The Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance has announced the interest rates for small saving schemes for the period October to December 2019 (3rd Quarter of Financial Year 2019-2020).
This time, the government has kept the interest rates for small savings schemes unchanged for the third quarter of the current financial year. This means the investments in small savings schemes from October to December will carry the same rates of interest as they were in July to September quarter of the financial year.
The decision of keeping the interest rates unchanged has made the investors in Small Savings Schemes very happy. Let us take a look at the interest rates applicable on post office saving schemes from April 1, 2019.
Table of Contents
Post Office Small Saving Schemes
Public Provident Fund, NSC, Recurring Deposit Account, Sukanya Samriddhi Account, SCSS, MIS, and POTD are very popular schemes among the Indians. When you invest in small saving schemes like NSC, RD, SCSS, Time Deposits, KVP, MIS, the rates of interest remain the same till the date of maturity. Note that the rate of interest for the Public Provident Fund will change every quarter.
Quarterly Schedule for change in Rates of Interest
The interest rates for post office small savings schemes are notified on a quarterly basis since April 1, 2016. Below is the quarterly schedule for change in interest rates for all post office saving schemes.
| S. No. | Quarter for which interest rates would be effective | The date on which it will be notified |
| 1 | First Quarter (April to June) | 15th March |
| 2 | Second Quarter (July to September) | 15th June |
| 3 | Third Quarter (October to December) | 15th September |
| 4 | Fourth Quarter (December to March) | 15th December |
As per the above-mentioned schedule, the interest rates for post office saving schemes are announced for the 3rd quarter of the financial year 2019-20 starting October 1, 2019, and ending on December 31, 2019. The government has decided to keep the interest rates for small savings schemes constant as notified for the July to September quarter.
Latest Interest Rates for Small Saving Schemes
Here is a quick snapshot of the interest rates on post office saving schemes for the October to December quarter of the financial year 2019-20.
- The Senior Citizens Savings Scheme (SCSS) will continue to fetch an interest rate of 8.6%. Quarterly compounding and paid.
- The rate of interest on girl child savings scheme Sukanya Samriddhi Account Scheme will remain unchanged at 8.4%. Annually compounding.
- National Savings Certificate (NSC) will continue to fetch an interest rate of 7.9%. Annually compounding.
- The Public Provident Fund scheme will also offer 7.9%. Compounded annually.
- Kisan Vikas Patra (KVP) will offer 7.6%. Annually compounded and will mature (Double your money) in 113 months.
- The Post Office Monthly Income Account will fetch an interest of 7.6%. Compounded monthly and paid.
- Five years of Recurring Deposit Account will continue offer an interest rate of 7.2%. Compounded quarterly.
- Time Deposits of 1 to 5 years period will offer 6.9% to 7.7% p.a. Quarterly compounding. Interest rates for 1 to 3 year Time Deposit are 6.9% p.a. and 7.7% p.a. for 5 year Time deposit.
- The rate of interest on Post Office Savings Account will remain unchanged at 4%. Compounded annually.
Latest Interest Rates for Small Saving Schemes
Below are the latest interest rates for post office saving schemes (October 1, 2019, to December 31, 2019)
| Scheme Name | The rate of Interest from 01/10/2019 to 31/12/2019 | The rate of Interest from 01/07/2019 to 30/09/2019 |
| Post Office Savings Account | 4% | 4% |
| 1 Year Time Deposit | 6.90% | 6.90% |
| 2 Year Time Deposit | 6.90% | 6.90% |
| 3 Year Time Deposit | 6.90% | 6.90% |
| 5 Year Time Deposit | 7.70% | 7.70% |
| 5 Year Recurring Deposit | 7.20% | 7.20% |
| 5 Year Monthly Income Account | 7.60% | 7.60% |
| Kisan Vikas Patra (KVP) | 7.60% | 7.60% |
| 5 Year National Savings Certificate (NSC) | 7.90% | 7.90% |
| Public Provident Fund Scheme (PPF) | 7.90% | 7.90% |
| Sukanya Samriddhi Account Scheme | 8.40% | 8.40% |
| Senior Citizens Savings Scheme (SCSS) | 8.60% | 8.60% |
Final Thoughts
There are nine post office small savings schemes. The government has kept the interest rates for small savings schemes constant for the third quarter (October to December) of the financial year 2019-20.
As there is no reduction in interest rate, some post office small saving schemes will still remain a good investment option for conservative investors. These post office schemes are low on risk and provide good returns. These schemes offer complete safety and security of your invested capital as they are backed with a government guarantee.
Related post: Top 15 Best Investment Options in India
Related post: SBI PPF Account: How to open PPF account in SBI?