HDFC Bank Diners Club Black has been devalued quite a bit in the last few years. But it is still a good premium credit card that can offer up to 16% return on your spending. If you have been holding off on the DCB due to its annual fee, there is a way to get it as a Lifetime Free card. If you are an alumnus of a select list of institutes, you are eligible for an LTF DCB. Here is everything you need to know about the LTF Diners Club Alumni upgrade program.
List of Institutes for Lifetime Free Diners Club Black
The list contains most of the premier institutes for MBA, Engineering, and Medical. As of now, there are 129 institutes on this list including IIMs, IITs, and some of the other premier names. You can check the list of institutes at this link. The list keeps getting updated, so it may not have some recent changes.
**CardMaven.in does not have ownership of this list. It is just to give you a reference of which institutes may be eligible. The final decision is with HDFC Bank.
Eligibility Criteria
We can upgrade based on either the existing limit on your HDFC Bank credit card or based on income.
- Income: Net monthly income > Rs 1.75 Lakhs for salaried and ITR> Rs 21 Lakhs for self-employed
- Existing Limit: More than Rs 5 Lakhs
Email request for the upgrade process
Drop an email to [email protected] with the upgrade request and the below details.
Subject: Cust ID: 12345678 – Upgrade <<Existing Variant>> card ending 1234 to LTF Diners Club Black
Email Body:
I came to know that there is a Diners Club Black LTF offer for Alumni of selected colleges. I have completed my MBA from <<Institute Name>>, <<Institute City>>. Please confirm if I am eligible for this offer and how I can upgrade if eligible.
If you are eligible, the helpdesk will get back with a confirmation and ask you to send the filled upgrade form and certificate copy as proof.
So, go ahead and request your lifetime free Diners Club Black card if you are eligible. Do share your experiences below. 🙂
My HDFC Intermiles Signature LTF credit card was about to get phased out and I received an intimation from HDFC Bank that I will be receiving a Regalia LTF as replacement soon.
I had reached out to my HDFC RM, who is a clueless paper-pusher and after coming across this thread, I wrote to the HDFC grievance department for DCB LTF. I got a response the next day itself and my New DCB card arrived within 2 days along with the name of my alma mater embossed. The only details required from my end were upgrade consent and RP transfer consent along with my IIM degree certificate over an email from my registered email id. No hassles of filing a form or explaining anyone anything over a call!
It was a simple and smooth process. I even got a confirmation over email from HDFC regarding my DCB credit card being LTF, without even asking for it. 🙂
Thanks CardMaven! 👍🏻
I mailed priority redressal email and they asked me to send the upgrade form filled and with my signature on it
However the form asks for credit card number.
1. I suppose I should provide only the last 4 digits or the full 14 digits? –( mine is diners privilege) Can any one confirm this?
2. The form also has a check box for authorising HDFC to debit my bank account for credit card payment for either the total amount due or only the minimum amount due (5 %)
Is this mandatory as well that I authorise auto debit ?
Reply
1. Yes, you can provide full 14 digits. No issues.
2. This is not mandatory. You can skip it.
thanks for the response. My DCP has been upgraded to DCB LTF under the Alumni Program..I can see the new card in the Internet banking login and current month DCP transactions has been transferred to DCB.
When will DCP cease to exist?
Thanks for the article..Looks like DCB LTF on the way
Congratulations!!! It will get deactivated within a month or as soon as you do a transaction on DCB.
Card Maven, Where can we find the updated list of institutions? Or may be you can tell specifically if IIIT Bangalore is updated with the list?
This is the only list we have. But you can always check eligibility by emailing them with the institute name.
Thank you for the detailed article, Card Maven! I followed the exact steps and got my existing Regalia card upgraded to Diners Black.
I have an existing HDFC Millennia Credit card with a limit of Rs. 77,000/-. However, I have completed my MBA from NMIMS (college is eligible as per the list been shared).
What are my chances of getting an upgrade from Millennial to DCB Black. Though I have emailed it to the HDFC Team. Yet to here from them
Thanks!
Either the salary criteria or existing limit of Rs 5 Lakhs needs to be met. They can look into increasing the limit based on your request.
can i have this card inspite of having infinia?
my institute is listed here but i want ltf DCB separate card….
Regards
Dhawal Shah
Yes, but it needs exception approval through RM.
I am having regalia card and I have unclaimed RPs in my account, so once I request for DCB what will happen to my Regalia RPs, will it be transferred as DCB RPs once the Regalia card will get closed ?
Or will I lose the Regalia RPs completely and start DCB RPs as zero?
You won’t lose the RPs. They will get transferred to DCB at 50% ratio. Do also confirm this from the support team before you upgrade.
Hi,
I’m not an alumnus but a current student of NMIMS, Mumbai.
I’m eligible for this offer. I have an HDFC Privilege Credit card but its not LTF.
You need the graduation certificate for this to work.
Dear Mr. Agarwal,
This is with reference to your recent email dated February 24, 2023 regarding your HDFC Bank credit card account.
We wish to inform you that we are looking into your concerns raised regarding your HDFC Bank credit card account and shall respond to you on March 01, 2023. We request you to bear with us in the interim.
Please feel free write to us at [email protected] for any further assistance/clarification that you may require with regard to your credit card account.
Kindly note the query reference number for this correspondence is : XXXXXXXX
Assuring you of our best services at all times.
Regards,
Poornima.P
Officer- Grievance Cell
Correspondence
What does this mean??
I got this mail :
This is with reference to your recent email dated February 17, 2023 regarding new HDFC Bank credit card.
We infer from your email that you would like to apply HDFC Diners Black credit card under Institute Program. Thank you showing interest in HDFC bank Diners Black credit card.
We acknowledge that your institute “BITS Pilani” is listed under the institute program. In order to review your request, we request you to visit the below link and submit the details for the application. Post successful verification, our Bank representatives will contact you within 7 days for collection of requisite documents. We seek your kind understanding and patience in this regards.
https://v1.hdfcbank.com/htdocs/common/dinersblackinstitute/index.html
Further, if you have already submitted your details in above mentioned link, we request you to kindly confirm date of submission along with your current residence address in order to enable us to review further in this regards.
We wish to inform you that your application will be considered in line with the bank’s internal credit policy (which is based on a combination of financial and related criteria and/or statistically determined scores to assess credit eligibility) and operating/credit processes (which include a combination of verifications, credit bureau reports and document verifications).
Please feel free to write us at [email protected] for any further assistance/clarification that you may require with regard to your credit card account.
But the link , just ask to enter the details about the income . There is no specific info asked for institute details and card ? Something is missing ??
The team will call you to confirm your entry and eligibility before taking it forward.
I got LTF Diners Black card confirmation yesterday. They didn’t ask for documents as well . Sending mail to them was enough . 😊 Thanks
I asked to keep both my existing Regelia & Diners Black , but they denied my request.
Hi Sonu, what happened to the Regalia RPs ? did they get transferred to your DCB card
Thanks much Cardmaven. I have got the DCB Card as per the given process. Just one question from my end. For Premier institutes, is the Institute name is also being printed in the card along with the cardholder name?
Yes, the institute name is also embossed on the card. 🙂
Did you get any reply ?
Got my LTF Diners club in a day of sending the mail to HDFC priority redressal team. I am alumni of National institute of Technology, Karnataka and currently holding LTF Regalia with 7+ Lac Limit. No income proof was asked.
Okay – and they didn’t ask you to surrender your existing regalia card ?
Is IIIT Hyderabad alumni eligible for the diners black club black free lifetime offer?
Hello can someone please reply here
You can check by emailing the mail id mentioned in the article.
Already done, no reply from 2 days
They take time in some cases. You should get a reply within a week.
Have you got the card?
Is it possible to upgrade an existing DCB (non-LTF) to a DCB LTF card if my institute name is listed in the sheet ?
You can try. Some got it done while it did not work for others.
I have regalia with current limit 9.6 L. I have graduated from IIT Bombay but my take home salary is around 1.6 lpm (< 1.75 lpm). Do they consider for DCB LTF?
Yes, you can upgrade based on your credit limit.
Branch employee denied saying salary criteria is also mandatory. Is there any POC who can help in upgrade through only credit limit?
Also, in list of institutes, you mentioned Flat limit for IIT Bombay under the limit column. What does that mean?
Please express your interest here – https://v.hdfcbank.com/htdocs/common/dinersblackinstitute/index.html
Thanks very much for this post. I sent mail to [email protected] and received response on next working day. I got upgraded to Diners black on 2nd working day and received card on 3rd working day via courier.
Awesome. Congratulations on the LTF DCB. 🙂
Hi, I have an existing regalia card with 10 lakh limit, but I am not a hdfc bank customer, hence no customer id…will I still be eligible for the free upgrade
Yes, you can.
I received the mail below:
This is with reference to our email dated December 21, 2022 regarding HDFC Bank credit card account.
We infer from your email that you would like to upgrade your existing Regalia Credit Card to HDFC Diners Black as Life time free credit card under Institute Program. At the outset, we thank you for your interest shown in the Bank’s product. On receipt of your email, we have taken a detailed review and wish to re-affirm that your upgrade request will be reviewed in line with Bank’s internal guidelines and parameters.
In this regard,we request you to visit below link for Diners upgrade and kindly fill all the necessary details. Upon receipt of your application our sales team will connect with you within 7 working days.
https://v1.hdfcbank.com/htdocs/common/dinersblackinstitute/index.html
Thank you. Yes, that is the process now.
hi, is this still valid ?
Yes, it is
Hi, I have a Infinia card which is not lifetime free. Can u somehow add a LTF diners with this offer to it? If yes how ? If not what is the best alternative for me ?
This is possible but will need to be done by your RM.
Hi All,
Wanted to share my experience here for the benefit of others going through this article.
I had a Regalia card with > INR 9 lakh credit limit to begin with. The lounge access on the Regalia card was restricted to 12 domestic per year, which was less for me, considering I travel a lot, and wanted a card which had unlimited lounge access. To my pleasant surprise, when I checked on my netbanking portal, it showed an upgrade to DCB card (annual and renewal charges of INR 10,000 + GST). Without a second thought, I upgraded it and received the card within 3 days. I got to know from my relationship manager that it was a FYF card. I asked her if she can make it a LTF one, to which she said it’s impossible from her end.
Then I was casually browsing online for benefits of the DCB card, when I came across this article, and I followed everything step by step, sent them the email stating my MBA degree from IIM and Graduation from BITS Pilani, and within 5 days, my card was upgraded to LTF variant (Thank you Card Maven !! 🙂 ). To confirm whether it was actually made LTF, I asked for my Card’s status to my relationship manager, and she confirmed that it has been changed from FYF to LTF.
Now, some facts I got to know about this card from online sources and my relationship manager !!
1. We can have 2 free Add-on cards for family members, who can then enjoy unlimited lounge access.
2. Even though the Card is mentioned as “Diners Club Black DOM”, which I thought was a Domestic only card giving access to domestic lounges only, coupled with the fact that the Travel Diners App showed only Domestic Lounges in the list: I checked the status with my relationship manager, and she said that it is an international card with international lounge access (as mentioned on HDFC card benefits page as well).
3. The golf access booking should be made in advance (3-5 days for domestic and 15 days for international) through the 24×7 concierge service only.
4. It’s better to add your international travel plans on the card section of your netbanking portal for seamless support and troubleshooting in case you faced any challenges abroad.
5. There were some reports of low acceptance of the Diner’s card in India and abroad. Well, as per my experience, I have faced no challenges so far!! you may check for acceptance map online here ->
– https://www.dinersclub.com/cardmembers/global-card-acceptance/
– https://www.dinersclub.com/content/diners-club/en/home/cardmembers/global-card-acceptance/_jcr_content/root/container/container_800617504/image_1704387828_cop.coreimg.png/1665171161829/acceptance-map-legend.png
6. If you really want to enjoy the benefits of this card, try going to Smartbuy portal for buying anything (Flipkart, gift vouchers, flight bookings, train and bus bookings, etc). Also, instead of buying stuff from Amazon and flipkart directly, plan your purchase in advance, and buy gift vouchers from Smartbuy in advance, and then keep applying them on your Amazon and Flipkart purchases, for maximum benefits.
Again, I would like to thank Card Maven for having written this article for folks like us, to gain a valuable card, free of cost, for lifetime 🙂
Thank you, Abhijit for sharing your experiences. 🙂
Asking out of curiosity, my diners black is mentioned as NEW DINERS BLACK DOM. What does this DOM indicate? My previous card regalia was mentioned as VISA SIGNATURE REGALIA INTL.
Even though the product page of the HDFC Diners Black Credit Card shows Unlimited lounge access in India and abroad, the Diners Club Travel app shows only Indian lounges in the Benefits section. Have they removed international lounge access altogether? Or is there a different process for availing the same?
Also, an update on my previous message: It’s already been 4 days, but I haven’t received an email confirming my LTF status, even though I have been following up everyday.
Unlimited international lounge access is still there. No changes in that.
Thank you for clarifying. Just wanted to state that my card ID is “New Diners Club Black DOM”.
Also, had a couple of more questions. How many add-on cards can be provisioned on top of my DCB card (Is it possible to get add-ons for, say, 3 family members)? Do all add-on cards enjoy unlimited lounge access in India and abroad (traveling together with the primary cardholder, or solo)?
Three add-on cards. They also get unlimited lounge access.
I inquired about bank and they said max 3 add-on cards can be allotted and not 2 (applies to any HDFC credit card). They also said lounge access is also available to add-on members. Am I missing something here?
My bad. Yes, it is 3 complimentary add ons.
Thanks…I have received the diners Credit Card….I have few queries:
1. How would we know if the card is LTF or chargeable?
2. Is there is dedicated customer care for Diners black?
3. What is process for claiming the Insurance benefits (like air accident, Overseas hospitalization, Baggage Delay) for Diners Black customers?
4. What are the detailed policy wordings of the complimentary insurance that is provided as part of Diners black card?
5. Are there any preconditions to be met (every year or every month) for the card to continue remain as Life Time Free
1. You can retain the email confirmation from the grievance redressal for future reference.
2. Customer care is the same but you have a dedicated concierge if you want to use it.
3. Fill up the forms you receive with your physical card.
4. You have the policy link on the product page.
5. No
I had a Regalia Card with >9 lakh limit. Then just 2 days back, I saw the option to upgrade to Diners Club Black card, which I did. I received the Diners Black card just today. Then, I got to know that it is only FYF, and the RM told me that there is no way I can get a LTF offer for this Diners Club Black card.
Now, having gone through your post, I have mailed to Priority Redressal stating my MBA and BTech degrees from IIM and BITS Pilani and asking them if they can convert my FYF to LTF based on the Alumni offer stated in this article. I haven’t received a reply yet, apart from the automatic computer response. Will keep the group posted for any updates. Fingers Crossed!!
[UPDATE] It’s already been 4 days, but I haven’t received an email confirming my LTF status, even though I have been following up every day.
Card Maven, any tips here?
It takes some time. Please wait for a week before sending them a reminder.
Did yours go thru?
I have had a Diners Black for the last 3-4 years – I didn’t really mind the fee part since it was my primary card.
Now I’ve gotten Axis Magnus, which is a better card in terms of rewards – so that’s the new primary. As a result, this one isn’t going to hit the spend threshold – so was hoping to get it converted to LTF
I have Diners Club Privilege Card, limit 250000/-
Had applied with my BITS Pilani degree but was denied due to low limit on my existing card.
Hi Varun. Yes, we need a limit of minimum 5L to upgrade to DCB.
Hi Varun. Yes, we need a limit of a minimum of 5L to upgrade to DCB.
If you are currently a homemaker (so no monthly salary) and from one of the institutes, are you eligible? Thanks
You can try if you have a savings account with HDFC Bank. It may work out.
Worked for me – got life time free diners black club upgrade on my existing regalia card.
Alumni from IMT Ghaziabad.
Thanks for the exact steps listed here.
Salary and limit on your regalia?
Is the offer still active? Just got a LE to 5 lacs on my Regalia today. How soon can I apply for this?
Yes, it is still active.
Interesting. Just got off the phone with my RM, she says that it isn’t there. Will I get better results by mailing them?
Yes, please email them 🙂
Buddy, ditch the RM. Email to that customer redressal email address that Harsh mentioned in the post. Worked for me.
Cheers.
Thanks a ton cardmaven..
Applied on 16th..card approved on 19th..now waiting for the card..
How can we request hdfc to add new colleges? Thapar university is not added as premium institute in this list.
Maybe it isn’t that premium.
After reading this post, I applied for the card as my alma mater- TISS Mumbai (HR M.A.) is listed in the mentioned sheet. However, after sending the relevant certificates etc., the HDFC team backtracked saying that it doesn’t qualify, and offered it as 1st year free, which I declined.
Is there any one who got upgrade from regalia to LTF DCB, despite having limit less than 5 lakh on regalia?
I’ve Millennia over Diners platform with limit 8L+. I’m also alumni of one of the colleges in list with salary account with HDFC. I want to target Infinia. What do you recommend I do? Ask DCB LTF and then request upgrade or some other way to reach Infinia? salary ~1.5 lpm, cibil 799.
any other LTF card suggestion for me based on this salary?
I think you can ask for Infinia. It might get accepted. It will be FYF.
They are providing Infinia. Any specific criteria I should work on for getting it like spends on existing hdfc, some other relationship with bank, asking in some other way? Can you guide?
I also have Citi rewards and ICICI Amazon.
Any other card suggestion for me which can be made LTF or worth paying its fee?
They are not providing Infinia. Typing mistake.
I would suggest taking the LTF DCB and waiting for another LE before asking for Infinia again. Check this article to see if you find any other LTF card lucrative.
I am having a Millennia credit card with limit of Rs. 10 lakhs. Am I eligible for this offer ??
Yes, Anuj. If you are from one of the eligible institutes, go ahead and request for an upgrade.
Thanks so much for this valuable post! I just got the upgrade to DCB Lime Time Free card from my Regalia, was looking for it since long and they were not taking any new request due to RBI’s ban on DC new card issuance. Anyway I needed it to be LTF, a polite mail along with my BITS Pilani degree certificate did the job, no other documents. Thanks again!
What was the limit on your regalia?
How long did it take for them to confirm the LTF after sending the mail? I sent a mail 2 days ago but haven’t gotten any reply yet.
Hey Amit,
I mailed on a morning and got a reply from the customer care/ redressal forum by evening. You should mail them back if you haven’t received a reply yet.
Don’t know what’s their logic but Pondicherry Central university which is such a high ranking university in India and globally is not part of this offer but they have many relatively unknown institutions. Weird
Pondi isn’t high ranked!
my DCB also upgraded from regalia on the mail.
What is the credit limit required in regalia for eligibility to upgrade?
What is the minimum income required for this upgrade to be considered?
You can upgrade if you meet either the limit or salary criteria.
For upgrading from Regalia to DCB, the required limit is 5L.
For upgrading with salary, requirement is same as that of normal DCB card requirements.
Hey CardMaven,
Thanks Man. They processed my Regalia to DCB upgrade without any hassle. No income slips, no documentation except for the IIT degree certificate and the upgrade form. LTF DCB for free. You truly made my life much better with such a helpful post.
Beers on me, if ever you visit Mumbai. 🙂
Amazing news! Congratulations!! 🙂
What was the limit on your regalia?
Thanks a lot for the tip. Mailed them. Let’s see how it goes.
I had recently upgraded from regalia to diners black when I saw this post. I sent an email to the same email address, they asked for degree certificate and when I sent, within a day, i got an email saying it was converted to Lifetime free. I passed out of eligible institute 12 years back.