Under the new rule, senior citizens and disabled depositors can prematurely withdraw money from savings schemes without visiting the post office.
If you have invested Small Savings Schemes of the Post Office, then this news is of your use. The Department of Posts has recently changed the rules for withdrawing money from small savings schemes of the post office and closing the account. Under the new rule, senior citizens and disabled depositors can prematurely withdraw money from savings schemes without visiting the post office.
According to the circular issued by the post office last month, post office senior citizens and differently-abled are given small savings deposits like Senior Citizens Savings Scheme (SCSS), post office time deposit, savings account on time. Allows withdrawals first. They can send an authorized person on their behalf to transact on their behalf
New feature found
This feature was not there yet. Senior citizens had to visit the post office branch for withdrawal or account closure and premature withdrawal from post office schemes. The post office has made this announcement in a circular issued last month. Now senior citizens can withdraw money from PPF, SCSS without visiting the post office.
The Department of Posts was receiving various applications from depositors that due to old age or illness, senior citizens are unable to visit the post office for withdrawal or loan or for closure or premature closure of their accounts.
Keeping in view the hardships being faced by the senior citizens or those suffering from illness, the issue was taken up with the Ministry of Finance and keeping in view the provisions of Rule 11 of the ‘Government Saving Promotion General Rules-2018’. Government has decided that in case of extreme urgency, withdrawal or loan or account closure or premature closure can be done through authorized person.
However, the senior citizen has to follow certain procedures to appoint a person authorized to do the transaction.
To nominate an authorized person, these steps have to be followed
>> To authorize a person to transact on his behalf, the account holder has to fill and submit the SB-12 form to his post office branch.
>> With SB-12 form the account holder needs to sign a separate form depending on the transaction that he wants to do. For example, SB-7 form is required for withdrawal while SB-7B is required for account closure.
>> Self attested copy of ID and address proof of both the account holder and the authorized person has to be submitted along with the form. Only one set of KYC documents along with photograph can be submitted for more than one transaction.
>> The authorized person will submit the passbook, SB-12 form, transaction form (SB-7/SB-7B) and KYC documents of the account holder and his own documents for carrying out the transaction.
>> The officials of the post office branch will match the signature of the account holder with the form available in their system. This needs to be approved further by the supervisor. Once the supervisor is satisfied with the signature and documents of the account holder, only then will the payment be released.
Payment will be made either through check or credited to post office savings account or bank account. Cash payment will be allowed only in case of withdrawal from savings accounts. It is to be noted that the authorized person cannot be an agent or employee of the post office branch.
