I don’t think it will transform into a big corpus which will take care of retirement,but will help to create awareness for retirement planning.
The generation of whats app, flipkart, and pizza hut needs to understand that we are not provided by any assured retired benefit and have to accumulate our retirement fund on our own. So if you have not yet seriously given a thought to Retirement planning start atleast with NPS now..
Let’s understand some of the aspects of the schemes :
- What is the New Pension Scheme?
- How it works?
- What are Tier I and Tier II accounts in the NPS?
- What are the three categories in the NPS?
- Fees and Expenses related to the NPS?
- What is the minimum amount needed to invest in the NPS?
- What are the tax implications of NPS?
- How can I open a NPS account?
- Guarantee of returns under NPS?
- Who will pay the pension?
What is the New Pension Scheme?
The NPS was introduced by the government to give people a way to get a pension during their old age. Employees of the government sector already get a pension, so this scheme was introduced as a social security measure that enables people from the unorganized sector to draw a pension as well.
The working mechanism is quite simple – you contribute a certain sum every month during your working years, which is then invested according to your preference. You can then withdraw the money when you retire i.e.60 years of age.
How it Works ?
You can enroll in the NPS at any time if you are a citizen of India and at least 18 years of age; no entry is, however, allowed after 60 years of age. You should take advantage of compounding of your wealth by starting right away.
The earlier you start, the greater will be the growth of your pension wealth.
Under NPS, how your money is invested will depend upon your own choice. NPS offers you a number of fund managers (six) and multiple investment options (three) to choose from. In case you do not want to exercise a choice as regards asset allocation, your money will be invested as per the “Auto Choice” option.
You can open an NPS account with authorized branches of service providers called ‘Points of Presence’ (POPs).
You have the option to shift from one branch to another branch of a POP at your convenience.
What are Tier I and Tier II accounts in the NPS?
Like any other pension NPS is meant to be a pension scheme, so the basic purpose of it is to give you a steady stream of income on your retirement.
Tier I and Tier II are two options under the scheme where you can invest your money, the primary difference between them is how they differ in allowing you to withdraw your money before retirement.
NPS Tier I
There is severe restriction on withdrawing your money before the age of 60, because it is necessary to invest 80% of your money in an annuity with Insurance Regulatory Development Authority (IRDA) if you withdraw before 60. You can keep the remaining 20% with you.
When you attain the age of 60, you have to invest at least 40% in an annuity with IRDA regd. Insurance co., the remaining can be withdrawn in lump-sum or in a phased manner.
Here are the details of how your money can be withdrawn in a NPS Tier I account.
When can a subscriber withdraw the amount
NPS Tier II Account
You need to have a Tier I account in order to open a Tier II account.
The Tier II account makes it easy for you to withdraw your money before retirement because there is no limit on the withdrawals you can make from the Tier II account.
You need to maintain a minimum balance of Rs. 2,000, and you can transfer money from the Tier II account to Tier I account, but not the other way around.
There is a Rs. 350 CRA (Credit Record Keeping Agency) charge which is not present in the Tier II account, but the rest of the fees remain the same.
Asset Allocation and Categories in the NPS
There is an Active Choice option, and an Auto Choice option.
Active choice - In the Active Choice you can select how much of your money will be invested in the different classes with a cap of 50% in Class E (Equity).
Auto choice - Your money is invested in a certain percentage in the various classes based on your age.
At the lowest age of entry (18years), 50% - E Class, 30% - C Class and 20% - G Class.These ratios of investment will remain fixed for all contributions until the participant reaches the age of 36. From age 36 onwards, the weight in “E” and“C” asset class will decrease annually and the weight in “G” class willincrease annually till it reaches 10% in “E”, 10% in “C” and 80% in “G”class at age 55.
Here are the three investment classes:
In either of these options you have to select the fund manager who will manage your fund. Choice of fund manages available is as follows:
ICICI Prudential Pension Funds Management Company Limited
IDFC Pension Fund Management Company Limited
Kotak Mahindra Pension Fund Limited
Reliance Capital Pension Fund Limited
SBI Pension Funds Private Limited
UTI Retirement Solutions Limited
There are some expenses associated with NPS list of which is as follows :
*Service tax and other levies, as applicable, will be levied as per the existing tax laws.
What is the minimum amount needed to invest in the NPS?
For a Tier I NPS account you need to contribute a minimum of Rs. 6,000 per year, and make at least 4 contributions in a year. The minimum amount per contribution can be Rs. 500.
Minimum amount for opening Tier II account is Rs. 1,000, minimum balance at the end of a year is Rs. 2,000, and you need to make at least 4 contributions in a year.
What are the tax implications of NPS?
Although you get tax rebate as per proposed tax laws, but withdrawals and pension would be taxed at marginal tax rate.
How can I open a NPS account?
You can open a NPS account by going to the bank branches of the banks that are authorized to sell this.
No Guarantee of returns under NPS?
It doesn’t guarantee you any assured returns , but as expenses are very low and due to professional management you can expect optimal returns.
Who will pay the pension?
Remember NPS will not pay you pension directly, but would offer you to choose and transfer your accumulated wealth to any of the insurance co. Registered with IRDA and offering immediate annuity products.
ABM View-
Keep in mind that NPS won’t pay you a pension directly, the rate of return is not fixed and a withdrawal as well as pension is taxable. But as expenses are very low it has capacity of generating good returns as per the class you are invested in. If you are a conservative investor falling in top tax bracket and have not planned for any other investments for retirement apart from EPF or PPF then should go for it.
