Do Not Let Your PPF, NPS, Sukanya Samridhi Accounts Get Inactive, Invest Before April 1

Ahead of the culmination of financial year, the tax depositors have to make sure to deposit the minimum requisite amount in all the tax-saving schemes such as public provident fund (PPF), Sukanya Samridhi Yojana, National Pension System (NPS) so that none of these accounts turns inoperative or cease to exist. There is no denying the fact that it's a human tendency to postpone most of the annual chores till the end of financial year for a lay person, however it is not a good idea. One must keep it in mind that the last day of this year (March 31) happens to fall on a Saturday, and the day before that is a gazette holiday on the occasion of Good Friday. Though most financial transaction can be carried out virtually, thus rendering the need for the offices to remain open practically irrelevant, however, one must keep some leeway for any gaps, if they arise.

Following are the tax saving schemes wherein one must invest before April 1, 2018:

Public Provident Fund (PPF): The minimum deposit in a PPF account is Rs 500 for a year while the maximum is Rs 1.50 lakh. The amount deposited is exempted under the section 88 of Income Tax Act. In case you miss depositing the money, the account is likely to become discontinued. However, there is a mechanism to unfreeze the account. For this, one will have to pay a penalty of Rs 50 for each year along with the unpaid minimum contribution of Rs 500. In case the PPF account is frozen, one can't carry out withdrawal nor can one use for any purpose such as taking a loan against it. The loan facilities are available from third financial year upto the fifth financial year. (Also Read: State Bank Of India (SBI) Public Provident Fund (PPF) Scheme: 10 Things To Know)

Sukanya Samridhi Yojana: In this scheme also, the account become inactive if the minimum annual contribution is not made. The amount deposited under Sukanya Samridhi Yojana is exempted from tax under section 80C of the I-T Act. The minimum contribution is Rs 1,000 per year, while the maximum deposit limit is Rs 1,50,000. In order to unfreeze the account, one is liable to make a payment of Rs 50 per year for each unpaid year along with the contribution that got skipped by chance. For instance, if you missed making the payment for past two years then you will be made to pay Rs 1,000X2, plus penalty of RS 50X2, which equals the total amount to Rs 2,000 plus Rs 100, bringing the total to Rs 2,100. In Sukanya Samridhi Yojana, there is no provision of loan facility against the deposit as is allowed in the case of PPF. (Also Read: Sukanya Samriddhi Scheme: How To Open, Deposit Rules, Maturity, Premature Withdrawal And Other Details)

National Pension System (NPS): The minimum contribution is Rs 6,000 for the tier-1 account per annum. The tier-2 account is voluntary, and hence no minimum contribution is mandatory. In case you skipped making the deposit, you will be liable to pay a minimum contribution of Rs 1,000 and another Rs 500 for the year you missed. Add to this a penalty of Rs 100 for each year of non-payment. The amount deposited is exempted from income tax under section 80C of the I-T Act, while additional benefit of Rs 50,000 is given under Section 80CCD(1b) of the Income Tax Act. (Also Read: National Pension System (NPS): 10 Things To Know Before March 31, 2018).