The Atal Pension Scheme, which recently lapsed, has been extended by the Union Cabinet. Here are all the updates about the scheme!
What is the Atal Pension Yojana (APY)
In its essence, the APY is a social security scheme that the Government launched back in 2015 with an aim to provide a pension between Rs. 1,000 and Rs. 5,000. Owing to the grand success of the scheme, the Union Cabinet has decided to not only extend the scheme but also expand its focus from households to individuals. According to Government reports, over 1 crore individuals have benefited from the scheme in the past three years. With the intention of reaching out to more people, the improved scheme comes with revised terms and benefits. Care to find out? Read on!
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What’s new?
Relaxed age bracket
The previous version of the Atal Pension Scheme required people to be between ages 18-60 to enroll in the scheme. Now, the Government has taken increased life expectancy into consideration and broadened the age bracket to 18-65 years.
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Increased accidental insurance cover
Those who enrol in the scheme post-August 28 will be covered under accidental insurance up to Rs. 2 lakh as opposed to the earlier cover of Rs. 1 lakh.
Increased overdraft
The overdraft facility under this scheme has also been increased from Rs. 5,000 to Rs. 10,000.
How to apply?
The scheme is available with all nationalised banks so you can choose to visit any of these banks to get your application started. The application forms are also available online, so you can just download it from the official website. Owing to India’s lingual diversity, the forms are available in English, Hindi, Bangla, Gujarati, Kannada, Marathi, Odia, Tamil, and Telugu.
Fill up the form and submit it along with a photocopy of your Aadhaar Card to the bank.
Also, please ensure that the bank has a valid phone number of yours for further communication. You will receive a confirmation message once the application is approved.
Interesting Things You Might Want to Know About the Atal Pension Yojana
- You can increase your premium at your will. All you need to do is visit your bank and make the necessary changes, by speaking with your manager.
- In case of default in payments, a charge of Re 1 will be levied on every contribution of Rs 100 or part thereof, in case you default on payments for 6 months, your account will be blocked and in the case of 12 months your account will be closed and the remaining amount will go to the subscriber.
- In case you decide to close the scheme before you turn 60 for any reason, take note that you will be entitled to just your contribution and the interest earned on that amount. This will not include the government’s contribution and interest earned on that amount.
- Early withdrawal is not generally entertained but in cases of death/terminal illness, an exception is made.
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How much to contribute?
This depends on your age at the time of enrolment as well as the pension slab you opt for between Rs 1,000 and Rs 5,000. It also depends on your payment cycle-monthly, quarterly, or half-yearly.
With these revisions in place, the Atal Pension Yojana looks to gather more attention, and based on its previous success, we may see an even bigger impact this time around.
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