The Government of India provides various investment opportunities to the country’s citizens through the means of ‘Post Office Saving Schemes’. There are multiple saving and investment schemes for citizens to choose from, such as the Post Office Savings Bank Account (SB), National Savings Recurring Deposit Account(RD), National Savings Time Deposit Account (TD), Senior Citizens Saving Scheme (SSCS), and more. When citizens deposit funds into these schemes for a period of time, they can earn pre-decided interest on their invested funds. The government can also decide to change the rate of interest applicable to these savings schemes every financial quarter. Let’s take a closer look at some of these Post Office Savings Schemes with attractive interest rates:
Post Office Savings Account
The provides an interest rate of 4% per annum for individual and joint account holders. Any adult Indian citizen or a guardian on behalf of a minor can open a Post Office Savings Account. Moreover, two adults can also choose to get a joint account under this post office scheme. The minimum amount required to open a Post Office Savings Account is at least ₹500. However, there is no upper limit to the maximum amount that can be deposited.
National Savings Recurring Deposit Account
Under the National Savings Recurring Deposit Account, the account holders are eligible to get an interest rate of 5.8% per annum, which is compounded quarterly. The citizens investing in this scheme will have to deposit a minimum of ₹100 for this recurring deposit account in multiples of ₹10. The National Savings Recurring Deposit Account has a maturity period of 5 years. However, the maturity can be extended for 5 more years by submitting the application and documents at the post office. If account holders wish to close their account prematurely, they can do it after 3 years of opening the account.
Post Office Time Deposit
The interest rates under the Post Office Time Deposit Account are dependent on the time period for which the funds are invested, as you can see in the table given below:
Post Office Time Deposit Accounts can be opened by users individually or in the form of joint accounts. A guardian can also choose to open a time deposit on behalf of a minor. In order to activate the Post Office Time Deposit, a minimum investment of ₹1,000 is required, although there is no upper limit on the investment. If you wish to withdraw your funds from the Post Office Time Deposit, you can do it after 6 months of opening the account. Moreover, you can also choose to renew your time deposit by submitting the right documents once it has matured.
National Savings Monthly Income Account
Under the National Savings Monthly Income Account, investors can earn interest of 6.6% per annum. However, the interest earning under this savings scheme are paid out per month. Both individual and joint accounts can be created under this scheme by the applicants. The minimum amount required for investment under this scheme is ₹1,000 and the maximum upper limit of investment is ₹4.5 lakh for individual account and ₹9 lakh for joint account.
Senior Citizens Saving Scheme Account
The Senior Citizens Saving Scheme is a post office scheme made specifically for senior residents in the country from the ages of 60 years and above (55 years in some cases). The Senior Citizens Saving Scheme offers an interest rate of 7.4% per annum and the interest is paid out on a quarterly basis. The minimum deposit to open the account under this scheme is ₹1000 whereas the maximum limit goes up to ₹15 lakh. The Senior Citizens Saving Scheme can be opened in as a single account or as a joint account.
