Post Office Savings Account provides for full or partial liquidation in a short period of notice when specified by the central government. This savings account guarantees returns and provides a risk-free regular income with an interest rate of 4% per annum and also offers ATM card facility. The post office saving calculator can tell the interest earned and people can make regular post office account balance inquiries.
This savings account is Rs. Provides tax benefit on interest earned up to Rs. 10,000. This post office saving scheme also solves the query of transferring money from bank account to post office account. The Ministry of Finance has given its permission to link PO savings account to IPPB (fully digital banking), which enables a person to transfer NEFT / RTGS / online money to any bank account. The facility has been rolled out from May 2018 – read more Senior citizens and women living in rural and semi-rural areas mostly invest in this savings scheme as the balance of opening a minimum savings account is just Rs. is. 20. For details, visit indiapost.gov.in
Post Office Savings Account Features – Highlights at a Glance
| Post Office Savings Account Interest Rate | Min. Initial Deposit / Maintaining Balance (with or without cheque book) |
|---|---|
| 4% p.a (individual as well as joint account) | Minimum Initial Deposit is Rs. 20 and Maintainance Balance without cheque book is Rs. 50 while it is Rs. 500 for cheque book enabled accounts. |
Post Office Savings Account Opening – Procedure and Documents
People can use this type of savings account for only Rs. Can open with minimum account balance. 20 (in cash only) at any post office. Further, to maintain a non-check facility account, the balance of the savings account is only Rs. 50 only. Any individual account holder with a maximum of Rs. Can deposit 1 lakh in this account while the maximum amount of Rs. 2 lakhs for joint account holders.
The most important thing about a post office savings account is that it does not have a lock-in / maturity period. Additionally, people can also choose to open a savings account with Rs. 500 to avail check and ATM facility.
Procedure for opening a savings account in a post office
- Candidates can purchase the savings account application form at any post office or download it online.
- Fill the savings account application form and submit the form with KYC documents and recent photograph.
- Then the subscribers have to equal the payment amount to the amount they wish to deposit (minimum Rs. 20). Account will open after payment.
- In addition, there are different forms for senior citizens to avail the scheme.
Required documents
Candidates will have to submit the following documents along with the complete application form to open their new savings account: –
- ID Proof – Electoral Photo Identity Card (Voter Card), Aadhaar Card, Ration Card, Passport, Driving License, Photo Identity Card from School / University, PSU, Identity Card issued by Central / State Government.
- Address proof – Passbook, passport, ration card, electricity bill, telephone bill, pay slip, Aadhaar card of bank or post office.
- 1 recent passport size photo. In case of joint account, photographs of all joint account holders.
Eligibility for new savings account and withdrawal of post office
Candidates have to fulfill the following eligibility criteria for opening a savings account at the post office: –
- Any individual adult.
- Minors above 10 years of age can apply.
- Any parent can open this account on behalf of the minor.
- It is also permissible for any person to have a stable mind to open his / her savings account.
- Apart from this, there is also a facility to open a joint account with an equal shareholding by 2 or 3 persons.
In this post office savings scheme – group accounts, institutional accounts, security deposit accounts and official capacity accounts are not allowed.
Post Office Saving Account Withdrawal – There is no lock in or maturity period in this savings scheme, so any person can withdraw his money at any time. However, the person has to maintain a minimum balance of Rs. 50 (for non-check facility account) and Rs. 500 (for check facility account).
Benefits of post office savings account
Check facility – Check book is available at the time of account opening. For this, candidates have to make an initial deposit of Rs. 500. In addition, all existing account holders can also avail the check book facility. Therefore, he received Rs. Have to maintain a minimum balance of. Make a request to issue 500 more check books to their account.
Post Office ATM Card / Debit Card – All customers having minimum balance in their savings account are entitled to get Post Office ATM card through CBS Post Offices.
Minor Account – Minors under 10 years of age can also open their post office saving account in their name. However, the rights to operate the account are still available to parents. Minors aged 10 years or above can operate their accounts on their own.
Portability – People can transfer their savings account from one branch to another branch due to change of address or any other reason. Apart from this, if people want to know how to transfer money from bank account to post office account, then they can get help in post office branch.
Nomination – People can choose their nominee at the time of opening their savings account at the post office. In addition, existing account holders can also choose their nomination after opening the account.
Joint Holdings – Under the joint account facility, 2 or 3 adults can open an account simultaneously. In addition, individuals can also convert their single account to a joint account and vice versa.
Tax exemption – Rs. 10,000 of Post Office Savings Account is exempted from tax under 80L of IT Act.
Electronic facilities – Individuals can withdraw savings account through electronic mode at CS = BS Post Offices.
Inactivity period – All customers need to do only 1 transaction in 3 years to keep their account alive. If not a single transaction has taken place in the last 3 years, then only the account becomes inoperative.
| Details of post office savings accounts | |
|---|---|
| Minimum initial deposit | Rs.20 |
| Minimum balance for account without cheque book | Rs.50 |
| Minimum balance or initial deposit for account with cheque book | Rs.500 |
| Interest rate | 4% p.a. |
| Tax Free Interest | Up to Rs.10,000 p.a. |
Features of Post Office Savings Account
The main features of a Post Office savings account are:
- You can choose to close the account at any time of his or her choosing
- Minors above the age of 10 years can operate their accounts
- To keep the account active at least one deposit or withdrawal must be done once in 3 years
- The account can be opened only using cash
- Nomination facility is available at the time of opening the account and after opening the account
- Interest earned is tax free up to Rs 10,000 per year
- Income tax relief is available on the amount of interest under the provisions of section 80L of the Income Tax Act.
- The account can be transferred from one post office to another
- Single accounts can be converted to joint accounts and vice versa
- Deposits and withdrawals can be done through any electronic mode in CBS Post offices.
- Transactions can be done via ATMs
Other Post Office Investment Options
| S No | Investment Option | Rate of Interest (p.a.) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Public Provident Fund (PPF) | 8% compounded annually |
| 2 | Senior Citizen Savings Scheme (SCSS) | 8.7% |
| 3 | Kisan Vikas Patra (KVP) | 7.7 % compounded annually |
| 4 | Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana (SSY) | 8.5% |
| 5 | Post Office Monthly Income Scheme (MIS) | 7.3 % payable monthly |
| 6 | National Savings Certificate (NSC) | 8 % compounded annually |