On May 22, 2009, President Barrack Obama approved a series of rules that make major changes to practices within the credit card industry. Here is a list of the 10 key changes of the new credit card rules. The rules listed take effect until February 22, 2010.

1. No interest rate increases for the first 12 months of your credit card.
You can enjoy your interest rate for at least the first year after opening your new account with two exceptions.
First, your rate could increase in the first year if the creditor disclosed a rate increase when you opened the account. Second, if you don’t make the minimum payment within 30 days of the due date you’ll be subject to a penalty rate increase.
Other than that, credit card issuers can’t increase interest rates on existing balances except in certain situations.
· A promotional interest rate has expired.
· Credit card issuers must have notified you before the start of the promotional rate how long the promotional rate would last and what the interest rate would be when the promotional rate expired.
· Promotional rates must last at least six months.
· Your credit card has a variable interest rate that the credit card issuer doesn’t control and can be easily viewed by the general public.
· You finished a hardship program or had a hardship program cancelled. The increased interest rate can’t be higher than what it was before you started the program. Additionally, you must have been notified before the start of the program what the interest rate would be if the program was completed or cancelled.
· You were more than 60 days late on your minimum credit card payment. If your interest rate increases because of late payments, you should receive a notice when the interest rate increases letting you know why the rate increased. If you make your minimum payment on time for the next six months, your card issuer is required to lower your interest rate.
If you open a new credit card account, your credit card issuer cannot raise your interest rate within the first 12 months of your account, except in the situations described above. Rate Increases Must Be Reviewed Bi-Annually. After an interest rate has been increased, the credit card issuer must review the account every six months to determine whether the rate can be lowered. If the factors that first triggered the interest rate increase have changed, the card issuer must lower the interest rate.

2. No interest rate increases on pre-existing balances.
If and when your interest rate does increase, the credit card issuer can’t retroactively apply the increased rate to existing balances. Only purchases made after the increase goes into effect will be subject to the new interest rate.

3. Rate increases require a 45-day advanced notice, even if it is a penalty rate increases.
Credit card issuers currently get 15 days to notify you of an interest rate increase and they don’t have to notify you at all for penalty rate increases. The increased time for an advanced notice will give you more time to respond to an interest rate increase. Rules regarding interest rate increases take effect August 20, 2009.

4. No more double billing cycle finance charges from credit card issuers.
The double billing cycle method of calculating finance charges allows credit card issuers to charge interest on balances you’ve already paid. The Federal Reserve has outlawed this expensive practice.

5. Limited fees for subprime credit cards.
Subprime credit card issuers can no longer charge up the cardholder’s credit limit with fees. Now, fees are limited to 50% of the credit limit, but only 25% of those can be charged when the account is opened. The remaining fees must be spread over at least five billing cycles.

6. Billing statements from credit card issuers must be sent 21 days before payment due date.
The current rule requires billing statements to be sent within a reasonable time for the consumer to make payment. The new rule puts a time period on that “reasonable time.”

7. Payments received by the credit card issuers before 5:00 pm on the due date are on time.
The Federal Reserve recognizes that credit card issuers must have a cut-off time for accepting payments and sets that time to 5:00 pm. A specify a time zone was not identified, so sending your payment early is still a good idea.

8. Payments received by the credit card issuers the next business day after a weekend or on a holiday are considered on time. If the due date falls on a weekend or holiday and your credit card issuer doesn’t process payments on that day, your payment is still considered on time if it’s received by the next business day. For example, that means the Monday after a weekend or December 26 during the holidays.

9. Credit card issuers must process payments above the minimum to the highest interest rate balances. The minimum payment would go toward your low-rate balance, while the remainder of your payment must be applied to the balance with the highest interest rate. This reduces your interest cost over the life of the credit card versus the alternative of applying the complete payment to the low rate balance.

10. Credit card issuers billing statements must detail the cost of making the minimum payment. Credit card issuers are required to list the number of months it will take to pay off your balance with minimum payments along with the total interest you will pay.