The risk comes when purchases push up your outstanding balances or create more repayment dates than you can comfortably manage. A little planning before the rush can help you keep your credit profile intact.

Early payment

Paying your credit card bill in full by the due date protects you from late-payment charges and interest, but it does not mean a temporarily high balance will never appear in your credit information. Your spending is billed through a monthly statement, yet credit institutions are required to update credit information with the bureaus at least fortnightly - on the 15th and last day of the month, with more frequent reporting also permitted.

A high balance can, therefore, show up in your credit information before you make the payment.

Consider splitting ₹1.8 lakh in festive purchases - a television and flight tickets - equally across two cards with ₹1.5 lakh limits each. Utilisation on each card stays at 60 per cent, well below the level that can weigh on your score. Putting it all on one card would push utilisation above 100 per cent on that card.

If a large purchase is likely to push your utilisation sharply higher, it makes sense to pay down the balance earlier or spread purchases across cards, provided your overall borrowing stays manageable.

Payment history is a major component of a credit score, and a missed or late payment can affect your profile even when the amount is relatively small.

Under RBI guidelines, a credit card account can be reported as past due only after it remains unpaid for more than three days after the due date - though interest continues to accrue from the original due date, so this is not an extension.

During the festive season, several of your commitments can fall due at once. When Diwali falls in October or November, three EMI due dates, a card bill and a loan instalment can all land in the same ten-day window. One missed notification is enough to trigger a late mark.

Setting up auto-debit and maintaining a calendar of due dates is one of the simplest things you can do to protect your credit score during this period.

BNPL counts as credit

Buy-now-pay-later can feel different from a conventional loan because the borrowing happens at checkout, but when it involves lending it remains a credit obligation - and do give a thought to how many such commitments you are taking on. The RBI requires all digital lending to be reported to credit information companies and its framework covers deferred-payment BNPL products on merchant platforms too.

The same applies to instant EMIs. A ₹15,000 pair of sneakers on BNPL, a ₹45,000 television on a six-month card EMI and a ₹20,000 Diwali shopping bill may each look manageable when you consider them separately. Together, they represent a combined credit obligation of ₹80,000 running across the coming months - before a single other expense is counted.

Check your credit report

If you are planning to apply for a new credit card or loan during the festive season, checking your credit report beforehand would be wise. The RBI requires each of the four registered credit information companies - TransUnion CIBIL, Experian, Equifax and CRIF High Mark - to provide one free full credit report, including the score every calendar year.

Look for accounts that should have been closed, incorrect outstanding amounts or payments marked late. If you spot something wrong, flag it immediately to the relevant lender or credit information company - and do this before applying, not after a rejection. Complaints not resolved within 30 days attract compensation of ₹100 per day, subject to applicable conditions.

Pre-spend checklist

Before festive spending begins, set up auto-debit for all your card bills and EMIs and mark every due date on your calendar. Then sum up every EMI, BNPL instalment and card repayment to understand your total monthly obligation - seeing these together shows you how much of your cash flow is already spoken for.

Finally, avoid taking on new credit purely for a discount if the purchase would put pressure on your existing budget. A festive offer may save you money upfront, but that saving is less meaningful if the repayment adds to an already stretched credit burden.

With a little financial discipline, you can enjoy the season without carrying an unnecessary credit problem into the months that follow.

Adhil Shetty is CEO of Bankbazaar.com