“All complimentary lounge access facilities on PNB MasterCard Platinum Debit Cards will be discontinued from 01-06-2026,” the bank said in a notice to customers.
The move comes as banks across India continue to trim or redesign airport lounge access programmes, a benefit that had become popular among debit and credit card users.
In April, several lenders revised lounge access benefits following changes in card network programmes. Complimentary lounge access on a number of RuPay Platinum debit cards was withdrawn after the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) directed banks to discontinue the facility from April 1.
As a result, banks including PNB, HDFC Bank, Punjab & Sind Bank and ESAF Small Finance Bank informed customers that complimentary lounge access on their RuPay Platinum debit cards would no longer be available.
At the same time, access on RuPay Select debit cards was moved to a spend-based model. Under the revised framework, cardholders are required to meet minimum spending thresholds set by their respective banks in a previous quarter to qualify for complimentary lounge visits in the subsequent period.
PNB, for instance, had said RuPay Select debit cardholders would need to spend at least ₹5,000 through point-of-sale or e-commerce transactions in a quarter to become eligible for domestic airport lounge access in the following quarter.
Banks have also been revisiting lounge benefits on the credit card side.
Axis Bank, for example, announced the withdrawal of complimentary domestic airport lounge visits on the Airtel Axis Bank Credit Card from April 12, as part of a broader revision of the card’s rewards programme.
Industry experts attribute the changes to rising lounge usage and the increasing costs borne by banks and card issuers. Over the past few years, several lenders have shifted from unconditional access to spend-linked eligibility norms to limit the benefit to active customers.
