Post office small savings schemes: India Post pays interest to the tune of 4-8.7% on the nine schemesIndia Post offers nine types of small savings schemes.
In these small savings schemes, from National Savings Certificates (NSC) to Kisan Vikas Patra (KVP) to Senior Citizen Savings Scheme (SCSS), India Post pays interest rates to the tune of 4-8.7 per cent, according to its website - indiapost.gov.in.
The interest rates are applicable for the third quarter of the current fiscal year (2018-19).
The government revises the interest rates on small savings schemes - savings account, five-year recurring deposit, time deposit (TD), monthly income scheme, senior citizen savings scheme, Public Provident Fund (PPF), National Savings Certificates, KVP and Sukanya Samriddhi - every quarter.InstrumentRate of interest (with respect to October 1 to December 31, 2018)Compounding frequencyMinimum amount required to open accountSavings Deposit4AnnuallyRs 201 Year Time Deposit6.9QuarterlyRs 2002 Year Time Deposit7QuarterlyRs 2003 Year Time Deposit7.2QuarterlyRs 2005 Year Time Deposit7.8QuarterlyRs 2005 Year Recurring Deposit7.3QuarterlyRs 10 per month5 Year Senior Citizen Savings Scheme8.7Quarterly and paidRs 1,0005 Year Monthly Income Account7.7Monthly and paidRs 1,5005 Year National Savings Certificate8AnnuallyRs 100Public Provident Fund Scheme8AnnuallyRs 500Kisan Vikas Patra7.7 (will mature in 112 months)AnnuallyRs 1,000Sukanya Samriddhi Account Scheme8.5AnnuallyRs 1,000(Source: An official release dated September 20, 2018; India Post website)Post Office Savings AccountIndia Post - through its network of more than 1.5 lakh post offices in the country - pays an interest rate of 4 per cent on deposit in the savings account, according to its website.
The minimum amount required to open a savings account in the post office is Rs 20, according to the India Post website.
After opening of account, the customer is required to maintain a minimum of Rs 50 as balance in the account (without cheque facility) to ensure operability.5-Year Post Office Recurring Deposit Account (RD)The post office pays interest at the rate of 7.3 per cent on investment in the recurring deposit account.
An account with a monthly deposit of Rs 10 fetches a return of Rs 725.05 on maturity, according to India Post.
The minimum amount required to open a five-year RD account is Rs 10 per month.Post Office Time Deposit Account (TD)The time deposit or TD account comes in four variants of maturity: one year, two years, three years and five years.
The post office pays interest rates of 6.9 per cent, 7.0 per cent, 7.2 per cent and 7.8 per cent on investment in these TD accounts respectively, according to India Post.Post Office Monthly Income Scheme Account (MIS)Investment in the Monthly Income Scheme fetches interest at the rate of 7.3 per cent, according to India Post.
The minimum amount required for investment in an MIS account is Rs 1,500.Senior Citizen Savings Scheme (SCSS)Investment in the Senior Citizen Savings Scheme fetches an annual return of 8.7 per cent.
The minimum amount that can be invested in an SCSS account is Rs 1,000, according to the India Post website.15-Year Public Provident Fund Account (PPF)Money invested in a PPF account fetches an interest rate of 8 per cent per annum, according to India Post.
The minimum investment required for a PPF account is Rs 500.National Savings Certificate (NSC)The NSC fetches an interest rate of 8 per cent compounded annually and payable at maturity.
An amount of Rs 100 invested in the scheme returns Rs 146.93 after the maturity period of five years, according to the post office website.
The minimum amount required for investing in NSC is Rs 100.Kisan Vikas Patra (KVP)Investment in Kisan Vikas Patra fetches interest at the rate of 7.7 per cent.
The amount invested in the scheme doubles in a period of 112 months (nine years and four months), according to the India Post website.
A minimum of Rs 1,000 can be invested in the KVP scheme.Sukanya Samriddhi AccountThe post office offers an interest rate of 8.5 per cent on investment in the Sukanya Samriddhi scheme.
India Post permits Rs 1,000 as the minimum deposit required for investment in the scheme, according to its website.