From 1 May 2025, your bank can charge up to ₹23 for each cash withdrawal at an ATM once you cross your free monthly limit. This is a small rise from the earlier ₹21 cap, but if you use ATMs often, it adds up. This guide explains the new limits in plain terms, what counts as a free transaction, and how an ordinary customer can avoid these charges.

At a glance: You still get free ATM transactions every month. The charge only starts after you finish them. The cap is now ₹23 per withdrawal plus GST. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced this in a notification dated 28 March 2025.

The table below compares your own bank's ATMs with other banks' ATMs, metro with non-metro, and the old fee with the new fee. Use it as your quick reference.

Note: The ATM interchange fee, which one bank pays another when you use the other bank's ATM, also rose from ₹17 to ₹19 for financial transactions from 1 May 2025. This is a bank-to-bank fee, but it is the reason your customer charge moved up too.

Banks count two kinds of transactions:

• Financial transactions - cash withdrawals.
• Non-financial transactions - balance enquiry, mini statement, PIN change, and similar.

At your own bank's ATMs, you get 5 free transactions a month, and these count both financial and non-financial together. At other banks' ATMs, you get 3 free in metro centres and 5 free in non-metro centres. The six metro centres for this rule are the large cities where ATM use is heaviest. Once you cross the free count, the ₹23 cap applies to each chargeable withdrawal, with GST on top.

Keep one point clear. The ₹23 is a ceiling, not a fixed price. Your bank may charge less, but it cannot charge more for a normal cash withdrawal beyond the free limit.

A few simple habits keep your costs near zero.

1. Use your own bank's ATM. You get 5 free transactions there every month, so plan around it.
2. Withdraw larger amounts less often. One ₹10,000 withdrawal beats five ₹2,000 trips.
3. Check your balance on the app, not the ATM. A balance enquiry can eat a free slot.
4. Use UPI for small payments. Card and UPI payments do not touch your ATM free limit.
5. Track your count. Most bank apps show how many free transactions are left this month.

If you manage recurring payments by auto-debit, the RBI e-mandate rules also affect how money leaves your account, so it helps to read both together.

Dr. Shrawan Kumar Pathak, a retired teacher in Patna, used to take out ₹3,000 four or five times a month from whichever ATM was nearest. In May 2025 his statement showed three extra-transaction charges of ₹23 plus GST. He switched to one ₹12,000 withdrawal a month from his own bank's ATM and used his bank app for balance checks. His ATM charges fell to zero the next month.

Sometimes a bank charges you even though you were within the free limit, or charges more than ₹23. Take these steps:

1. Save the proof. Note the date, ATM location, and the charge line in your statement.
2. Raise a complaint with your bank first. Use the branch, app, or customer-care number. Banks must give you a complaint reference.
3. Wait 30 days. If the bank does not resolve it or you are unhappy with the reply, escalate.
4. Go to the RBI Ombudsman. You can file free at the RBI complaint portal under the Integrated Ombudsman Scheme.

If you are unsure which body handles your problem, our guide on which regulator to complain to helps you pick the right one.

If your account is with a public-sector bank, that bank is a public authority under the RTI Act 2005, section 2(h). You can file an RTI to ask for the policy or circular behind a charge. A simple one-line ask works well:

“Please provide the bank's circular and the RBI reference under which an ATM cash-withdrawal charge of ₹23 was levied on my account in [month/year], along with the rule fixing the free transaction limit.”

You can draft this in minutes with the AI RTI Drafter. For a full walk-through of filing, appeals, and timelines, see The RTI Playbook and the text of the RTI Act 2005.

From 1 May 2025, banks may charge up to ₹23 per cash withdrawal once you cross your free monthly limit, plus GST. This is up from the earlier cap of ₹21. The RBI set this in its notification dated 28 March 2025.

You get 5 free transactions a month at your own bank's ATMs, counting both withdrawals and non-financial uses like balance checks. At other banks' ATMs, you get 3 free in metro centres and 5 free in non-metro centres.

No. The charge only starts after you finish your free transactions for the month. Within the free count, your withdrawal is free. The ₹23 is a maximum the bank can charge, not a fixed fee on every withdrawal.

Yes. GST applies on these charges as per the tax rules. So the amount on your statement may be a little more than ₹23 for each chargeable transaction beyond your free limit.

The ATM interchange fee, which one bank pays another when you use that bank's ATM, rose from ₹17 to ₹19 for financial transactions from 1 May 2025. You do not pay this directly, but it pushed up the customer charge cap.

First complain to your bank and keep the reference number. If it is not fixed within 30 days, or you are not satisfied, file a free complaint with the RBI Ombudsman under the Integrated Ombudsman Scheme. Public-sector bank customers can also file an RTI for the relevant circular.

• Reserve Bank of India (RBI), notification dated 28 March 2025, amending the circular on customer charges for ATM and White Label ATM transactions, effective 1 May 2025.
• Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and NPCI, revision of ATM interchange fee from ₹17 to ₹19 for financial transactions, effective 1 May 2025.