State Bank of India (SBI) is set to reduce the number of free monthly ATM transactions available to Salary Package Account holders at other banks’ ATMs and Automated Deposit and Withdrawal Machines (ADWMs) from October 1, 2026.
Under the revised rules, SBI salary account holders will get five free transactions per month, down from the existing limit of 10. The new limit will apply across all centres in India.
What changes from October 1?
The five free transactions will include both financial and non-financial transactions. This means cash withdrawals, balance enquiries and other eligible ATM services will be counted together within the monthly limit.
Once the five free transactions are exhausted, existing SBI charges will apply. The bank has not increased the charges per transaction; instead, customers will reach the paid transaction limit sooner.
For cash withdrawals at another bank’s ATM after the free limit is exhausted, SBI will charge Rs 23 plus GST per transaction. Additional non-financial transactions will attract a fee of Rs 11 plus GST.
Who will be affected?
The revised rule applies specifically to SBI Salary Package Account holders using their SBI debit cards at ATMs and ADWMs operated by other banks.
SBI’s other account categories will continue to follow their existing free transaction limits and charges. There is also no change to the rules for debit-card transactions at SBI’s own ATMs and ADWMs.
What about SBI ATMs?
Salary Package Account holders will continue to enjoy unlimited free transactions at SBI ATMs across locations, irrespective of the account variant.
The change concerns transactions made using SBI debit cards at other banks’ ATMs, not SBI’s own machines.
SBI has also clarified that cardless cash withdrawals remain outside the revised limit. Customers can continue to make cardless withdrawals at SBI ATMs/ADWMs and other banks’ ATMs/ADWMs without a transaction cap until further notice.
The revised rules will come into effect from October 1, 2026, meaning SBI salary account holders who regularly use other banks’ ATMs may need to keep track of their monthly transactions to avoid additional charges.