Atal Pension Yojana (APY) Eligibility Benefits and How to Apply Online

BRIEF OF ATAL PENSION YOJANA

The Government of India is concerned about the old age income security of the working poor and is focused on encouraging and enabling them to save for their retirement. To address the longevity risks among the workers in unorganized sector and to encourage the workers in unorganized sector to voluntarily save for their retirement
The GoI has therefore announced a new scheme called Atal Pension Yojana (APY)1 in 2015-16 budget. The APY is focussed on all citizens in the unorganized sector.
The scheme is administered by the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) through NPS architecture.
ATAL PENSION YOJANA JAN DHAN TO JAN SURAKHSHA

HIGHLIGHTS OF ATAL PENSION YOJANA

Under the APY, there is guaranteed minimum monthly pension for the subscribers ranging between Rs. 1000 and Rs. 5000 per month.
The benefit of minimum pension would be guaranteed by the GoI.
GoI will also co-contribute 50% of the subscriber’s contribution or Rs. 1000 per annum, whichever is lower. Government co-contribution is available for those who are not covered by any Statutory Social Security Schemes and is not income tax payer.
GoI will co-contribute to each eligible subscriber, for a period of 5 years who joins the scheme between the period 1st June, 2015 to 31st December, 2015. The benefit of five years of government Co-contribution under APY would not exceed 5 years for all subscribers including migrated Swavalamban beneficiaries.
All bank account holders may join APY. Eligibility
APY is applicable to all citizen of India aged between 18-40 years.
Aadhaar will be the primary KYC. Aadhar and mobile number are recommended to be obtained from subscribers for the ease of operation of the scheme. If not available at the time of registration, Aadhar details may also be submitted later stage.

Charges for default

Banks are required to collect additional amount for delayed payments, such amount will vary from minimum Re 1 per month to Rs 10/- per month as shown below:

Re. 1 per month for contribution upto Rs. 100 per month.
Re. 2 per month for contribution upto Rs. 101 to 500/- per month.
Re 5 per month for contribution between Rs 501/- to 1000/- per month.
Rs 10 per month for contribution beyond Rs 1001/- per month. The fixed amount of interest/penalty will remain as part of the pension corpus of the subscriber. Important information for subscriber: Discontinuation of payments of contribution amount shall lead to following:
After 6 months account will be frozen.
After 12 months account will be deactivated.
After 24 months account will be closed. Subscriber should ensure that the Bank account to be funded enough for auto debit of contribution amount.

Exit :

On attaining the age of 60 years:

The exit from APY is permitted at the age with 100% annuitisation of pension wealth. On exit, pension would be available to the subscriber.

In case of death of the Subscriber due to any cause:

In case of death of subscriber pension would be available to the spouse and on the death of both of them (subscriber and spouse), the pension corpus would be returned to his nominee.

Exit Before the age of 60 Years:

Exit before 60 years of age is not permitted however it is permitted only in exceptional circumstances, i.e., in the event of the death of beneficiary or terminal disease.

Payment of Pension Under Atal Pension Yojana (APY)

You can opt for monthly, quarterly or annual payment of pension from your Atal Pension Yojana account, upon attaining the age of 60.
There’re no premature withdrawals of money you credit in an APY account. The money will be paid to your nominees after you pass away.
However, you can opt out of the APY scheme upon attaining the age of 60 and withdraw your entire investment, along with the regular interest of 4.45 percent per annum.

Age of Entry	Monthly pension of Rs.1000	Monthly pension of Rs.2000	Monthly pension of Rs.3000	Monthly pension of Rs.4000	Monthly pension of Rs.5000
18	42	84	126	168	210
20	50	100	150	198	248
25	76	151	226	301	376
30	116	231	347	462	577
35	181	362	543	722	902
40	291	582	873	1164	1454

Banks Offering Atal Pension Yojana Accounts

If you’re interested in opening an Atal Pension Yojana account, here’s a list of banks where you can avail the facility.

Bank of India
State Bank of India
Post Office bank
Central Bank of India
Union Bank of India
Indian Bank
Indian Overseas Bank
Punjab National Bank
Canara Bank
Bank of Maharashtra
ICICI Bank
HDFC Bank
Yes Bank
IndusInd Bank
Axis Bank
IDBI Bank

Due to popularity of the scheme, the Indian government has also allowed some Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) that have branches in rural parts of the country to open APY accounts. However, these accounts will be held at banks that sponsor the RRB.

Atal Pension Yojana (APY) at India Post Bank

Most people prefer opening an Atal Pension Yojana account at the post office. This is a very simple process, since a post office would be available easily near your location.

To open an APY account at post offices, follow these simple steps.
Visit your nearest post office.
Open a savings bank account at the post office.
You will require complete Know Your Customer (KYC) formalities to open such an account.
This means, you’ll to submit copies of your Aadhar card or driving license, passport or any other proof for your address along with a photo ID proof for your identity.
The post office will also ask you for three passport sized photographs to open a savings bank account.
Depending on your location, a post office will open your savings bank account within three to 10 days.
That’s because if you’re opening a postal savings account at a smaller post office, the account details have to be submitted and approved by the local Sub Office of India Post.
Once you get the savings bank account number and passbook, approach the post office once again.
Here you will have to enroll for the APY scheme by filling out the specific form.
The amount of money for your APY scheme subscription will be debited directly from your savings account every month.
Therefore, remember to maintain that much balance in your bank account.

In Conclusion

As we can see, the Atal Pension Yojana is an ideal alternative for persons that work in the largely unorganized sector and have no pension benefits from their employers.

As I mention earlier, the monthly installments for an APY scheme subscription are also very low and would depend upon your age at the time of opening the account. However, if you’re under 40, I would recommend you to open an APY account.