Atal Pension Yojana Benefits, Eligibility, and Online Registration Process for Atal Pension Yojana 2023

Atal Pension Yojana Benefits, Eligibility, and Online Registration Process for Atal Pension Yojana 2023

Atal Pension Yojana (APY) is a retirement income security scheme available to all savings accounts holders between the ages of 18-40. The scheme aims to alleviate longevity risks faced by workers in the unorganized sector by encouraging them to voluntarily save for their retirement.

Scheme Name	Atal Pension Yojana
Was launched	Year 2015
Initiated by	by the central government
Beneficiary	People from unorganised sector of the country
Objective	Provide pension

Focus of ATAL PENSION YOJANA (APY)

The primary focus of the Atal Pension Yojana (APY) is to address the issue of retirement income security for the unorganized sector workers in India, who often do not have access to formal pension systems.

By providing a voluntary pension scheme, APY aims to encourage such workers to save for their post-retirement life and ensure a regular source of income for them during their old age. Thus, the scheme mainly targets those who otherwise may not have access to adequate social security programs or retirement savings options.

APY Subscriber Contribution Chart –

https://www.npscra.nsdl.co.in/nsdl/scheme-details/APY_Subscribers_Contribution_Chart_1.pdf

Penalty for Default in Atal Pension Yojana

Under Atal Pension Yojana (APY), subscribers can choose to make their contributions on a monthly basis. In case of delayed payment, banks will collect an additional penalty amount, which will vary from a minimum of Rs. 1 per month to Rs. 10 per month, depending on the monthly contribution amount. Specifically, the penalty rates are as follows:

• Rs. 1 per month for contributions up to Rs. 100 per month.
• Rs. 2 per month for contributions between Rs. 101 and Rs. 500 per month.
• Rs. 5 per month for contributions between Rs. 501 and Rs. 1000 per month.
• Rs. 10 per month for contributions beyond Rs. 1001 per month.

The interest or penalty charged on delayed payments will be added to the subscriber’s pension corpus. Non-payment of contributions will result in the freezing of the account after 6 months, deactivation after 12 months, and closing of the account after 24 months.

Benefits of Atal Pension Yojana

The benefits of Atal Pension Yojana (APY) upon exit at 60 years include:

• Guaranteed minimum pension amount: Each subscriber will receive a minimum pension amount of Rs. 1000 per month or Rs. 2000 per month or Rs. 3000 per month or Rs. 4000 per month or Rs. 5000 per month until death.
• Guaranteed minimum pension amount to the spouse: In case of the subscriber’s demise, the spouse will receive the same pension amount as the subscriber until the death of the spouse.
• Return of pension wealth to the nominee: After the subscriber and spouse’s demise, the nominee will be entitled to receive the pension wealth accumulated till the age of 60 years of the subscriber.

Contributions to APY are eligible for tax benefits under section 80CCD(1), similar to the National Pension System (NPS).

In case of voluntary exit before 60 years of age, the subscriber will receive only their contributions along with the actual accrued income earned on their contributions after deducting the account maintenance charges. However, subscribers who received government co-contribution before 31st March 2016 will not receive the co-contribution and the accrued income earned on the same if they opt for voluntary exit before 60 years of age.

In case of the subscriber’s death before 60 years of age, two options are available:

• Option 1: The spouse can continue contributing to the APY account of the subscriber until the original subscriber would have attained the age of 60 years. The spouse will receive the same pension amount as the subscriber until death.
• Option 2: The entire accumulated corpus till date under APY will be returned to the spouse or nominee.

Eligiblity of Atal Pension Yojana

Age of joining and contribution period

The minimum age of joining APY is 18 years and maximum age is 40 years. The age of exit and start of pension would be 60 years. Therefore, minimum period of contribution by the subscriber under APY would be 20 years or more.

All bank account holders under the eligible category may join APY with auto debit facility to accounts.

Who is not eligible for Atal Pension Scheme?

The eligibility criteria for joining APY, as well as the potential consequences for non-eligibility, can be summarized as follows:

• Taxpayers will not be allowed to join APY starting from October 1, 2022. If it is discovered that a subscriber who enrolled on or after this date has paid income tax before applying for APY, their account will be terminated, and they will receive the total amount of pension wealth accrued up to that point.

• Members of statutory social security schemes are not eligible for APY. These include the Employees’ Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provision Act, 1952, the Coal Mines Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provision Act, 1948, the Assam Tea Plantation Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provision, 1955, the Seamens’ Provident Fund Act, 1966, the Jammu Kashmir Employees’ Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provision Act, 1961, and any other statutory social security scheme.

What is the Application Process for ATAL PENSION YOJANA ?

Online Process-:

There are two ways to open an APY account, and they can be summarized as follows:

Process 1:

• Open the APY account using your bank’s net banking facility. Log in to your internet banking account and search for APY on the dashboard.
• Fill in your basic and nominee details.
• Give your consent for auto-debit of the premium from your account and submit the form.

Process 2:

• Visit the website “https://enps.nsdl.com/eNPS/NationalPensionSystem.html” and select “Atal Pension Yojana”.
• Select “APY Registration”.
• Fill in the basic details in the form, and complete the KYC through one of the following options: Offline KYC, Aadhaar KYC, or Virtual ID.
• Once the basic details are filled, an acknowledgement number will be generated.
• Fill in your personal details and decide on the pension amount and frequency of contribution for the scheme.
• Fill in your nominee details.
• After submitting your personal and nominee details, you will be redirected to the NSDL website for eSign.
• Once your Aadhaar is OTP verified, you will be successfully registered in APY.

Offline Process

To close an APY account before the age of 60, the following steps need to be taken:

• Fill out the “Account Closure Form (Voluntary Exit) form” and provide relevant documents to the APY Service Provider branch. The form is available at: www.npscra.nsdl.co.in >> Home >> Atal Pension Yojana >> Forms >> Withdrawal Form >> Voluntary exit APY withdrawal form. The form can also be obtained from the APY Service Provider branch directly.
• It is important for subscribers not to close the savings bank account linked with the APY account, even after the APY account is closed. This is because the proceeds received on premature exit are transferred into the APY linked savings bank account. Closing this account may create problems in transferring the closure proceeds.

Documents Required for Atal Pension Yojana

The following are the mandatory requirements to apply for the Atal Pension Yojana (APY):

• Aadhaar Card: A subscriber must have a valid Aadhaar card to apply for APY.
• Active Bank/Post Office Savings Account Details: A subscriber must provide the details of an active bank/post office savings account to set up auto-debit for contribution payments to the APY account.

FAQ’s on Atal Pension Yojana

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