Bank of India (BOI) officially rolled out the Mahila Samman Scheme Certificate scheme on July 4, 2023. With this, the public sector lender has become the first bank to offer this scheme at all its branches.
Earlier, on June 27, 2023, the Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance had issued an e-gazette notification regarding the scheme. The e-gazette permitted all public sector banks and eligible private sector banks to operationalise the Mahila Samman Saving Certificate scheme at their branches.
Prior to this announcement, one could open an account under this scheme only at the post office. Now, banks can also offer this scheme.
Union Minister of Finance Nirmala Sitharaman had launched the Mahila Samman Savings Certificate scheme this February during her Budget Speech for FY 2023–24.
This scheme is only for women investors. A woman can open the Mahila Samman Savings Certificate scheme for herself, or, a guardian can open an account on behalf of a minor girl.
The minimum deposit limit in this scheme is Rs. 1,000 and in multiples of Rs. 100 thereof, and the maximum limit is Rs 2 lakh. One can open multiple accounts in the scheme after a gap of three months between the existing accounts, but the total investment cap for all accounts taken together will be Rs. 2 lakh.
According to the latest rate of interest on small savings schemes, announced on June 30, 2023, the Mahila Samman Savings Certificate scheme will fetch the investor a rate of interest of 7.5 per cent per annum. The interest is compounded quarterly and is credited back into the account and paid at the time of maturity.
One can withdraw a partial amount from the account in case of an emergency. The withdrawal can be made after one year from the date of opening the account, and the withdrawal limit is 40 per cent of the balance in the account.
In case of the death of the accountholder, or life-threatening disease or death of the guardian, the account can be closed, and the amount withdrawn prematurely. In that case, the interest will be paid on the principal amount.
The accountholder can request closure of the account for any other emergency. In that case, the account can be closed six months after opening, and the interest to be paid to the accountholder will be reduced by 2 per cent i.e., 5.5 per cent.
The interest earned under this scheme is taxable. One can invest in this scheme until March 31, 2025.
For opening the account, the required documents will include Aadhaar and PAN card, an account opening form, and a cheque or pay-in slip with the deposit amount.
