While one of the major advantages of having a credit card is that it allows you to improve your credit score; having a credit card may also turn out to be one of the biggest disadvantages for your credit score if you spend more than 30% of your credit card limit on a regular basis. However, this may only happen in cases when you apply for a credit card continuously even after multiple rejections.
The only way to keep away from the rejection of your credit card application is that you submit your credit card application properly without any errors. There are certain credit card eligibility conditions laid down by the banks/credit card issuing companies that must be met in order to get your credit card application approved.
We have curated a list of some of the major credit card eligibility requirements; both personal and financial so that you can keep a check on it, before you begin with the credit card application process.
Personal Factors Affecting Credit Card Eligibility
The following personal factors of the credit card applicant have a direct impact on the credit card approval. Hence, it is absolutely essential to consider these factors as major credit card eligibility conditions for your credit card application.
- Age
The most basic condition for credit card eligibility is the applicant’s age. You must be at least 18 years of age in order to be eligible for a credit card. However, some banks/credit card issuing companies also require the applicant to be at least 21 years old. Apart from the minimum required age, the maximum age to which you can apply for a credit card is 60 years.
Read More: Which is the Best Credit Card for You? Make the Choice
- Salary
Since you borrow money from a bank when you transact using your credit card, the bank needs to have a proof that you would be able to repay the credited amount to the bank. To ensure this, the bank/credit card issuing company looks at your salary/monthly income. Even though the minimum annual income requirement for credit card eligibility varies from bank to bank, in India, it is generally around Rs. 3 lakh per annum.
- Nationality
Generally, there are not many limitations around the residence or nationality of the credit card applicant. However, a few credit cards are only made available to the Indian citizens.
- Employment
Employment is another major important factor in the process of credit card application. As your application gets verified by the bank, your current and previous employment status is closely looked upon. You get brownie points in your credit card application for being in one job for a year or more.
Point to be considered: The personal factors responsible for the approval of a credit card application vary from one bank to another. Hence, it is absolutely essential to keep a close eye on the credit card eligibility conditions of the specific card that you are applying for.
You may also use tools like credit card eligibility checker online to make absolutely sure that you are eligible for the credit card that you are applying for.
Read More: Documents Required for Credit Card Application | The Complete Guide
Financial Factors Affecting Credit Card Eligibility
Apart from the personal individual factors, there are a few financial aspects to the approval of your credit card application. These factors, are however, equally important and must be a part of your check-list for credit card application.
- Credit Score
Your credit score works in direct proportion to the chances of the approval of your credit card application. The higher your credit score is, the more chances you have of getting your application approved. Similarly, a bad credit score would imply an unhealthy financial history, and hence, would lower the chances of your application being approved. A credit score of 750 to 900 is considered fairly good for a credit card application.
- Credit Utilization Ratio
Another fairly important factor of credit card eligibility is the CUR or Credit Utilization Ratio. It refers to the ratio between the credit card bill and credit limit. Both these factors determining the credit utilization ratio are inversely proportional to each other. This means that if you spend more, your CUR would be low. This, eventually works out negatively for your credit card application as it indicates that the application is credit-hungry.
- Multiple Credit Card Application
Having multiple credit card applications is one of the major turn-offs for your credit card application. As you apply for a credit card, the banks would keep a check on your previous credit card applications and if you have multiple rejected applications, your chances of getting this one approved would automatically drop down. Hence, do not apply for a credit card again and again. Even if you get your application rejected once, wait for some time before you try again.
Read More: Guide to Different Types of Credit Card - A Comparison
- Existing Loans
Having several existing loans shows that the applicant is quite frequently looking out for debts, and is not able to pay them easily. This, eventually leads to the bank being suspicious about your credit repayment capabilities. Hence, having too many existing loans is not good for your credit card application is an important factor considered by the banks as your credit card eligibility criteria.
Documents Required for Credit Card Application
Not being able to submit the documents properly is the most common reason for the rejection of credit card applications. Hence, it is advisable to check the list of documents required for your credit card application and submit all the necessary documents, well in time.
We have curated a check-list for you to do the same-
- ID Proof (any one of these)
- PAN Card
- Aadhaar Card
- Passport
- Voter’s ID Card
- Driving License
- Ration Card
- Address Proof (any one of these)
- Aadhaar Card
- Passport
- Voter’s ID Card
- Driving License
- Ration Card
- Rent Agreement
- Property Documents
- Utility Bills (Water/Electricity/Telephone Bills, etc.)
- Income Proof (any one of these)
- Salary Slips (last 3 months)
- Bank statement (last 3 months)
- Income Tax Return
It must be noted that the above-mentioned documents must be furnished with the duly-filled credit card application form.
How to Apply for a Credit Card on Paytm?
Once you are sure of your credit card eligibility, whether through the above-mentioned conditions or using the credit card eligibility checker available online, you are ready to move to the next step- credit card application.
The application process for Paytm + HDFC co-branded credit card is quite simple. All you need to do is download or open the Paytm App and follow these steps-
- On the main screen, scroll down to the section of ‘Loans & Credit Cards’
- Click on ‘Credit Card’
- Click on ‘Check Eligibility & Apply’
- Enter the details like your email address, your net monthly income, PIN code for credit card delivery
- Tick mark the option to accept all terms and conditions and click on ‘Submit’
- After the verification of details provided, you will be notified with the type of credit card that you are eligible for
- Click on ‘Apply Now’ and fill in the required details to authenticate your identity
- You will be notified about the status of your credit card application and your virtual credit card will be generated instantly and will be ready to use!
Additional Benefit? The entire credit card experience – right from the application process and issuance of the card to tracking expenditure online is digital, and can be completed in less than 5 minutes on the Paytm app!
