 5) and 667 on the next ₹10,000 (₹10,000 divided by 150, times 10), so 1,333.33 a month and 16,000 a year. That is ₹4,000 at ₹0.25 or ₹6,400 at ₹0.40, and after the ₹3,538.82 fee ₹461.18 or ₹2,861.18. Regalia Gold earns 750 a month (₹30,000 divided by 200, times 5), 9,000 a year: ₹5,850 at ₹0.65 or ₹4,500 at ₹0.50. ₹3.6 lakh a year (₹30,000 times 12) misses the ₹4 lakh waiver and ₹90,000 a quarter misses the voucher, so ₹2,950 come off, leaving ₹2,900 or ₹1,550.
₹70,000: Ashva earns 667 plus 3,333 on the ₹50,000 above the threshold (₹50,000 divided by 150, times 10), so 4,000 a month or 48,000 a year, plus 7,500 for crossing ₹8 lakh (₹8.4 lakh spent, ₹70,000 times 12): 55,500 points, ₹13,875 or ₹22,200 before the fee and ₹10,336.18 or ₹18,661.18 after it. Regalia Gold earns 1,750 a month (₹70,000 divided by 200, times 5), 21,000 a year, worth ₹13,650 or ₹10,500. ₹2.1 lakh a quarter (₹70,000 times 3) earns 4 vouchers of ₹1,500, and ₹8.4 lakh a year both ₹5,000 flight vouchers, so ₹16,000 in all; with the fee waived that is ₹29,650 or ₹26,500.
₹1,20,000: Ashva earns 667 on the first ₹20,000 of domestic spends, 5,333 on the other ₹80,000 (₹80,000 divided by 150, times 10) and 267 on ₹20,000 abroad (₹20,000 divided by 150, times 2): 6,266.67 a month, 75,200 a year, plus the 7,500 milestone. Those 82,700 points are ₹20,675 or ₹33,080, so ₹17,136.18 or ₹29,541.18 after the fee. Regalia Gold earns 3,000 a month (₹1,20,000 divided by 200, times 5), 36,000 a year, plus ₹16,000 of vouchers, minus 2% markup on ₹2.4 lakh abroad (₹20,000 times 12), which is ₹4,800. At ₹0.65 that is ₹23,400 plus ₹16,000 minus ₹4,800, so ₹34,600; at ₹0.50, ₹18,000 plus ₹16,000 minus ₹4,800, so ₹29,200.

At home Regalia Gold wins clearly once milestones arrive, and it even edges Ashva at ₹30,000 if you use the catalogue. Ashva only catch up with heavy foreign spends and app travel redemptions; in the ₹1,20,000 case at travel values it is ₹29,541.18 against ₹29,200, close to a tie. Year one adds up to 7,500 joining-benefit points on Ashva and the two welcome memberships on Regalia Gold.

Forex, lounges and insurance

Abroad, Ashva win outright. IDFC cut its markup to zero on 9 September 2026, and unlike most IDFC cards Ashva still earns points on foreign spends, now 2 per ₹150. Regalia Gold charges 2%, so a ₹1 lakh holiday costs ₹2,000 more in markup (2% of ₹1,00,000), while the same spend on Ashva brings about 1,333 points (₹1,00,000 divided by 150, times 2).

Lounge counts favour Ashva too, though both have spend tests. Ashva gives 4 Indian airport lounge visits, 4 railway lounge visits and 2 global lounge visits through a DreamFolks card every quarter, provided you spent ₹20,000 in the previous calendar month. Regalia Gold gives 3 domestic visits a calendar quarter after a quarter with ₹60,000 or more of spends, the same ₹20,000 a month on average (₹60,000 divided by 3), plus up to 6 Priority Pass visits a year outside India for primary and add-on members. You have to ask for the Priority Pass on phone banking, and only once the card have at least 4 transactions on it.

Insurance is stronger on Ashva: ₹1 crore of air accident cover, ₹10,00,000 of personal accident cover and ₹50,000 for a lost card, each valid only if the card was used in the last 30 days, plus travel insurance up to USD 1,200 and trip cancellation up to ₹25,000 twice a year. For Regalia Gold, HDFC's current group policy (running from 23 July 2026 to 22 July 2027) covers the primary cardholder for USD 125,000 in an air accident and USD 18,750 of emergency medical costs abroad, with card liability and credit shield of ₹9,00,000 each.

Fuel, movies, golf and the extras

Fuel: Ashva waive the 1% surcharge between ₹200 and ₹5,000 a fill, with ₹300 a cycle as the limit. Regalia Gold has no fuel surcharge waiver and earns no points on fuel.
Movies and golf: Ashva give Buy 1 Get 1 tickets on District with up to ₹400 off the second ticket, twice a month after a ₹20,000 month, and 2 golf rounds or lessons a month, one for each ₹20,000 spent in the previous cycle.
Travel extras: Regalia Gold's Boarding Edge, added on 15 May 2026, offers 2 picks a calendar quarter from a room upgrade, hotel dining, a spa visit or an Uber ride to the airport, claimed by uploading your boarding pass on SmartBuy. It also gives up to 20% off restaurant bills through Swiggy Dineout.
Welcome: Ashva cards issued from 1 September 2025 get 2,500 points when the joining fee is paid and 2,500 more for ₹20,000 of spends in each of the 2nd and 3rd statement cycles, up to 7,500, stated worth up to ₹3,000. On Regalia Gold, spending ₹1 lakh in your first 90 days brings Swiggy One and MMT Black Gold memberships.
Roadside help: Ashva includes roadside assistance worth ₹1,399; we didn't found anything like it on Regalia Gold.

UPI work differently too. Ashva itself is a Visa card, and UPI runs through IDFC's FIRST Digital RuPay companion card at ₹199 plus GST a year, with UPI spends above ₹2,000 earning 3 points per ₹150. HDFC doesn't state Regalia Gold's network, though its MITC caps UPI points on all cards at 500 a month.

Published rules, and the lack of them

HDFC sets a clear and high bar for Regalia Gold. If you're salaried you must be 21 to 60 and earn more than ₹1.5 lakh a month gross, or more than ₹1 lakh if you work for the government; if you're self-employed, 21 to 65 with yearly ITR income over ₹18 lakh. You need to be an Indian national. The eligibility section says gross monthly income while the FAQ says net, and the FAQ also says a rejected applicant can try again after six months.

IDFC publishes no age or income rule for Ashva, on its card page or on the metal card page. The bank say the credit limit follows internal policy and is shared with your other unsecured IDFC FIRST cards. For documents it asks identity proof, income proof and KYC, which is done by Video KYC when you are applying it online. That silence don't mean the card is easier to get; the bank simply decides case by case.

Rule	IDFC FIRST Ashva	HDFC Regalia Gold
Age	Not published	21 to 60 salaried; 21 to 65 self-employed
Income	Not published	More than ₹1.5 lakh a month gross (₹1 lakh in government jobs); ITR over ₹18 lakh if self-employed
Nationality	Not stated	Indian national
Documents	Identity proof, income proof, Video KYC	Identity, address and income proof
How to apply	Online or at a branch	Online or at an HDFC Bank branch

For both, approval is the bank's decision. RBI requires issuers to assess your independent financial means and to explain a rejection in writing, and an Experian score above 750 is generally seen as good. Existing HDFC customers may not need to submit documents again. If you aren't sure where you stands, our guide to credit card eligibility criteria sets out what banks check.

Pros and cons

Pros

IDFC FIRST Ashva has a 0% forex markup and still earns 2 points per ₹150 abroad
IDFC FIRST Ashva gives 4 domestic, 4 railway and 2 global lounge visits a quarter after a ₹20,000 month
IDFC FIRST Ashva's points never expire while the card is active
HDFC Regalia Gold's ₹2,500 fee is waived on ₹4 lakh of retail spends a year
HDFC Regalia Gold points are worth up to ₹0.65 on the Gold Catalogue, and milestones add up to ₹16,000 a year

Cons

IDFC FIRST Ashva costs ₹2,999 plus GST every year with no fee waiver
IDFC FIRST Ashva earns only 5 points per ₹150 on the first ₹20,000 of each cycle
HDFC Regalia Gold charges a 2% forex markup and 1% on railway tickets
HDFC Regalia Gold has no fuel surcharge waiver and pays 15 paise a point as cashback
HDFC Regalia Gold asks salaried applicants for a gross monthly income above ₹1.5 lakh

Frequently asked questions

Which costs less, IDFC FIRST Ashva or HDFC Regalia Gold?

Regalia Gold, in most years. It costs ₹2,500 plus GST, ₹2,950 in all, and the renewal is waived on ₹4 lakh of retail spends in the anniversary year. Ashva costs ₹2,999 plus GST, ₹3,538.82, every year with no waiver, though ₹8 lakh of spends earns 7,500 points when you pay the next fee. Ashva's add-on cards also carry fees; Regalia Gold's are free.

What is a reward point worth on Ashva and Regalia Gold?

Ashva points are worth ₹0.40 on hotels and flights booked in IDFC FIRST Bank's app and ₹0.25 elsewhere. Regalia Gold points are worth up to ₹0.65 on HDFC's Gold Catalogue, ₹0.50 on flights and hotels, up to ₹0.35 on vouchers and 15 paise as statement cashback. Regalia Gold's 5 points per ₹200 therefore return up to 1.625%, against 0.83% to 2.67% on Ashva.

What income do I need for Ashva or Regalia Gold?

HDFC asks Regalia Gold's salaried applicants for a gross monthly income above ₹1.5 lakh, or ₹1 lakh for government employees, and an age of 21 to 60, and self-employed applicants for an ITR above ₹18 lakh. IDFC FIRST Bank publishes no age or income rule for Ashva. In both cases approval is the bank's decision after it checks your income and credit.

Which is better for international travel, Ashva or Regalia Gold?

Ashva, mainly on cost. Its forex markup has been zero since 9 September 2026 and foreign spends still earn 2 points per ₹150, while Regalia Gold charges 2%, or ₹2,000 on every ₹1 lakh. For lounges abroad, Ashva gives 2 global visits a quarter after a ₹20,000 month, against Regalia Gold's 6 Priority Pass visits a year.

What changed on Regalia Gold and Ashva in 2026?

Regalia Gold moved to 5 points per ₹200 on 15 May 2026, added Boarding Edge, and from 1 July 2026 needs ₹60,000 of spends in the previous quarter for its 3 domestic lounge visits. Ashva's forex markup fell to zero on 9 September 2026, and from 26 October 2026 its international spends earn 2 points per ₹150 instead of 5.

Is the Ashva metal card's joining fee refundable?

No. IDFC FIRST Bank asks for the ₹2,999 plus GST joining fee upfront before it sends the metal card, and the fee is non-refundable. For cards generated from 1 September 2025, paying it earns 2,500 Reward Points, and ₹20,000 of spends in each of the 2nd and 3rd statement cycles earns 2,500 more each, up to 7,500 points.

Sources

IDFC FIRST Bank: Most Important Terms & Conditions - Credit Cards (MITC and Schedule of Charges); Ashva Credit Card Reward Points Terms & Conditions; Ashva Credit Card – Joining Fee Payment Benefit Terms & Conditions; Ashva Credit Card; Important update regarding your Ashva Credit Card
HDFC Bank: Part I Key Fact Statement cum Most Important Terms and Conditions (MITC), English, Version 4.18; Rewards Points Program Terms and Condition (Regalia Gold); Regalia Gold Credit Card Fees & Charges; Regalia Gold Credit Card Fees & Charges (FAQ); HDFC Bank Regalia Gold Key Features (microsite)

Last verified: 5 November 2026

Written by Abhishek Kumar, reviewed by BankCreds Financial Experts

BankCreds does not sell cards or take applications. Fees and rewards change; the bank's own terms on the day you apply are what count, and approval is the bank's decision.