The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has deferred the implementation of the revised Kisan Credit Card (KCC) directions by six months to January 1, 2027, from the proposed July 1, 2026, after accepting stakeholder feedback on operational and technology-related challenges, the central bank said in a release on Friday.
The central bank also said KCC loans sanctioned before January 1, 2027, will continue to be governed by the existing KCC guidelines until maturity or the next renewal.
The RBI accepted suggestions to align the definition of crop seasons with existing income-recognition and asset-classification norms. It also incorporated references to District Level Technical Committees (DLTCs) in the directions and included an indicative list of technological interventions under the framework.
The RBI clarified that where the Scale of Finance (SoF) is notified but not revised for a subsequent year, banks should continue to adopt the existing SoF and that no automatic increase in drawing limits is envisaged. It also clarified that extending loans under KCC requires the determination of SoF by State Level Technical Committees or DLTCs.
The directions have been modified to explicitly provide for the applicability of Flexi KCC to allied activities. The RBI also accepted a suggestion to round off KCC credit limits to the nearest ₹1,000.
The central bank clarified that term loans with a tenure exceeding six years will be treated as separate credit facilities outside the KCC framework.
The RBI also clarified that banks may maintain separate loan accounts for short-term working-capital and long-term investment components under KCC.
The directions have been modified to clarify that the explicit consent of the borrower may be obtained at the application stage if insurance premiums are to be paid through the KCC account.
Among the suggestions not accepted by the RBI were proposals to increase the Flexi KCC limit, permit lending beyond the notified Scale of Finance, increase the collateral-free lending limit, allow KCC renewals based on interest servicing, and provide a single consolidated credit limit instead of separate sub-limits.
The RBI said issues relating to interest subvention under the Modified Interest Subvention Scheme, reporting by cooperative institutions to credit information companies, and KCC portability across banks were outside the scope of the directions.
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