What is this quick loan really costing you?
Instant loans from apps and private lenders look small: "just ₹1,500 extra". As a yearly rate, many cost 100–300% or more. Enter what reached your account and what you must pay back. Then check whether the lender follows the rules, and what your rights are.
You received
You pay back
Cost of the loan
Over
The same money, from regulated options
Typical yearly rates, checked in October 2026; your rate depends on your lender and profile. Each option has conditions: see the notes below.
Is this lender following the rules?
Answer what you know. Regulated lenders (banks, NBFCs and the apps they work with) must follow RBI's rules. Unregistered apps and unlicensed private lenders don't, and that's where the harassment stories come from.
Your rights with a regulated lender
- All costs upfront, in writing. Before you sign, you must get a Key Facts Statement showing the yearly rate (APR) and every fee. Any fee not listed in it can't be charged later without your explicit consent.
- A cooling-off period. You can exit a digital loan within the lender's cooling-off period (at least one day) by repaying the money plus interest for those days, with no penalty.
- Money moves only between you and the lender. The loan must come straight into your bank account, and repayments go straight to the lender's account, never to an agent's or a person's UPI ID.
- Your phone stays private. Loan apps may not access your contacts, photos, files or call logs. You can withdraw consent and ask for your data to be deleted.
- No credit limit increase without your request.
- Recovery without fear. Recovery agents may not call before 8 AM or after 7 PM, threaten or abuse you, or send misleading or insulting messages.
- Where to complain. First, the lender's grievance officer (their contact is in the Key Facts Statement). No reply in 30 days, or unhappy with it? Complain to the RBI Ombudsman at cms.rbi.org.in.
If the lender is unregistered or a private moneylender
- Private moneylending is regulated by each state. Many states require moneylenders to hold a licence, and courts may refuse recovery cases filed by unlicensed lenders. In Telangana, harassing a borrower for recovery can mean up to two years in jail; in Maharashtra, lending without a licence can mean up to five. Check your state's Money Lenders Act. There's no single national law on unregulated lending yet.
- Report unauthorised lenders and apps on RBI's Sachet portal: sachet.rbi.org.in.
- Threats, morphed photos or messages to your contacts are crimes. Call the cybercrime helpline 1930 or report at cybercrime.gov.in, and go to your local police. Keep screenshots of every message.
A banker's notes if you're already stuck
- Don't take a new app loan to repay an old one. That's how ₹10,000 becomes ₹1 lakh in a few months.
- List every loan: who, how much you received, how much they want, and the due date. Run each through the check above. Clear the costliest regulated loan first.
- Replace it with cheaper money where you can: a loan against your FD, a bank gold loan, a salary advance from your employer, or an EPF advance if you qualify.
- Talk to someone. Family, a trusted colleague, or your bank. Debt feels heavier when it's a secret, and lenders count on that.
Have regular loans too? The EMI-Free Date Planner puts all your loans together, shows which to close first, and checks your safety net before you prepay.
See the planner · ₹199Sources
- RBI (Digital Lending) Directions, 2025: Key Facts Statement, cooling-off, direct disbursal and repayment, data access, grievance officer, 30-day escalation
- RBI Key Facts Statement circular (Apr 2024): APR and all charges disclosed upfront; unlisted fees can't be charged without consent
- RBI on recovery agents (Aug 2022): no calls before 8 AM or after 7 PM, no intimidation
- State moneylending laws: The Telangana Money Lenders Act, 1349 Fasli (sections 3, 9, 10 and 13); the Maharashtra Money-Lending (Regulation) Act, 2014 (section 39)
- Draft Banning of Unregulated Lending Activities Bill (Dec 2024): still a draft, not introduced in Parliament as of mid-2026
- RBI Sachet portal guide
- Typical rates: personal loans, gold loans, credit cards, loan against FD, EPF advance (checked Oct 2026)