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The Post Office, like any other nationalised bank, has long been a trusted place for money deposits and transactions. This is particularly true for the elderly. Branches of the Post Office across the country offer a variety of savings plans.
One such scheme is the Post Office Monthly Income Scheme, which allows you to invest a set amount and get a monthly fixed interest payment. You can invest in this at any post office, as the name implies.
India Post offers the Post Office Monthly Income Scheme (MIS), which is a form of term deposit account. The MIS scheme offers monthly interest and is ideal for people looking for a steady stream of income from their assets. The Department of Posts (DoP), popularly known as India Post, offers this type of investment scheme. Those interested in investing in monthly income plans offered by the Post Office can do so at any post office in their area. The interest rate on the Post Office Monthly Income Scheme is 6.6 percent per annum as of May 1, 2021.
The scheme became active on 1st December 2011 with a maturity period of 5 years i.e., 60 months. The scheme is thus treated as active from the date when the investor opens the account.
It is not at all tough to open an account in the Post Office Monthly Income Scheme.
The following is the process that an investor needs to follow for opening an account in the Post Office Monthly Income Scheme:
The following terms and conditions prevail, in case, if the investor withdraws the deposit amount before the maturity period i.e. 5 years:
This scheme is specially created for investors who do not want to face any risks, who are not interested in investing in equity -related instruments, and who are searching for such scheme which can give a fixed monthly income. It is particularly meant for senior citizens, and for those who have just stopped working and will no longer receive any salary and are set to deposit in a scheme to receive a fixed amount every month that can be used to keep up with their standard of living. Thus, basically, the Post Office Monthly Income Scheme was introduced so that there can be a steady flow of income for a longer period.
Mr X opts to put his money in Post Office Monthly Income Scheme. He puts in Rs. 1, 00,000/- for maturity of five years. An interest rate of 8.5% per annum will offer him Rs. 708/- every month. . At the maturity of this scheme, he will receive all his deposit money back.
Mr X can withdraw the money in two ways- i.e. either collect it from the post office where he deposited the amount or can get it transferred to his savings account through ECS. However, money can be actually withdrawn every month by Mr X. Mr X can let all the money get collected for some months at a time and afterwards, withdraw the amount. However, it is not advisable to let the money get collected for some months as it will not give Mr X any interest.
A new aspect was further added to make the Post Office Monthly Income Scheme more successful. The investor would have an opportunity to club his Post Office Monthly Income Scheme with a recurring deposit. In this new feature, the interest earned through Post Office Monthly Income Scheme can be further invested in recurring deposits which would have allowed an investor to make more money.
Currently, the rate of interest on the amount deposited in this scheme is 7.30% per annum. Also, the interest amount which will be receivable every month can be further invested in recurring deposits at the rate of 7.30% per annum.
Thus, the main motive behind the investors investing in Post Office Monthly Income Scheme is that they are guaranteed to get a fixed amount of money in the form of interest every month which will be treated as a regular income for them. Although it doesn’t have any tax incentives, it is still preferred as an investment option by small investors.
In case if you feel that this scheme is worth investing in. then do consider it at the earliest and invest some money in the scheme.
The post office schemes which are eligible for deduction under Section 80C are 5-year Time Deposit, Public Provident Fund, Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana, National Savings Certificate and senior Citizen Savings Scheme (SCSS). Out of them the highest rate of interest is offered by SCSS of 8.6%. However, only senior citizens are eligible for investing in SCSS. Hence, for individuals who are not senior citizens, the highest rate of interest is offered by Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana. Hence, the best post office scheme for senior citizens is Senior Citizens Savings Scheme and for other individuals, it is Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana.
The amount invested in the post office monthly income scheme is not tax-deductible. In other words, investment in POMIS doesn't offer any tax benefits. Further, interest earned on the amount invested is taxable.
The best schemes in India for regular monthly income are corporate deposits, post office monthly income schemes, government bonds and senior citizens savings scheme.
The Post Office Monthly Income Scheme is a small savings scheme offered by Indian Post Offices that allows investors to save a regular amount each month. Interest is added to the investment at an applicable rate each month.
POMIS is different from other monthly investment schemes in many ways. It provides a guaranteed return at 7.7% p.a. while other MIS do not provide a guaranteed return. No TDS is deducted from interest payout of POMIS, while in the case of other MIS it is deducted. It is a low-risk investment suitable for small investors while other MIS are generally high-risk investments.
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