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How to use the sukanya samriddhi calculator
- 1Enter the amount you plan to deposit each year, between ₹250 and ₹1,50,000.
- 2Check the interest rate; the current notified figure is filled in for you.
- 3Read the maturity value, and open the year-by-year table to see how it builds.
- 4Note the six deposit-free years at the end — they do a lot of the work.
Fifteen years of deposits, twenty-one years of interest
The Sukanya Samriddhi account has a structure no other small-savings scheme shares, and it is the single most misunderstood thing about it. You are required to deposit for only the first fifteen years from opening. The account, however, does not mature until twenty-one years from opening. For those last six years you put in nothing at all and the balance simply compounds.
Those six years are not a footnote. On the maximum deposit, the balance at year fifteen is roughly ₹44 lakh, and by year twenty-one it has grown to roughly ₹70 lakh without a rupee of further contribution. More than a third of the final amount comes from a period in which you deposit nothing.
This is why a calculator that simply compounds fifteen years of deposits for fifteen years — which several do — understates the outcome badly. The year-by-year table here shows the deposit column falling to zero at year sixteen while the balance keeps climbing, because seeing that is what makes the scheme's shape obvious.
The rate, and why it is worth watching
SSY has consistently paid the highest rate of any government small-savings scheme — typically a little above PPF and comfortably above bank fixed deposits. That premium exists because the scheme is narrowly targeted and heavily locked in, and it is the main financial argument for using it.
The rate is notified quarterly by the Ministry of Finance and applies to the balance for that quarter; it is not fixed at the rate prevailing when you opened the account. A twenty-one-year projection at today's rate therefore assumes something that has never been true for twenty-one years running. Rates have drifted downward over the last decade, so it is prudent to treat the output as an optimistic bound and re-run it occasionally.
Interest is compounded annually, which is where SSY loses a little to schemes that compound quarterly at the same headline rate. It is credited at the end of each financial year, so a deposit made in April earns a full year's interest and one made in March earns almost none — depositing early in the financial year is worth real money over fifteen repetitions.
Who can open one, and the rules that bind it
An account can be opened by a parent or legal guardian for a girl child under ten, at a post office or an authorised bank. One account per girl, and a maximum of two accounts per family — with an exception for twins or triplets, which requires a birth certificate as proof.
The deposit floor is ₹250 a year and the ceiling ₹1,50,000. Missing the minimum makes the account default; it can be revived by paying ₹50 a year in penalty plus the missed minimums, but the interest on the shortfall is lost in the meantime. The ceiling is a hard limit — anything deposited above it earns no interest and is simply returned.
Withdrawal is tightly constrained by design. Up to 50% of the balance at the end of the previous financial year may be withdrawn once the girl turns eighteen or passes the tenth standard, and only for higher education, against documentary proof. The account can be closed early for the girl's marriage after eighteen. Otherwise the money is locked until maturity. That inflexibility is the real cost of the higher rate.
The tax treatment, and how it compares
SSY is one of the few remaining EEE instruments: the deposit is deductible under §80C, the interest accrues tax-free, and the maturity amount is tax-free. Nothing is taxed at any point. PPF shares this status; bank fixed deposits, which are taxed on accrued interest every year, emphatically do not.
The §80C deduction is shared, though, with EPF, PPF, ELSS, life insurance premiums and home-loan principal, all competing for the same ₹1.5 lakh. Depositing the SSY maximum consumes the entire limit on its own. And under the new tax regime, §80C is unavailable altogether — so for anyone on the new regime the deduction is worth nothing and only the tax-free interest and maturity remain.
Compared with an equity index fund over a twenty-one-year horizon, SSY will very probably return less. What it offers instead is a sovereign guarantee, a tax-free outcome and a lock-in that stops you spending the money — which for an education fund with a fixed date attached is a reasonable trade. Many families use both, and the SIP calculator on this site models the other half.
Frequently asked questions
How many years do I have to deposit?
Fifteen, counted from the date the account is opened. The account then continues to earn interest without further deposits until it matures at twenty-one years — those last six years add a large share of the final amount.
What is the maximum I can deposit?
₹1,50,000 per financial year, across all accounts for that girl. The minimum is ₹250 a year; missing it makes the account default until revived with a ₹50 penalty plus the arrears.
Who is eligible?
A parent or legal guardian can open an account for a girl child under ten. One account per girl and a maximum of two per family, with an exception for twins or triplets on production of a birth certificate.
Is the maturity amount taxable?
No. SSY is exempt-exempt-exempt: the deposit qualifies under §80C, the interest is tax-free as it accrues, and the maturity amount is tax-free. Note that §80C itself is not available under the new tax regime.
Can I withdraw before maturity?
Only in narrow circumstances. Up to 50% of the previous year's closing balance may be withdrawn for higher education once the girl turns eighteen or completes the tenth standard, and the account can be closed for her marriage after eighteen. Otherwise it is locked.
Does the interest rate stay fixed for 21 years?
No. It is notified quarterly and applies to the balance for that quarter, so a long projection at today's rate is an assumption rather than a guarantee. Rates have trended downward over the past decade.