Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana: A Plain Guide for Parents

What is Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana?

Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana is a savings account meant only for a girl child. The government calls it the Sukanya Samriddhi Account, and the rules that run it today are the Sukanya Samriddhi Account Scheme, 2019, as amended later. The scheme was launched on 22 Jan 2015 under the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao campaign. Over 4 crore accounts had been opened across India as of January 2025.

In simple terms, the sukanya samriddhi yojana scheme works like this. A parent opens the account in the daughter's name, pays in during the first 15 years, and interest keeps adding up until maturity, 21 years after opening. Because the Government of India fixes the interest rate, a post office account and a bank account earn exactly the same. Many people also call it the SSY yojana or simply the sukanya yojana. Whatever name you hear, it is the same scheme.

People sometimes search for a "LIC sukanya samriddhi yojana" or an insurance plan with a similar name. SSY itself is a savings account at a post office or authorised bank. If someone offers it to you as an insurance policy, ask clearly what product you are buying before you pay.

Who can open an account

The account is opened by a guardian for a daughter still under 10 on the day the account opens. A guardian here means a natural parent or a legal guardian. Grandparents can open it only if they are the girl's legal guardian.

• One account per girl.
• A family may open SSY for two daughters at most.
• Twins or triplets (girls) arriving in the first or second order of birth are an exception, backed by an affidavit from the guardian and the girls' birth certificates.
• The account is for a resident Indian girl child.

Until she is 18, the guardian handles the account; from 18 she runs it herself once her documents are submitted. For the exact cut-off and the twins rule in detail, read the age limit guide, and for paperwork see the account opening and documents page.

Deposits: how much and for how long

Each financial year needs at least Rs 250. Opening needs Rs 250, and after that any amount in steps of Rs 50 is accepted. The ceiling is Rs 1,50,000 a year; anything above it taken by mistake is refunded without interest.

Payments are made in the first 15 years only. In years 16 to 21 nothing more goes in, yet interest keeps getting added.

If you miss the minimum Rs 250 in a year, the account is marked "in default". It can be revived within the 15-year paying period by clearing Rs 250 for every year missed along with a Rs 50 fine per year. Even unrevived, the money already in keeps earning the scheme rate. Limits, fines and payment options are on the deposit rules page.

Interest rate and how often it changes

This quarter (October to December 2026) SSY pays 8.2% a year, unchanged from July to September. The rate moved up from 8.0% to 8.2% on 1 Jan 2024 and has stayed there since.

The Ministry of Finance reviews small savings rates every quarter, so the rate can go up, go down or stay the same. Whatever the rate in a quarter, your whole balance earns it for that quarter.

Each month, the smallest balance after the 5th is what counts for interest, and the year's interest is added in one go when the financial year ends. Paying by the 5th therefore helps. Past rates since 2015 and the full method are on the interest rate page.

Benefits of Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana

Of all the sukanya samriddhi yojana scheme details, these are the reasons parents mention most.

• Government-set rate: no bank or post office can offer a different SSY rate.
• Small start: you can keep the account active with just Rs 250 a year.
• Tax treatment: under the old regime the deposit can cut taxable income, and the interest and final payout are tax-free for everyone.
• Money for studies: up to half the balance can be drawn for her studies once she is 18 or has cleared Class 10.
• Long compounding: interest is added every year, and the balance grows for six more years after deposits stop.

The trade-off is that the money is locked in for a long time, and the rate can change every quarter. To see what a regular deposit might add up to, try the SSY calculator. As an example from that page, Rs 1,50,000 a year at 8.2%, deposited as each new year starts, grows to about Rs 71,82,119 by year 21, provided the rate never changes.

Maturity and withdrawals

Maturity comes 21 years after the account is opened, whatever the girl's age at that point. The girl, as account holder, receives the money.

Before that, money can come out only in a few cases:

• Education: she may take out as much as half of the balance standing at the close of the last financial year, from age 18 or after Class 10, whichever is earlier. It can come at once or be spread over a maximum of five years (one payment per year), never above the real fee amount.
• Marriage: full early closure is possible when she is 18 or older on the wedding date, and the request falls in a window starting a month before the wedding and ending three months after it.
• If the girl dies: the guardian gets the money and the account ends.
• Serious hardship: a life-threatening illness she suffers, or the guardian's death, can justify closure, though not in the first 5 years.

The withdrawal rules page covers forms, interest in each case and common mistakes.

Tax benefits

Tax experts call SSY an EEE scheme, short for exempt, exempt, exempt: money put in can be deducted, interest earned each year is not taxed, and the final payout is not taxed either.

The deduction is limited to Rs 1.5 lakh in total along with other eligible items. Until March 2026 this was Section 80C of the Income-tax Act, 1961. From 1 Apr 2026 the Income-tax Act, 2025 applies, where the same deduction sits in Section 123 and SSY is still on the list. You get this deduction only if your return uses the old regime. The new default regime offers none for SSY, though the interest and payout stay tax-free whichever regime you pick. Our tax benefits page goes further.

Where to open and how to deposit

Any post office will open it, and so will bank branches authorised for SSY. Banks reported as offering it include SBI, Bank of Baroda, PNB, Canara Bank, Union Bank of India, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank, among others, but this list comes from secondary sources and may not be complete. Ask your branch.

1. Get Form-1 from the post office or bank.
2. Carry her birth certificate plus your own KYC proof (identity and address).
3. Submit the form at the counter with the first deposit of at least Rs 250.
4. Collect the passbook and keep it safe.

There is no fully online way to open the account. SBI lets you fill the form in its netbanking, but you still visit the branch. After opening, deposits at the counter can be cash, a cheque or a demand draft. A post office account can also be funded through the IPPB app or India Post's DOP mobile banking, and a bank account through that bank's net or mobile banking where offered. Branch-specific steps are on the post office page and the bank branches page.

Staying safe and checking the latest rules

Since this scheme involves your child's savings, a few simple habits help.

• Deposit only at the counter or through your own bank or India Post app. Do not hand cash to an agent who promises to deposit it for you.
• Never share an OTP, PIN or passbook details with a caller who claims to be from the post office or a bank.
• Ignore links in messages offering a "new SSY scheme" or bonus. Rate changes are announced by the government, not by forwarded messages.

Rules and rates do change. Before you act, check the present rule with your branch. A Hindi version of the main points is on our Hindi page.