10 September 2026

Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana rules, explained in plain language

Who can open an account, how much you can deposit, when it matures, what you can withdraw at 18, and the two rules that quietly decide how much interest you earn.

The Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana (SSY) is a government savings scheme for a girl child, run through post offices and most banks. The rules are short, but a few of them matter far more than they look.

Who can open one

• A parent or legal guardian, for a girl under 10 at the time of opening.
• One account per girl, and normally two per family (three if the second birth is twins or triplets).
• You need her birth certificate and your own ID and address proof.

How much, and for how long

• Minimum ₹250 a year, maximum ₹1,50,000 a year. The year is the financial year, 1 April to 31 March.
• Deposits are accepted for 15 years from the date of opening.
• The account matures 21 years after opening — six years after the last deposit, during which the balance keeps earning.
• If a year passes with less than ₹250, the account is in default. It can be revived by paying the missing minimum plus a ₹50 penalty per defaulted year.

Money deposited above the yearly cap earns nothing and is returned.

What you can take out

• At 18, up to 50% of the previous year-end balance can be withdrawn for her higher education, once she has an admission offer.
• Full closure is allowed at 21, or earlier if she marries after 18.
• Premature closure on medical or compassionate grounds is possible after five years; the interest is then recalculated at the post-office savings rate.

Tax

Deposits qualify under Section 80C (within the ₹1.5 lakh limit), the interest is tax-free, and so is the maturity amount — the “EEE” treatment.

The two rules that decide your interest

Most guides stop at the list above. These two decide the actual number in the passbook:

1. Interest is calculated monthly on the lowest balance between the 5th and the last day of the month. A deposit that lands on the 6th earns nothing that month. Why the 5th matters →
2. The rate changes every quarter and each quarter’s rate applies only to its own months. An account opened in 2016 has earned at seven different rates so far. Rate history →

Interest is credited once a year, on 31 March. Between credits the passbook shows last year’s balance, which is why it always looks lower than what the account has actually earned.

Sukanya Tracker applies both rules to every deposit you’ve made and shows the balance today, the passbook balance, and the accrued interest between them. Get the app →