While the SBI Elite Credit Card is facing a lounge-access devaluation, one important part of the product remains unchanged: the ₹5,000 milestone benefit for spending ₹10 lakh in a card year. The annual fee also stays at ₹4,999. That means high spenders who can cross the ₹10 lakh threshold still retain a meaningful annual reward even as the Priority Pass lounge entitlement drops from 6 to 2 visits per quarter starting June 2026. This article focuses on the unchanged milestone structure that continues to matter for existing cardholders.
The milestone benefit is straightforward: spend ₹10 lakh in a year and receive ₹5,000. The fee remains ₹4,999, so cardholders who can reliably hit the threshold may still justify the card on the back of the milestone alone, even after the lounge cut. In practical terms, the milestone return is about 0.5% on incremental annual spend before considering other rewards, which is not exceptional but can be useful when layered with the card’s other features. The benefit is retained for existing SBI Elite users and is not described as a new offer, so no enrollment is needed.
Compared with premium cards such as Axis Magnus, HDFC Regalia, and ICICI Sapphiro, SBI Elite’s milestone benefit is now more important because the lounge value has weakened. For users who spend close to ₹10 lakh annually, the ₹5,000 milestone can offset the fee almost entirely, making the card less painful to hold. But for lounge-focused users or lighter spenders, the card’s value has clearly deteriorated. The net effect is mixed: positive for high spenders who can unlock the milestone, negative for everyone else who relied on travel perks.
To secure the ₹5,000 benefit, cardholders simply need to complete ₹10 lakh in eligible annual spend; there is no separate registration step mentioned in the update. Users should check whether all merchant categories count toward the milestone and whether refunds or reversals reduce qualifying spend. Since the lounge reduction begins in June 2026, cardholders should also time any planned travel and spending strategies accordingly. The key point is that the milestone survives, but it no longer fully offsets the weaker travel proposition.