Atal Pension Yojana (APY) is a government-backed pension scheme primarily for workers in the unorganized sector. It promises a fixed monthly pension of Rs. 1000, Rs. 2000, Rs. 3000, Rs. 4000, or Rs. 5000 after the subscriber reaches 60 years of age. The pension amount is chosen at the time of enrollment, and the monthly contribution depends on the subscriber's age and the pension amount selected. Contributions start from the date of joining and continue until the subscriber turns 60. For instance, if someone joins at age 40, they need to contribute for a minimum of 20 years. The earlier one joins, the lower the monthly contribution. The pension is guaranteed by the Government of India, and the scheme is regulated by the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA). A person can join the scheme between the ages of 18 and 40 years. They must have a savings bank account and a valid mobile number. On the death of the subscriber, the spouse is entitled to receive the pension. After the demise of both the subscriber and spouse, the nominee receives the accumulated corpus.
It provides a guaranteed pension of Rs 1,000 to Rs 5,000 (as explained above) to the subscribers. The scheme also allows a subscriber to decrease or increase pension amount during the course of the accumulation phase, once a year. In case of death of the subscriber, the spouse of the subscriber shall be entitled to the same amount of pension till his or her death. And after the demise of both spouse and subscriber, the nominee will be entitled to receive the pension money that the subscriber had accumulated till 60 years of age. However, if the subscriber dies before 60 years, the spouse will have the choice to either exit the scheme and claim the accumulated amount or continue maintaining the account under the subscriber’s name for the remaining vested years. The spouse of the subscriber shall be entitled to receive the same pension amount as the subscriber until the death of the spouse in the latter case.
However, if you are a part of any other social security scheme and a taxpayer, then you are not entitled to government contribution. For instance, members of the Social Security Schemes under the following enactments would not be eligible to receive Government co-contribution:
The deduction would be made in the subscriber’s account for account maintenance charges and other related charges on a periodic basis. Once the account balance in the subscriber’s account becomes zero due to the deduction of account maintenance charges, fees, and overdue interest, the account would be closed immediately. If there’s a continuous default for 6 months, your pension account will be frozen and if there’s a continuous default for 12 months, the account will get closed and whatever balance is left after the above-said deductions will be given to the subscriber. For delayed contributions a penalty of Rs. 1 per month for the contribution of every Rs. 100, or part thereof, for each delayed monthly contribution. Which implies
