A yearly deposit and the government rate give the maturity, the money you put in, and the interest. The statutory term takes 16 deposits, because the year you open the account counts.
From ₹500 to ₹1.5 lakh, in steps of ₹50. You can type an amount.
₹
₹500₹38,000₹75,500₹1.1 Lakh₹1.5 Lakh
From ₹500 to ₹1.5 lakh, in steps of ₹50. You can type an amount.
The notified rate for 1 October 2026 to 31 December 2026 is 7.1%. One rate is used for every year.
4.0%5.5%7.0%8.5%10.0%
The notified rate for 1 October 2026 to 31 December 2026 is 7.1%. One rate is used for every year.
0 is the statutory term. Each block adds 5 years after maturity.
0 blocks2 blocks3 blocks5 blocks6 blocks
0 is the statutory term. Each block adds 5 years after maturity.
When you deposit
Interest for a month uses the lowest balance between the close of the 5th and the end of that month.
Tax-free maturity
Maturity ₹45.18 LakhMaturity₹45.18 Lakh
You deposit ₹24,00,000 over 16 years. Interest is ₹21,17,701. The account runs for 16 years.
Deposited
₹24,00,000₹24,00,000
16 yearly deposits
Interest
₹21,17,701₹21,17,701
Credited each 31 March
Years
1616
Opening year counts in the 15-year term
Rate used
7.1%7.1%
Notified for 1 October 2026 to 31 December 2026
This uses 7.1% for every year. That is the notified rate for 1 October 2026 to 31 December 2026. A later quarter can be different. Interest and the final payment are tax-free. A deposit can be claimed under Section 123 only if you are not under the new regime.
Each month earns interest on the lowest balance between the close of the 5th and the end of that month. The twelve monthly interests are added, rounded to the nearest rupee, and credited on 31 March. 50 paise rounds up. That interest then earns interest in later years.
A deposit on or before 5 April is in the balance for all 12 months. A deposit after the 5th misses that month. The PPF Scheme, 2019 sets this rule in paragraph 7. The yearly limit in paragraph 4 is ₹500 to ₹1,50,000, in multiples of ₹50.
Why the first term has 16 deposits
Paragraph 11 says the account can be closed after 15 years from the end of the financial year in which you opened it. If you open it in 2026-27, the 15 years end on 31 March 2042. You can deposit in 2026-27 and in each of the next 15 financial years. That is 16 deposits.
The National Savings Institute describes the same count. After maturity you can extend in blocks of 5 years, with deposits, if you choose within a year of maturity. You can also leave the balance and keep earning interest with no new deposit.
A worked example
₹1,50,000 by 5 April, at 7.1% for the statutory term. Year 1 interest is ₹10,650 and the balance is ₹1,60,650. Year 2 interest is ₹22,056 and the balance is ₹3,32,706. Year 3 interest is ₹34,272 and the balance is ₹5,16,978.
After 16 deposits you have put in ₹24,00,000. Interest is ₹21,17,701. Maturity is ₹45,17,701.
The same yearly amount, paid monthly by the 5th, earns ₹5,769 in year 1, and the balance is ₹1,55,769. The maturity for that timing is ₹43,80,435. One extension block with deposits adds 5 years: 21 deposits, maturity ₹72,91,675.
7.1% is the rate for 1 October 2026 to 31 December 2026. The Ministry of Finance left small-savings rates unchanged in its office memorandum of 30 September 2026. The scheme PDF still prints 7.9%. The quarterly notification is the rate that is paid. The DEA small-savings page lists those notifications.
Tax: the EEE pattern
EEE means a deduction on the way in, no tax on the interest, and no tax on the payment. The interest and the payment sit in Schedule II (this was Section 10(11)). Section 202 blocks most Chapter VIII deductions. It does not block Schedule II, so the maturity stays tax-free in both regimes.
The deposit itself is deductible under Section 123, read with Schedule XV, paragraph 1(e) (this was Section 80C), only when you are not taxed under Section 202. From 1 April 2026 the Income-tax Act, 2025 uses these section numbers. FY 2025-26 still uses the 1961 numbers. The yearly cap of ₹1,50,000 is inside the older interest-tax trigger, so a normal account stays fully exempt.
Assumptions and limits
One rate is used for the whole term. The government can change it each quarter.
A loan, a partial withdrawal, and a discontinued account are not modelled.
Premature closure is allowed only in some cases, and the rate is then 1 percentage point lower. That path is not calculated.
A monthly split puts leftover rupees in March. A real instalment must be a multiple of ₹50.
The extension choice has to be made within a year of maturity. This page does not check that deadline.
This is an estimate for learning, not advice. Read the disclaimer.
Questions
Why does the first term show 16 deposits, not 15?
The account can be closed only after 15 years from the end of the financial year in which you opened it. The opening year is a deposit year too. If you pay in every year until maturity, that is 16 deposits.
Does a deposit on 10 April earn interest for April?
No. Interest for a month uses the lowest balance between the close of the 5th and the end of that month. A deposit on 10 April is not in the April balance. It starts earning from May. This calculator has two timings: the whole amount by 5 April, or a monthly amount by the 5th.
Is the maturity tax-free?
Interest and the final payment are tax-free under Schedule II of the Income-tax Act, 2025. That was Section 10(11). Section 202 does not block that exemption, so the maturity stays tax-free in the new regime too. A deposit can be claimed under Section 123, read with Schedule XV, paragraph 1(e) (this was Section 80C), only if you are not under Section 202, and only inside the ₹1,50,000 cap.
What if the government changes the rate?
The rate is notified every quarter. This page starts at 7.1% for 1 October 2026 to 31 December 2026, then uses that same rate for every later year. A future quarter can be different. Move the rate if you want to try another one. Reset puts the notified rate back.
A bank deposit is taxed differently. The FD calculator compounds a rate you type and shows tax at your slab.
For a market-linked pension, the NPS calculator takes a monthly contribution to age 60. A monthly mutual-fund instalment sits in the SIP calculator.
How PPF, ELSS and NPS cut tax in FY 2026-27, what they return, and when the new regime makes the deduction worth nothing. Worked on the site’s own calculators.