Savings and Investments

Zero balance accounts are saving accounts where average monthly balance (AMB) rule is not applicable. Average monthly balance (AMB) is the minimum average of deposits required by the bank customers in their savings bank accounts. A BSBD or basic savings bank deposit account does not require customers to maintain any particular minimum balance, according to SBI's website- sbi.co.in.

The number of free transactions at ATMs in a month depends on factors such as location of ATM - metro or non-metro - and the owner of ATM - whether it is owned by the home bank or any other bank.

Some fixed deposits come with a premature withdrawal facility while some require a compulsory lock-in period. FD interest rates of most banks are higher for senior citizens as compared to those for the general public.

Users can check their EPF balance, raise claim, check claim status, search establishment, get Employees Provident Fund Organization (EPFO) address and can apply for Jeevan Pramaan certificate via Umang app, which is currently available on google, apple and windows platforms, according to its website - umang.gov.in.

Interest rates on these post office saving schemes move in line with the government's interest rates on small savings schemes, which are revised on a quarterly basis.

To apply for such withdrawal online, the subscriber must have an active UAN (Universal Account Number) and the mobile number used for activating the UAN number should be in working condition.

FDs are of two types: regular and tax-saving. Partial withdrawal from regular FDs is allowed but tax-saving FDs require customers to lock in their savings for a minimum of five years. Leading banks like State Bank of India (SBI), HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, among others offer the option of opening fixed deposit accounts.

In an SBI savings plus account, any surplus fund above a threshold limit from the savings bank account is transferred automatically to a fixed deposit (FD) opened in the multiples of Rs 1,000, according to the lender.

Post office saving scheme: The maturity period of post office RD account is 5 years, which can be continued for another five years on a year-to-year basis, according to India Post's website. The post office FD account offers four maturities: one year, two years, three years, and five years.

In a SBI FD account, depositor can park lump sum amount and avail features like choice of interest payout and liquidity through overdraft (OD) or premature withdrawal, according to SBI's website- sbi.co.in.

Tax Saving: New financial year 2019-20 began today and to avoid last minute investment rush to save income tax, individuals should try and invest in financial products over a period of time.

The nine schemes are Savings Account, Five-Year Recurring Deposit, Time Deposit (TD), Monthly Income Scheme, Senior Citizen Savings Scheme (SCSS), Public Provident Fund (PPF), National Savings Certificates, KVP and Sukanya Samriddhi.

Fixed deposit accounts can be created by visiting a bank branch or even online. These days, most banks offer the facility of opening fixed deposits online.

The minimum amount required to set up a monthly income account is Rs 1,500. Maximum investment limit is Rs 4.5 lakh in single account and Rs 9 lakh in joint account, according to India Post's website. The minimum amount required for opening a post office recurring deposit account (RD), on the other hand, is Rs 10 per month. There is no maximum limit on investment.

NPS (National Pension System)-Swavalamban also known as National Pension System-Lite (NPS-Lite) is a pension scheme designed with intention to secure the future of the people who are economically disadvantaged.