Sukanya Samriddhi Account / Yojana is a Small Savings Special deposit Scheme for girl child. This scheme is specially designed for girl’s higher education or marriage needs.
The Scheme launched for the welfare of the girl child, to save and educate the girl child.
· Who can open the account? – Sukanya Samriddhi Account (or Khata) can be opened on a
girl child’s name by her natural (biological) parents or legal guardian.
· What is the Age limit? – SSA can be opened in the name of a girl child from the
birth of the girl child till she attains the age of 10 years. ( As per SB Order No. 2/2015 : The Girl child
who is born on or after 02.12.2003 can open account )
· How many accounts can be opened? – A depositor may open and operate only one account in the
name of same girl child under this scheme. The depositor (or) guardian can open
only two SSA accounts. There is one exception to this rule. The natural or
legal guardian can open two or three accounts if twin girls are born as second
birth or triplets are born in the first birth itself.
· How to open a SSA account? Accounts in name of the girl child can be opened in post
offices or in any branch of a commercial bank that is authorized by the Central
Government to open an account under this scheme rules.
· What is the minimum deposit to open the account? – The account may be opened with an initial deposit
of one thousand rupees. The minimum contribution in any financial year is Rs
1000. Thereafter the contributions can in multiples of one hundred rupees.
· What is the maximum deposit amount? – a minimum of one thousand rupees shall be deposited in
a financial year but the total money deposited in an account on a single
occasion or on multiple occasions shall not exceed Rs 1.5 Lakh in a financial
year.
· Deposits in an account may be made till the child
completes fourteen years, from the date of opening of the account.
· Is there any penalty? –
If minimum (Rs 1000 pa) amount is not deposited, the account will be treated as
an irregular account. This can be regularized/renewed on payment of Rs
50 per year as penalty. Along with this, the minimum specified
subscription for the year (s) of default should be paid.
· What is the mode of deposit? – The deposits in Sukanya Samruddhi scheme can
be made in the form of Cash or Demand Draft or Cheque. Where deposit is made by
cheque or demand draft, the date of encashment of the cheque or demand draft
shall be the date of credit to the account. The cheque or DD should be drawn in
favour of the postmaster of the concerned post office or the Manager of the
concerned bank. The depositor (parents or guardian) has to write the account
holder’s name (child’s name) and the account number on the backside of the
instrument.
· What is the Rate of Interest on Sukanya Samriddhi Account? – The
applicable rate of interest on SSA for the financial year 2014-2015 is 9.1%.
This is one of the highest rates of interest offered by Government on small
savings scheme
· Is interest rate fixed or variable? – The rate of interest is not fixed and will be notified
by the central government on a yearly basis.
· The
account can be transferred anywhere in India if the girl shifts to a place
other than the city or locality where the account stands.
·
Is Premature withdrawal allowed? – 50 % (half of the fund) of the accumulated amount
in SSA can be withdrawn for girl’s higher education and marriage after she
attains 18 years of age. The account’s balance at the end of preceding
financial year is used for the calculation.
· Can the girl child operate the account? On attaining age of ten years, the account holder that is
the girl child may herself operate the account, however, deposit in the account
may be made by the guardian or parents.
· Is premature closure allowed? In the event of death of the account holder, the account
shall be closed immediately on production of death certificate. the balance at
the credit of the account shall be paid along with interest till the month
preceding the month of premature closure of the account , to the guardian of
the account holder.
· The scheme
would mature on
completion of 21 years.
· Can the girl child continue the account after her marriage? – The operation of the account shall not be
permitted beyond the date of the girl’s marriage.
·
What are the required documents to open Sukanya
Samriddhi Account? – Birth certificate of the girl child has to be produced.
The depositor (parents or guardian) has to submit his/her identity and address
proofs.
· On opening an account, the depositor shall be given
a pass book. It will have date of birth of the girl child, date of
opening of account, account number, name and address of the account holder and
the initial amount deposited. The depositor has to present the passbook to the
post office or bank at the time of depositing/receiving the interest/on maturity.
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Tax Benefits on Sukanya Samriddhi Account Scheme
The
amount that is deposited under Sukanya Samriddhi Account will
be eligible for income tax exemption under Section 80C of Income Tax Act, 1961.
At present, only the contribution of up to Rs
1.5 lakh toward Sukanya Samridhi Yojana is eligible for tax deduction under
Section 80C. But discussions are on to also exempt the interest income and
withdrawal amount. We can expect a formal announcement on this in the coming
Union Budget 2015-16.
(Issue of making interest income and
withdrawal exempt from taxation can be done by Department of Revenue (DoR)
through legislative amendments. The matter is under examination of DoR)
Sukanya Samriddhi Account vs Public Provident
Fund (PPF)
Both Sukanya Samriddhi Account (SSA)
and Public Provident Fund (PPF) aims to seed the savings habit but both schemes
have their own pros and cons.
Stressing on the girls role in making the
India competitive and prosperous nation, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has
today launched a new small savings account for the girl child “Sukanya
Samriddhi Account” as an integral part of the “Beti Bachao-Beti Padhao”
campaign.
Sukanya Samriddhi Account was initially
introduced by Shri Arun Jaitely in his maiden budget speech but has been
officially launched today by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi. He has handed
over bank account details to five girls under the “Sukanya Samridhi Yojna”
(girl child prosperity scheme).
Sukanya Samridhi Yojna is a special deposit
scheme for girl child only but one another popular scheme to benefit child
(irrespective of girl or boy) is Public Provident Fund (PPF).
Let’s see the difference between Sukanya
Samriddhi Account and Public Provident Fund (PPF)
Points of Difference
|
Sukanya Samriddhi Account (SSA)
|
Public Provident Fund (PPF)
|
For whom
|
Only for Girl Child.
|
For every Indian Citizen.
|
Age Limit |
From the birth till she
attains age of 10 years.
|
No age limit.
|
By whom |
By the girl child who has
attained the age of 10 years or by the natural or legal guardian.
|
By the Individual but by
the natural or legal guardian for the minor child.
|
Where to open |
Post office and
nationalized banks but not private banks.
|
Post office and
nationalized banks, including private banks.
|
Number of Account |
One account for each girl
child, maximum up to 2 or 3 accounts if twin girls are born in the second
birth or triplets are born in the first birth.
|
Each Individual can hold
only one account in his name.
|
Minimum Contribution |
Rs.1,000
|
Rs.500
|
Maximum Contribution |
Rs.1.5 lakhs
in all accounts.
|
Rs.1.5 lakhs in all
accounts.
|
Interest Rate
|
9.1% per annum for
fiscal year 2014-15.
|
8.70% per annum for
fiscal year 2014-15.
|
Tax Benefit on the Contribution |
Contributed Amount will be
deductible u/s 80C.
|
Contributed Amount will be
deductible u/s 80C.
|
Tax Benefit on the interest earned |
At present no tax benefit
is announced for the interest earned. A mere sum of Rs.1,5o0 will be
deductible u/s 10(32) .
|
Interest Earned is tax
free under PPF.
|
Time Period of contribution |
Minimum tenure of
contribution is 14 years from the date of opening of account.
|
Minimum 15 years and then
in blocks of 5 years.
|
Maturity |
21 years from the date of
opening of account.
|
15 years from the fiscal
year of opening of account.
|
Penalty |
Rs.50 per year if minimum
contribution is not made.
|
Rs.50 per year if minimum
contribution is not made.
|
Mode of Deposit |
Cash or Demand Draft or
Cheque
|
Cash or Demand Draft or
Cheque
|
Premature Withdrawal |
Allowed up to 50% for the
girl’s higher education and marriage after she attains 18 years of age
|
No premature withdrawal is
allowed except in case of death of the account holder.
|
Loan |
No loan can be taken on
the SSA balance.
|
Loan can be taken from the
third year of opening of account to the sixth year.
|
Taxation on Maturity
|
No tax will be levied on
the maturity amount.
|
No tax will be levied on
the maturity amount.
|
Note:
1. Interest
rate under both the schemes will be notified each year by the Government.
2. Interest
will be compounded yearly under both schemes.
3. Loan
on the PPF balance is restricted to 25% of the balance at the end of 2nd year.
4. At
present interest earned on SSA account is taxable in the hands of guardian but
it may get tax rebate in the upcoming budget.
5. Contributed
amount get deduction u/s 80c up to Rs.1.5 lakhs including all other eligible
investments.
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