Senior Citizens Saving Scheme 2019

Gazette Notification: Senior Citizens Saving Scheme 2019

The account shall be opened with a minimum deposit of one thousand rupees

NOTIFICATION

New Delhi, the 12th December, 2019

G.S.R. 916(E).- In exercise of the powers conferred by section 3A and section 15 of the Government Savings Promotion Act,1873 (5 of 1873), the Central Government hereby makes the following Scheme, namely:-

1. Short title and commencement:
(1) This Scheme may be called the Senior Citizens’ Savings Scheme, 2019.
(2) It shall come into force on date of its publication in the Official Gazette.

2. Definitions:
(1) In this Scheme, unless the context otherwise requires,-
(a) "account" means an account opened under this Scheme;
(b) "account holder" means an individual in whose name the account is held;
(c) "Act" means The Government Savings Promotion Act, 1873 (5 of 1873);
(d) "Form" means forms appended to this Scheme;
(e) "General Rules" means the Government Savings Promotion General Rules, 2018;
(f) "year means a period of twelve months commencing from the date of deposit in the account.
(2) Words and expressions used herein but not defined shall have the meanings assigned to them in the Act and the General Rules.

Also check: Rates if Small Saving Schemes

3. Opening of account :

(1) An individual fulfilling the following conditions may open an account by making an application in Form-1 to the accounts office, namely:-

(i) who has attained the age of sixty years on the date of opening of the account; or
(ii) who has attained the age of fifty-five years or more but less than sixty years, and who has retired on superannuation or otherwise on the date of opening of an account under this Scheme, subject to the condition that the account is opened by such individual within one month of the date of receipt of the retirement benefits and proof of date of disbursal of such retirement benefit(s) along with a certificate from the employer indicating the details of retirement on superannuation or otherwise, retirement benefits, employment held and period of such employment with the employer, is attached with the application form:

Provided that the retired personnel of Defence Services (excluding Civilian Defence employees) shall be eligible to open an account under this Scheme on attaining the age of fifty years subject to the ful filment of other specified conditions.

(2) The successor or legal heir of a deceased serving personnel shall not be eligible to deposit the terminal benefits of such deceased personnel under this Scheme.
(3) An account holder may operate more than one account under this Scheme subject to the condition that the deposits in all the accounts taken together shall not exceed the maximum limit as specified under paragraph 4.
(4) An individual may open an account in individual capacity, or jointly with spouse.
(5) In case of a joint account, the age of the first account holder shall be considered to determine the eligibility to open the account and there shall be no age-limit for the second applicant.
(6) The whole amount of deposit in a joint account shall be attributable to the first account holder only.
(7) Both the spouses can open single account and joint accounts with each other with the maximum deposit of upto fifteen lakhs rupees in each account provided both are individually eligible to open the account.

4. Deposit:
(1) The account shall be opened with a minimum deposit of one thousand rupees or any sum in multiples of one thousand rupees not exceeding fifteen lakh rupees:

Provided that the deposits in the account specified under clause (ii) of sub-paragraph (1) of paragraph 3, shall be restricted to the retirement benefits received, or fifteen lakh rupees, whichever is lower.

Explanation - For the purposes of this sub-paragraph, “retirement benefits” means any payment due to the account holder on account of retirement on superannuation or otherwise and includes Provident Fund dues, retirement or superannuation gratuity, commuted value of pension, cash equivalent of leave, savings element of Group Savings Linked Insurance Scheme payable by the employer on retirement, retirement-cum- withdrawal benefit under the Employees’ Family Pension Scheme and ex-gratia payments under a voluntary or a special voluntary retirement scheme.

(2) There shall be only one deposit in the account.

(3) Where a deposit in excess to the ceiling specified under sub-paragraph (1) has been made, the accounts office shall, refund the excess deposit to the account holder immediately.

5. Interest on deposit :

(1) The deposit made under this Scheme shall bear interest at the rate of 8.6 per cent. per annum.

(2) Interest shall be payable from the date of deposit to 31st March/30th June/30th September/31stDecember on first working day of April/July/October/January, as the case may be, in the first instance and thereafter interest shall be payable on first working day of April/July/October/January as the case may be.

(3) If so authorised by the account holder, interest payable on the due dates as specified in sub-paragraph (2), shall be credited to the account holder’s savings account.

(4) If the interest payable every quarter is not claimed by an account holder, such interest shall not earn additional interest.

(5) Any amount of interest in fraction of a rupee shall be rounded off to the nearest rupee and for this purpose, any amount of fifty paisa or more shall be treated as one rupee and any amount less than fifty paisa shall be ignored.

(6) The excess amount referred to in sub-paragraph (3) of paragraph 4, shall carry interest at the rate applicable from time to time to the Post Office Savings Account and such interest shall be payable from the date of deposit of excess amount to the date of refund.

(7) In case of an account extended after maturity under sub-paragraph (1) of paragraph 8, the deposit in such account shall earn interest at the rate applicable to the Scheme on the date of maturity.

(8) Interest at the rate applicable to the Post Office Savings Account shall be payable on deposits in the account which are not extended as per provision of paragraph 8 or closed on maturity or extended maturity.

(9) The interest for any period less than a quarter (as specified under the Scheme) shall be calculated as per the following formula:-
Number of days in the period x Interest for the quarter Total number of days in the quarter

(10) If the interest is not claimed on the due date, it can be claimed on any date after the due date.

6. Premature closure of account:

(1) The account holder may withdraw the deposit and close the account at any time on an application in Form-2 subject to the following conditions, namely:-

(i) In case, the account is closed before one year after the date of opening of account, interest paid on the deposit in the account shall be recovered from the deposit and the balance shall be paid to the account holder.
(ii) In case the account is closed after the expiry of one year but before the expiry of two years from the date of its opening, an amount equal to one and a half per cent. of the deposit shall be deducted and the balance shall be paid to the account holder.
(iii) In case the account is closed on or after the expiry of two years from the date of its opening, an amount equal to one per cent. of the deposit shall be deducted and the balance shall be paid to the account holder.

(2) The account holder availing the facility of extension of account under sub-paragraph(1) of paragraph 8, may withdraw the deposit and close the account at any time after the expiry of one year from the date of extension of the account without any deduction.

(3) In case of premature closure, interest on the deposit shall be payable upto the date preceding the date of premature closure after deduction of penalty as specified in sub-paragraph(1).

(4) Multiple withdrawals from an account shall not be permitted.

7. Closure of account:

(1) The deposit made at the time of opening of the account shall be paid on or after the expiry of five years or after the expiry of eight years where account was extended under paragraph 8 from the date of the opening of the account, on an application in Form-3.

(2) In case of death of the account holder before maturity or extended maturity, the account shall be closed and deposit refunded on an application in Form-3 along with interest as applicable to this Scheme till the date of the death of the account holder, to the nominee or the legal heirs, as the case may be:

Provided that interest on the deposits in the account shall earn interest at the rate applicable on Post Office Savings Account from the date of death of the account holder till the date of final closure of the account:
Provided further that in case of a joint account, or where the spouse is the sole nominee, the spouse may continue the account on the same terms and conditions as specified under this Scheme, if the spouse meets eligibility conditions under the Scheme on the date of death of the account holder.

(3) Where both the spouses have opened separate account or accounts under this Scheme and either of the spouses dies during the currency of such account or accounts, then such account or accounts standing in the name of the deceased account holder shall not be continued in accordance with the first proviso of sub- paragraph (2) and shall be closed.

8. Extension after maturity:
(1) The account holder may extend the account for a further period of three years by making an application in Form-4 within a period of one year from the date of maturity.
(2) The extension of the account under sub-paragraph (1) shall be deemed to have been made from the date of maturity irrespective of the date of application.
(3) Extension of an account under sub-paragraph (1) shall be available only once.
(4) The account holder may close the account any time after one year from the date of extension of account without any deduction under sub-paragraph (1) of paragraph 6.

9. Application of General Rules:
The provisions of General Rules shall, so far as may be, apply in relation to matters for which no provisions have been made in this Scheme.

10. Power to relax:
Where the Central Government is satisfied that the operation of any of the provisions in this Scheme causes undue hardship to the account holder, it may, by order, for reasons to be recorded in writing, relax the requirements of that provision in a manner not inconsistent with the provisions of the Act.

[F. No. 2/2/2018-NS (Pt. I)]
RAJAT KUMAR MISHRA, Jt. Secy

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National Savings Certificates Scheme 2019

National Savings Certificates Scheme 2019

NOTIFICATION

New Delhi, the 12th December, 2019

G.S.R. 919(E).- In exercise of the powers conferred by section 3A of the Government Savings Promotion Act, 1873 (5 of 1873), the Central Government hereby makes the following Scheme, namely:-

1. Short title and commencement.-
(1) This Scheme may be called the National Savings Certificates (VIII Issue) Scheme, 2019.
(2) It shall come into force on the date of its publication in the Official Gazette.

2. Definitions.-
(1) In this Scheme, unless the context otherwise requires,-

• “account” means an account opened under this Scheme;
• “account holder” means an individual in whose name the account is held;
• “Act” means The Government Savings Promotion Act, 1873 (5 of 1873);
• “Form” means forms appended to this Scheme;
• “General Rules” means the Government Savings Promotion General Rules, 2018;
• “year” means a period of twelve months commencing from the date of deposit in the account.

(2) Words and expressions used herein but not defined shall have the meanings respectively assigned to them in the Act and in the General Rules.

3. Type of accounts.-
(1) On an application to the accounts office in Form-1, the following types of accounts can be opened under the Scheme, namely:-

• Single Holder Type Account;
• Joint A - Type Account; and
• Joint B - Type Account.

(2) (a) A Single Holder Type Account may be opened by an adult for himself, or on behalf of a minor or a person of unsound mind of whom he is the guardian; or by a minor who has attained the age of ten years;
(b) Joint A- Type Account may be opened jointly in the names of upto three adults payable to all the holders jointly or to the survivor or survivors;
(c) Joint B-Type Account may be opened jointly in the name of upto three adults payable to any of the account holders or to the survivor or survivors.

4. Deposits.-
(1) A minimum of one thousand rupees and any sum in multiples of one hundred rupees may be deposited in an account.
(2) There shall be no maximum limit for deposit in an account or in accounts held by an account holder.
(3) An individual may open any number of accounts.

5. Payment on Maturity.-
(1) The deposit shall mature on completion of five years from the date of the deposit. Amount of maturity may be repaid to the account holder on an application in Form-2 submitted to the accounts office.
(2) The maturity value of an account opened with one thousand rupees shall be One thousand four hundred sixty two rupees and fifty four paisa and proportionate for deposits made with any other sum as per sub- paragraph (1) of paragraph 4. In calculation of maturity value, any amount in fraction of a rupee shall be rounded off to the nearest rupee and for this purpose, any amount of fifty paisa or more shall be treated as one rupee and any amount less than fifty paisa shall be ignored.
(3) A certificate of annual accrual of interest shall be issued by the accounts office, on demand, to the account holder. The interest as specified in the Table below shall accrue to the holder or holders of the certificate at the end of each year and the interest so accrued at the end of each year upto the end of the fourth year shall be deemed to have been reinvested on behalf of the holder and aggregated with the amount of face value of the certificate.

TABLE

The year for which interest accrues	Amount of interest (rupees) accruing on certificate of 1000 rupees denomination
First Year	79.00
Second Year	85.24
Third Year	91.98
Fourth Year	99.24
Fifth Year	107.08

Note: The amount of interest accruing on a certificate of any other denomination shall be proportionate to the amount specified in the said Table.

6. Pledging of account.-
(1) An Account may be pledged or transferred as security, on an application made by the depositor in Form-3 supported with acceptance letter from the pledgee.
(2) Transfer of an account under this paragraph may be made to-

• the President of India or the Governor of a State in his official capacity;
• the Reserve Bank of India or a Scheduled Bank or a Cooperative Society, including a Co-operative Bank;
• a public or private corporation or a Government company;
• a local authority; or
• a housing finance company approved by the National Housing Bank and notified by the Central Government:
• Provided that the transfer of an account opened on behalf of a minor or a person of unsound mind shall not be permitted under this rule unless the guardian of the minor or the person of unsound mind, as the case may be, certifies in writing that the minor or the person of unsound mind, as the case may be, is alive and that the transfer is for the benefit of the minor or the person of unsound mind.

(3) When any account is transferred as security under sub-paragraph (1), the authorised officer shall make the following endorsement in the record of the Account, including the Savings Certificate, namely:-
“Transferred as security to …..” .

(4) Except as otherwise provided in this scheme, the transferee of an account under this paragraph shall, until it is transferred back under sub-paragraph (5), be deemed to be the depositor.

(5) An account transferred under this paragraph may, on written authority of the transferee, be re-transferred back with the previous sanction in writing of the authorised officer and when any such retransfer is made, the authorised officer of the accounts office shall make the following endorsement in the record of the account, including Certificate, namely:-
“transferred back to……”.

(6) A blind or a person with physical infirmity making him incapable of operating the account may pledge his deposit through any literate individual whom he authorises for this purpose.

7. Premature closure of account.-
(1) The account shall not be closed before maturity except in the following cases, namely:-

• on the death of the account holder in a single account, or any or all the account holders in a joint account;
• on forfeiture by a pledgee being a Gazetted Officer, when the pledge is in conformity with this Scheme;
• when ordered by a court.

(2) Where an account is prematurely closed under sub-paragraph (1) before the expiry of one year from the date of deposit, only principal amount shall be payable.

(3) If the account is prematurely closed under sub-paragraph (1) after the expiry of one year but before the expiry of three years from the date of deposit, the premature closure shall be allowed and on such premature closure of the account interest on principal amount at the rate applicable to the Post Office Savings Account from time to time for the complete months for which the account has been held, shall be payable.

(4) If an account is prematurely closed under sub-paragraph (1) after the expiry of three years from the date of the opening, the amount payable, inclusive of interest accrued under paragraph 5 for a deposit of one thousand rupees and at a proportionate rate for other amounts of deposits, shall be as specified in the table below:-

TABLE

(Table showing premature closure value of account opened on or after date of notification with 1000 rupees)

Period from the date of the account to the date of its pre-mature closure	Amount payable inclusive of interest (Rupees)
(1)	(2)
Three years or more, but less than three years and six months	1221.61
Three years and six months or more, but less than four years	1263.05
Four years or more, but less than four years and six months	1305.90
Four years and six months or more, but less than five years	1350.20

8.Transfer of account from one individual to another.-
An account may be transferred from one individual to another, subject to the condition that the transferee is eligible to open an account under this Scheme, in the following cases, namely:-

(i) on the death of account holder in case of a single account or on the death of all the account holders in a joint account, the amount shall be transferred to the legal heirs or the nominees as the case may be.
(ii) on the order of the court, the account shall be transferred from the account holder to the court or to any other individual as per the orders of the court;
(iii) on pledging, account shall be transferred in accordance with paragraph 6;
(iv) in the event of the death of any of the account holders in a joint account, the account shall be transferred in the name of the surviving account holder or account holders, as the case may be.

9. Payment on the death of account holder.-
 
(1) In the event of death of the depositor of a single account or of all the depositors in a joint account, the eligible balance in the account shall be payable as specified in paragraphs (2) to (6).

(2) If a nomination is in force at the time of death of the depositor of a single account or all the depositors of a joint account, the nominee may make an application in Form-2 to the accounts office for payment of the eligible balance and the application shall be accompanied by the proof of death of the depositor, and where any other nominee has also died, the proof of death of such nominee.

(3) If there are two or more surviving nominees, the eligible balance shall be paid in the proportion as specified by the depositor while making the nomination, and if no such proportion or share is specified, then in equal proportion to all the surviving nominees.

(4) If any nominee dies, his specified share in the eligible balance shall be distributed among the surviving nominees in the same proportion as their specified shares.

(5) Where the surviving nominee is a minor, the payment shall be made to a person appointed by the depositor to receive such payment and, if no such person has been appointed, to the guardian of the minor.

(6) If a depositor dies and there is no nomination in force at the time of his death, and probate of his will or letters of administration of his estate or a succession certificate as granted in the Indian Succession Act, 1925 (39 of 1925) is not produced within six months from the death of the depositor to the authorised officer of the accounts office where the account stands, then,-

(i) if the eligible amount in the account does not exceed Rs. 5 lakh, the authorised officer of the accounts office or the authority specified by the institution to which the accounts office belongs, may pay the same to any person appearing to him as the rightful claimant and to his satisfaction to be entitled to receive the amount or to administer the estate of the deceased, on an application in Form-2 accompanied by the following documents; namely:-

• death certificate;
• pass book or deposit receipt/statement of account in original;
• Affidavit;
• letter of disclaimer;
• Bond of Indemnity;

(ii) if the eligible amount in the account of the deceased is above Rs. 5 lakh, the amount shall be paid by the accounts office to the claimant on submission of ‘Succession Certificate’ issued by the court along with the following documents; namely:-

• claim form;
• pass book or deposit receipt or statement of account in original;
• death certificate of the account holder.

(2) Where there are not more than three surviving nominees or legal heirs, they may, at their option, continue the account and receive the amount of deposit along with interest on maturity in the manner provided for in this Scheme, as if they had opened the account themselves.

(3) Where the account is not continued under sub-paragraph (2), it shall be closed and the amount of deposit along with interest as provided in paragraph 7 shall be paid.
(4) On the death of one or two of the account holders in a joint account, the surviving account holder or holders, if any, shall be treated as the owner or owners of the account and such account holder or holders may continue the account or close the account in the manner specified under sub-paragraph (3).

10. Application of General Rules.-
The provisions of the General Rules shall, so far as may be, apply in relation to the matters for which no provision has been made in this Scheme.

11. Power to relax.-
Where the Central Government is satisfied that the operation of any of the provisions of this Scheme causes undue hardship to the account holder, it may by order, for reasons to be recorded in writing, relax the requirements of that provision or provisions in a manner not inconsistent with the provisions of the Act.

[F.No.2/2/2018 NS (Pt.I)]
RAJAT KUMAR MISHRA Jt. Secy

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