Maximizing Benefits: Navigating the Features of the American Express Smart Earn Credit Card

American Express offers various credit cards that suit the multiple requirements of individuals, like shopping, dining, travelling, entertainment, etc. Amex also offers “Charge Cards”, which comes with no pre-set spending limit. Some of the Amex cards are the Amex Gold Card, American Express Platinum Reserve Credit Card, Amex Membership Rewards Card, and many more. In this article, we will be discussing the Amex SmartEarn Card. 

American Express Smart Earn Credit Card- A Snapshot
Best Suited for	Rewards & Online Shopping
Joining Fee	INR 495+ Applicable Taxes
Annual/ Renewal Fee	INR 495 + Applicable Taxes (Waived off when INR 40,000 and above are spent in the previous year of Card issuance)
Minimum Income Requirement	Salaried: INR 4.5 lakh p.a.Self-employed: INR 6 lakh p.a.
Welcome Benefit	INR 500 cashback on spending INR 10,000 in the first 90 days
Best Feature	10X Membership Rewards Points on every INR 50 spent on Flipkart, Amazon, and Uber

Should You Apply For This Card?

Mentioned below are the reasons why one should opt for an Amex SmartEarn Card:

• If you are looking for a card with low annual fees.
• If you do online shopping quite frequently.
• If you want to earn rewards instead of cashback.
• If you want a card that comes with welcome benefits.
• If INR 40,000 can be spent annually to get a waiver on annual fees.

Pros and Cons

Mentioned below are the pros and cons of the American Express SmartEarn Credit Card: 

Pros	Cons
The card fee is as low as INR 495, i.e., quite attractive for first-time credit card holders.It offers 10X reward points for Flipkart, Zomato, PVR, and Uber users.It provides zero lost card liability.It offers a foreign currency markup of 3.5% + GST.The overall reward point percentage offered is decent.	You will not get any domestic/ international lounge access with the card.It is meant only for shopping purposes and doesn’t provide any additional benefits.It can be availed by the customers in selected cities.Some Indian stores don’t accept Amex cards.It doesn’t offer membership reward points for fuel, insurance, or utility bill payments.

Perks and Privileges

Mentioned below are the perks and privileges of the Amex SmartEarn Credit Card:

• Get 10X membership rewards when INR 50 are spent on a transaction made via Zomato, Ajio, Nykaa, BMS, Uber, etc.
• Get 5X membership rewards when INR 50 are spent on a transaction made via Amazon and Paytm wallet.
• Get 1 membership reward point when INR 50 are spent except for purchases made on fuel, utilities, insurance, cash transactions and EMI conversion at POS.
• Get 1250 membership reward points by spending INR 7500 in the mentioned manner:

1. Earn 500 membership reward points when INR 2500 are spent on 10X partner (Zomato) in a month.
2. Earn 500 membership reward points when INR 2500 are spent on 10X partners (BMS, Uber, Flipkart and other partners) in a month.
3. Earn 250 membership reward points when INR 2500 are spent on 5X partners (Amazon and Paytm wallet) in a month.

• Get a cashback of INR 500 as a welcome gift when INR 10000 are spent within the first 90 days of issuance of the card.
• Get vouchers worth INR 500 each when the spend milestone is INR 1.20 lakhs, INR 1.80 lakhs, and INR 2.40 lakhs, respectively, in a card membership year.
• Get a waiver on annual fees on the eligible spends of INR 40,000 and above in the previous year of card membership.
• Convert all your big purchases into EMI at POS at an interest rate as low as 14% and no foreclosure charges.
• Get a waiver on fuel surcharge as per the details mentioned below:

1. 1% convenience fee on fuel purchases above INR 5,000 at HPCL Petrol Pump
2. 0% convenience fee on fuel purchases less than INR 5,000 at HPCL Petrol Pumps

• Get 24*7 customer care assistance for card-related assistance.
• In case of any fraud related to the card or the card is lost. 

Eligibility Criteria

Mentioned below are the eligibility parameters to be met in order to apply for American Express SmartEarn Card: 

• The minimum age of an applicant should be 18 years.
• In the case of a self-employed applicant, the company should be in trading for more than 12 months.
• An applicant should have a decent credit history and no default in payments.
• In the case of a salaried applicant, the annual income should be INR 4.5 lakhs and above.
• In the case of a self-employed applicant, the annual income should be INR 6 lakhs and above.
• An applicant should have an Indian or Multinational savings or current bank account in India.
• An applicant should have a permanent residential address in India.
• An applicant should be a Resident Indian as mentioned in the Income Tax Act, 1961 of India.
• The card should be issued to the residents of Delhi/NCR, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Chennai, Pune, Bangalore, Indore, Coimbatore, Chandigarh/Tricity, Jaipur, Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara, Nasik, Nagpur, Trivandrum, Mysuru, Lucknow subject to condition.

Fees and Charges

Mentioned below are the fees associated with American Express SmartEarn Credit Card:

Type of Fee or Charge	Amount
Joining Fee	INR 495 + Applicable Taxes
Annual/ Renewal Fee	INR 495 + Applicable Taxes (Waived off when INR 40,000 and above are spent in the previous year of Card issuance)
Finance Charges	3.5% p.m.
Cash Advance Fee	3.5% (Minimum of INR 250)

Prerequisites while making American Express Credit Card Payment:

Below are the prerequisites that should be considered while making an American Express Credit Card Payment:

• Payments towards Amex cards can only be made from a bank account that is issued in the Primary cardholder’s name.
• Payments made to an Indian-issued Amex card that is held by an NRI must be made only through an NRE/ NRO account that is in the Primary card member’s name.
• American Express shall not be liable for any process nor provide any guarantees/ warranties for any payment made by a cardholder through a mode that is not seen on the American Express website or App.