Sukanya Samriddhi Account Deposit Scheme is one of the most popular small saving schemes in India. This scheme was launched in January, 2015. Since then, it has been estimated that around 76 Lakhs Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana Accounts have been opened across the country. The amount collected under these accounts is around Rs. 2, 838 crore (up to October, 2015).
Sukanya Samriddhi Account (SSA) can be opened in the name of girl child only. Post offices and Commercial banks (Public / Private Sector) have been authorized by the Govt to open SSAs.
Though Sukanya Samriddhi Scheme is a simple financial product, there has been some confusion with respect to some of its features, operation of account, premature withdrawal, account transfer, NRI & SSA, closure of account etc.,
To clear this confusion, the govt has recently issued a notification highlighting some new changes / amendments to ‘Sukanya Samriddhi Account Deposit Scheme’.
15 New Amendments to Sukanya Samriddhi Account Deposit Scheme Rules
Below are some of the revised rules of Sukanya Samriddhi Account;
- Definition of Account Holder & Beneficiary : Account holder means a person in whose name the Account is held. Girl child is the beneficiary under SSA. The amount can be deposited by the account holder (girl child) or by her parent/guardian.
- SSA & Adopted Daughter : The new rules have made it clear that Sukanya Account can be opened even in the name of an adopted Daughter.
- Resident Indian Girl Child : Only an Indian Resident Girl Child can be the Beneficiary under the SSA Rules.
- Rate of Interest : As per the old rules, the rate of interest will be declared on an yearly basis. Now, the Government can amend the Interest Rate from time to time. (Read : Latest Small Saving Schemes & Rate of Interest – New guidelines)
- Minimum Amount & Account Default Rules :
- The minimum amount that has to be deposited in SSA is Rs 1,000 p.a.
- If the min amount is not deposited, account will be treated as ‘Account in Default‘ and such accounts can be regularized on payment of a penalty of fifty rupees per year.
- The new rules also specify that if the defaulted account is not regularized within fifteen years of opening the account, then the whole deposit amount (including the deposits made prior to the date of default) shall be eligible to get Post Office Savings Bank interest rate at the time of its maturity.
- In case if the reason for default is due to the death of the ‘Guardian’ of the child, the above rules won’t be applicable. The account holder will get normal SSA interest rate.
- Maximum Deposit : The maximum amount that can be deposited in SSA is Rs 1.5 Lakh per fiscal year. In case deposit in excess of one lakh fifty thousand rupees in any financial year is accepted due to any accounting error, such excess amount will not be eligible for any interest. The depositor can withdraw such excess amount anytime.
- Online Payment Mode : As of now, deposits can be made in the form of cash/by cheque/by DD only. The new rules have clarified that ‘online payment mode’ (electronic transfer) is also acceptable provided that the post office or bank has access to CBS facility (Core Banking Solution).
- Interest Calculation Procedure : Under SSA, the interest is compounded on yearly basis. The interest amount is calculated for the calendar month on the lowest balance in an Account on the deposits made between the close of the tenth day and the end of the month. So, it is now clear that no interest is paid on deposits made after 10th of the month for that specific month.
- Duplicate Passbook : In the event of loss of passbook, a duplicate passbook can be issued on payment of Rs 50. The guardian or the account holder has to submit a written request to get a duplicate SSA passbook.
- Transfer of Account : SSA can be transferred from a bank to a post office branch (vice versa) at free of cost. The guardian or the account holder has to furnish proof of shifting of residence. Even if you are not relocating, you can transfer the account by paying a fee of Rs 100 to the post or to the bank to which the transfer is being made.
- Withdrawal for Education Purposes :
- Withdrawal of upto a maximum of fifty per cent of the balance in the Account at the end of the financial year preceding the year of application for withdrawal, shall be allowed for the purpose of higher education of the Account holder.
- Provided that such withdrawal shall not be allowed unless the Account holder attains the age of eighteen years or has passed tenth standard, whichever is earlier.
- The withdrawal can be made in lump sum or in installments not exceeding one per year, for a maximum period of five years.
- The guardian or the account holder has to submit a documentary proof of confirmed admission in an Educational institution (or) a Fee-slip from such institution.
- Account Closure & Age Proof : To close a SSA account, age proof has to be submitted to prove that the girl child is not less than 18 years of age.
- Account Closure & Marriage : Earlier premature withdrawal is allowed after the girl child’s marriage takes place but now withdrawal is possible even if Depositor is intending to get married.
- Change of Citizenship :
- If after opening of account, Account holder becomes a non-citizen or non-resident of India (NRI), he/she (guardian/parent/girl child) has to intimate the same within a period of one Month and her account will be deemed as closed.
- Interest is not be paid on such Accounts.
- Post Account Closure & Interest Payment : As per the old rules, post maturity (after 21 years from the date of account opening) even if account holder does not close the account he/she was eligible for interest till the final closure of the account. But as per the new amendments, if an account completes twenty-one years, no interest amount is payable.
I hope you find this post useful and informative. Are you contributing to Sukanya Samriddhi Account Deposit Scheme? Kindly share your experience and views on SSA.
(Image courtesy of chubphong at FreeDigitalPhotos.net) (Post published Date : 05-April-2016)
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Hi Sreekanth,
Is it required to provide both ID Proof of Mother and Father for opening SSY a/c . Can a grandfather open the SSY a/ c on the name of her grand daughter. If a bank say that Grandparents (maternal side ) cannot open the SSY a/c on the name of her granddaughter then? Whosoever opens the SSY a/c in a bank then they should have their bank a/c with the bank?
Dear Sapna,
If parents are alive, only they can contribute.
Else, grand parent can contribute as a guardian.
I dont think it is mandatory to have a bank account with the same bank, but banks may insist on having one.
Hi Sir,
Is it mandatory to close the account at the time of marriage of the girl child?
My daughter was 10 at the time of opening of a/c. if she gets married at say 25, is it compulsory to close the a/c or she can operate it for 6 more years?
Dear Ankur,
The maturity of the account is 21 years from the date of opening of account or if the girl gets married before completion of such 21 years (whichever is earlier).
I am NRI I joined sukany samridiacount. That time I don’t NRI. Manger also don’t know. Now I try to close my Acount but manager told this acount can’t close now what can i do. My wife and daughter not a NRI status. Shi is staying in India
Dear Jabeer,
Kindly check with your banker if it is possible to change the depositor name to your Spouse name. I am not sure if this is allowed, but can be worth asking them.
If its not possible, suggest you to close the account immediately (as per govt notification).
Dear Sir,
i have opened a SSYA in post office on dt. 15-02-2017 (F.Y. 2016-17) and in this scheme i can deposit maximum Rs. 1.50 Lakh per financial year for 14 years from opening of account, means (1.50 Lakh X 14 =21 Lakh). Now my question is that i can deposit amount for 14 years till 15-02-2031 (F.Y. 2030-31).
Sir, during these 14 years, the numbers of financial years are containing 15, so can i invest Rs. 1.50 Lakh per F.Y. for 15 year or not. I am giving the example below for 15 financial years.
e.g.
account opening date 15-02-2017 and last date of deposit is 15-02-2031.
2016-17 Rs. 1.50 Lakh
2017-18 Rs. 1.50 Lakh
2018-19 Rs. 1.50 Lakh
2019-20 Rs. 1.50 Lakh
2020-21 Rs. 1.50 Lakh
2021-22 Rs. 1.50 Lakh
2022-23 Rs. 1.50 Lakh
2023-24 Rs. 1.50 Lakh
2024-25 Rs. 1.50 Lakh
2025-26 Rs. 1.50 Lakh
2026-27 Rs. 1.50 Lakh
2027-28 Rs. 1.50 Lakh
2028-29 Rs. 1.50 Lakh
2029-30 Rs. 1.50 Lakh
2030-31 Rs. 1.50 Lakh
As per SSYA policy i can deposit maximum amount Rs. 21 Lakh in 14 years from date of opening of account, but according above calculation we have deposited 22.50 Lakh in 14 years from date of opening of account.
Sir, you are requested please explain how much maximum amount i can invest in SSYA in 14 years.
Thanks & Regards,
Sampuran Saini
Dear Sampuran ..But why did you consider 15 * 1.5 Lakh instead of 14 * 1.5 Lakh??
Sir, because purposes of income tax, I want benefit of numbers of 15 financial year, in 14 year duration.
Dear Sreekanth,
Suppose SSA opened by father and for tax benefit he wants to change name to mother as deposited, is this possible? If yes then how to apply for the change. Can tax exemption can be taken by Mother under 80C without changing the name? Also is it possible to transfer SSA account from post office to any other bank as depositing money through bank is easy (we can also use internet banking)
Looking forward to hear from you.
Sincerely,
Dear Ambikesh,
I believe that depositor can be changed, but i am not very sure on this.
Yes, you can transfer the SSA account from PO to a bank branch.
If any acciden will happens then what about the saving mony it will give or not
Is it possible to change the name of girl child in Sukanya account
Dear Rajaram..Kindly go through this article..
Dear Sreekanth,
Suppose I have enrolled in the scheme with an annual deposit amt of Rs 60,000 ( 5k a month).
In case, I am able to manage more funds next year, is it possible for me to deposit more than Rs 60,000 (may not happen for all 14 years though) ?
Dear Ranjini..Yes, can deposit up to Rs 1.5 Lakh per financial year.
I have opened this ssa account on 21/01/17.and submitted rs1000.Would it be better if i opened this on the first week of april 2017?pls reply
Dear Sadananda.. You can contribute before 10th of every month or in first week of April itself (if lump sum contribution) to get slightly better return.
Dear Mr. Shreekanth,
I have opened Sukanya Samridhi Account for my girl child on 11/01/2017. I am planning to deposit INR 1,50,000 annually.
I have made 1st deposit of INR 1,50,000 on 11/01/2017.
Now my question is ….
When should I deposit my 2nd installment ?
case – 1 : at the start of financial year 2017-18 i.e on 01/04/2017
case – 2 : at the opening date of next year i.e 11/01/2018
case – 3 : anywhere in the middle of financial year 2017-18 i.e, say 01/08/2017
which of the above case would be idle and will benefit me maximum….
Thanks in advance
Dinesh Ramakrishna
Dear Dinesh,
Investing every month before 10th (or) in case of lump sum investment before 10th of April every year, you can get slightly better returns to a certain extent.
Thanks Shreekanth …
Dear Mr. Sreekanth,
Will you pls suggest me how to change my daughter’s name in SSY? What documents do I need to submit in post office as ‘proof of name change’?
-Rajeev
9717720346
Dear Rajeev,
The parent/guardian/girl child can visit the post office or bank branch from where the SSA has been opened, can submit affidavit for name change, proof of change of name, and other relevant docs like SSA passbook, ID proof etc.
i want to know that’s if i have deposit 10000/-yearly,how many returns in ssy in the time of maturity.
Hi,
I have a question regarding Sukanya Samriddhi Account,
What if the Grand parent deposit in their Grand Daughter’s SSY account, even if the father is alive..
Who will get the tax benefit for that investment?
Regards,
Gaurav
Dear Gaurav ..I believe that parent would get the tax benefit.
Can I get a certificate from post office which provides sukanya samriddhi account’s maturity amount based on current investments?
e.g. If I have deposited total 50000 within first two years of opening account; can post office provide “maturity certificate” like below based on this amount? If so; how to apply to get such certificate? I called local post office and they replied back saying there is no provision to give such certificate as interest rates would change every year. Agreed with this. But at least they can give with some fixed interest rate e.g. 8%, 8.5% etc..
Any suggestion on how to get maturity certificate for Sukanya Samridhi account ? Say, like below :
account holder name : xxxxxx
depositor name : xxxxx
account number : xxxxxx
account maturity date : 1/5/2015
account maturity date : 1/5/2036
total amount deposited till 1/11/2016 : 50000
total amount after maturity : xxxxx
Dear Chetan,
Yes, as the interest rates may vary over the SSA tenure, banks/PO can not provide any certificate regarding maturity amount. You may use ‘SSA calculators’ available online to check the approx maturity amount by yourself.
Thanks Sreekanth for the suggestion.
Thank u sir
Hello sir we opened SSA SCHEME as me as nominee .now my husband needs to be nominee for income tax deduction . Is it possible to change the nominee
Dear mamatha ..Yes, i believe it can be changed. Kindly visit the bank or post office branch where the account has been opened.
IS THERE ANY CHANCE TO CHANGE NAME IN SUKANYA SAMRUDHI DEPOSIT ACCOUNT
Dear VENKY ..Yes, can be changed. I believe one has to submit ‘self-declaration affidavit’, copy of birth certificate and proof of name change. The address proof & ID proof documents of the parent/guardian also have to be carried.
I have open ssa in yearly 10000 . How much amount maturity value.
If my daughter is 18 years old and going to marry.
What are the documents that needs to be produced at the time of Account closure?
I meant, any document(Proof) required that she is going to marry?
Vinod.
Dear Vinod..The money will be paid to the girl child only after she is married. It will be paid to her on providing proof of having done the marriage. One cannot use the money for marriage expense etc.
Srekanth,
Are you sure that the money will be paid only after she is married???
As per the new amendment , if the girl is going to marry then you can close this account after her age of 18 years.
Vinod.
Dear Vinod ..I stand corrected, missed this point.
Yes, one can close the account before the marriage itself but there is no clarity regarding the documents.
Read: SSA & New amendments.
Dear Sreekanth.,
My wishes & regards for all your efforts., I am one among many of your blog readers, really benefited from u r service., In the past you have clarified many of my doubts.,Tks
I am an NRI aged 36, wants to know about investment avenues available for us.,
My requirement is for my child education, marriage and my retirement corpus., My daughter is 6 yrs and my retirement age between 56-60.,
Presently being new to markets, as per your guidelines started investing Mutual funds under sectors ( large cap-Multicap-Balanced fund)., this is the only source presently i am depending on; ( buying gold will be very minimal on an annual basis)
Planning to start SSI for my daughter as an investment option, but as per this new amendments
i cannot commence .,
Other options PPF, Post office savings are not for NRI’s Majority of Bonds also restricted to NRI’s ( correct me if iam wrong)
FD’s in bank as you say cannot meet the inflation; Maintaining my 5 months requirements for emergency needs.,
Kindly guide me.,
KK
Dear KK,
I agree with you that there are very limited suitable options for NRIs now.
As your goals are long-term ones, it is wiser to invest as much as possible in equity oriented mutual funds itself.
Thanks Sreekanth.,
Dear Sreekanth Ji,
Sukanya Smiridhi Account me deposit years 14 se badhakar 15 years krr di gyi h.
Sir m jaanna chata hu ki 1 year jyada deposit krna padega ab to maturity amount
badega ya wahi rhega jo 14 years deposit krne prr tha…..Plzz reply.. Thnx
Dear Mr. Readdy
Meri ladki ki Date of Birth 06/08/2005, he mene ssa a/c. March 2015 me khola he is khate me pese jama kitne age tak ho payange post off. me pata kiya tha to bataya ki ladki ke age 14 sal pure hote hi pese jama hona band ho jayaga meturaty ladki ki age 21 saal pure hone par milege krpya sahi sahi bataye
Thanks
Tara datt
Dear Tara,
The contributions are allowed upto 14 years from SSA account opening date and not based on the Girl Child’s age.
sir namskar! meri sali ki ladki mere paas rahati hai jiska age 9+ hai,kya mai SSA scheme k dwara a/c open kar sakta hu,aur 1000/-per month 14 years deposit karne k baad kitna total amount milega.
Dear BRIJESH,
Now that the interest may vary year on year, exact amount can not be calculated.
Assuming 9% interest rate, can expect around Rs 6 Lakh as maturity amount.
Excellent blog sir.Very useful and informative. Keep it up..good work
Thank you dear Sarath..keep visiting!
Hi sreekanth,
I’ve invested in SSA for my grand daughter who’s 1 year old ,I’m the depositor/guardian and would like to claim for 80c exemption ,is it possible ?
Also my son is a software engineer so he keeps going to foreign countries on deputation for 2-3 years continuous duration along with his wife and daughter . So in this case wold my grand daughter be considered NRI and her SSA account be closed by post office .
Please suggest . Thanks in advance.
Dear Mahesh Ji,
1 – Yes you can claim income tax benefits.
2 – That depends on if her Residential status changes to NRI or not.
Kindly go through this article : NRI Residential Status check – online Calculator.
Does the NRI Status apply to children as well. As they don’t have any income and associated PAN card.
So how will the NRI status of my grand daughter be governed in Above scenario or does the same rule of 182 days or greater apply to children as well.
Thanks in advance
Dear Mahesh..Very good and valid question, but unfortunately the recent notification is not very clear on this issue.
Hi Srikant,
Last year I have opened SSA account for my daughter (5 years old).
With the new change somehow i have feeling that govt is playing with our money. Now for education they want the school admission fee etc. what if my daughter goes abroad for higher education or what if she doesn’t go to college? or she want to run some business? then your money is locked till marriage.
I am also not sure if govt keep on changing the rule for these account then it will be difficult to track.
Let me know your view on this.
Since I opened account which can not be closed now, so I thought of reducing my contribution to approx 50k per year and opt for some equity funds investment.
While my initial plan was to save ~1.25 lakh every year.
Dear Rahul,
I believe that partial withdrawal for higher education in abroad is allowed.
But don’t you think that compared to last year, this year they have provided more clarity on many features??
Investments in SSA + Equity funds for long-term can be a better option considering the education inflation rate in our country.
Kindly read:
Best Equity funds.
List of Best Investment Options in India.
Dear Sreekanth,
Thanks for the nice article. I need some clarifications.
1. If my daughter will go abroad to study for 1 to 3 years, then she may comes under NRI category. In such a case there is no interest between these periods. Then how can we continue to deposit without interest?
2. We understood that they gave more clarity at least now after collecting peoples money around 2.8K crores! It should be given earlier itself and it seems Govt. of India playing very well.
3. There is no certainty that the Govt. of India cannot impose new amendments with more restrictions.
Kindly give your comments.
Dear Kumar,
I agree that they should have provided these rules/details while launching the scheme itself, especially on some points like ‘child has to be a Resident Indian’ through out the tenure…Atleast now they have provided some clarity..
Thank you very much for your kind reply sir.
Hi Sreekanth,
I had been a regular reader of your articles.All of them are very informative.I thank you for providing the detailed information about each and every investment options available.
I have one question,I invested 1.5 lakh last year in the SSA scheme last year.This year also I am planning to do the same.Do you think it is the best investment option?If not please suggest the other best investment options for a girl child.My daughter is 5 year old.Requesting your advise.
Dear Anjani,
As a responsible parent, the first priority is to have your life covered with adequate life insurance cover.
So, May I know if you have any existing life insurance cover? What about your health insurance?
Kindly read:
If life is unpredictable, insurance can’t be optional.
Blocks of Financial Planning Pyramid.
SSA is a good scheme considering the safety aspect & tax benefits. It is one of the best debt investments on par with PPF. But one has to invest in other equity oriented options too to meet the Future education expenses of a kid. It is very tough to beat inflation with 8 to 9% returns. So, one has to invest in a combination of financial products besides investing in SSA.
Read:
Sukanya Scheme Review.
List of best Investment options.
Kid’s Education goal & calculator.
Hi Srikanth,
Thank you very much for your reply.I am not having any insurance cover.My husband is having one LIC policy of 5 lakhs.Gone through your post on Insurance.I am thinking to opt for kotak policy.
Thank you once again for your advise
Nice and crisp update,
It will be good if you can add publish date, that will help us to make sure we are referring to latest articles and the information changes from portal to portal.
Dear Shailesh..I had received same suggestion from one of the other blog readers too, implemented the suggestion since 2 weeks. You can find the published date at the end of the post.
Anyways, thank you for the suggestion and keep visiting 🙂
so very nice plan bro
Hi Sreekanth,
Very good info on sukanya samridhi acc. but my question is, Is this the best plan for a girl child as of now or do we have better plans which gives better returns ?
I have a daughter of 2 1/2 yr old and planning to start something for her now, plz suggest ?
Dear joe,
First priority as a parent is to get adequate LIFE INSURANCE COVER. Then he/she can create a solid plan to accumulate wealth for long-term goals like Kid’s education goal.
Kindly read:
Blocks of Financial Planning Pyramid.
If life is unpredictable, insurance can’t be optional.
Kindly note that investing in SSA alone may not lead to achievement of required corpus. One needs to invest in combination of financial products based on his/her requirement/financial profile. But within the debt products category, SSA is one of the best options.
Kindly read :
SSA – Review.
List of best investment options.
Please confirm is it possible to transfer ac from post office to SBI and online transfer of funds to the account. If so procedure to do so.Thank you
Dear Dilip..As per the notification, YES. But it depends on the respective PO & SBI branch . Suggest you to check with your banker too.
Good info, as my father has opted this for his grand daughter, today I came to know full info, thanks once again
Hi Sreekanth,
What Happens to the SSA account if the Guardian(Father/Mother etc) who is paying the money for SSA of his daughter dies? Will the SSA account will be closed and the money will be refunded with the Interest?
Dear Narasimha Reddy,
The account holder (girl child) can continue the contributions (or) any other guardian can deposit the amounts (or) she can close the account and get the refund with the interest amount.
Dear SreekanthReddy,
Thanks for the update.
is good information sir
thank you very much
Question on Sukanya tax exemption –
If husband is account holder then can wife claim the amount under 80 C? or it should under wife’s name to claim 80C? or is it possible to open joint husband and wife as account holders?
Please help.
Dear Ajith..Kindly note that the account holder is ‘girl child’.
I believe that SSA account can not be opened jointly. So, whoever is the depositor (parent/guardian) alone can claim the tax benefit of up to Rs 1.5 lakh under section 80C in a Financial Year.
Thanks for replying Sreekanth.
Let me ask the question correctly.
If husband is the depositor and husband is not claiming 80 C then can wife claim that under 80C? like we do in LIC if husband does not claim his LIC premium then wife can claim. Does that holds true here also?
Thanks,
Ajith
Dear Ajith..No.
Dear Sreekanth.,
Could you explain the point no 8 ( interest calculation procedures) through an example for better understanding
Regards
Krishna
Dear Krishna,
To get interest amount for a specific month, one can deposit the contribution amount before 10th of the month.
For example: Let’s say SSA balance till 10th is Rs 1 Lakh, and the depositor invests Rs 10k on 15th of the month. As per the rule, the lowest balance between 10th of that month and end of the month is Rs 1 Lakh (and not Rs 1.1 Lakh), so Rs 1 Lakh is taken into consideration while calculating interest amount for that specific month.
Thanks for your explanation
Regards
Krishna
Hi… This post is very much useful and easy to understand.. Keep up the good work….
Hi,
Sreekant,
I am 49 years old, working in a high pressure job.. I do not want to have health problems so I want to retire / resign in 2 years. I may do some part time work to pass my time & get some income.
I have 60 Lakhs invested long term in 4-5 equity MFs . I have my own flat to stay and so will not pay rent. I have some small land/ ancestral property ( 30 lakh value) I do not have health insurance . I have 3 school going children who will complete studies in 6-9 years.
How much corpus should I have to live on average Rs 50000/- pm expences ,having 7% inflation and life span of 78 years….??? Please guide….
Dear Atif,
Do you have adequate life insurance cover & Personal Accident insurance cover?
Suggest you to buy a health insurance policy for self & for your family.
Read:
If life is unpredictable, insurance can’t be optional.
Financial planning pyramid..
Best portals to compare health insurance plans.
Best personal accident insurance plans.
Top Term insurance plans.
Also, use the calculators available in the below articles;
Kid’s Education expenses planner..
Retirement planning calculator.
could you point us to the government notification regarding these changes? These are significant and very good changes.
Dear Muthu Krishnan,
You may kindly DOWNLOAD the govt notification which is in PDF format..
Thanks a lot sreekanth
Dear Mr Reddy
Thank you for publishing the notification , I have been looking for this all over the Internet, you saved me a lot of time.
Hi my girl is 9years old, planned to. Pay 1000rs per month upto 14yrs of her age in this schemes.. How much wil I get in her 21yrs?
Hi I have one new born baby three months old, if I started to pay 1000rs at her 4th month till 14yrs how much wil i get at her 21st age? Pls reply
Dear Gomathi,
Kindly use the calculator available in this link..click here…