In a big relief for lakhs of Public Provident Fund (PPF) account holders, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced on Thursday that there will be no charge for updating or adding nominees in PPF accounts. The government has made the necessary changes through notification, and the new rule is effective immediately.

What was the fee before?

Earlier, financial institutions were charging a fee of Rs 50 for updating or modifying the nominee details in PPF accounts. This caused some inconvenience for account holders, as many people wanted to add or change the nominee for various reasons.

What has changed?

On April 2, 2025, the government made changes to the Government Savings Promotion General Rules 2018 through a Gazette Notification. These changes have removed the fee for updating nominees. Now, PPF account holders will not have to pay the Rs 50 charge to cancel or modify a nominee. This will make it easier and more affordable for account holders to keep their PPF accounts updated.

How many nominees can be added?

The recent Banking Amendment Bill 2025 allows PPF account holders to add up to four nominees for the payment of their depositors' money, articles kept in safe custody, or safety lockers. This change is aimed at making it easier for families to manage their finances in case of the account holder’s unfortunate passing.

The Banking Amendment Bill also includes other important changes. One major update is increasing the limit for a person’s “substantial interest” in a bank from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 2 crore. The bill also proposes to increase the term for directors (excluding the chairman and full-time directors) in cooperative banks from 8 years to 10 years.

PPF interest rate and investment limits

The PPF scheme offers an annual interest rate of 7.1% as per the latest government rates. Investors can deposit a minimum of Rs 500 and a maximum of Rs 1.5 lakh every year into their PPF accounts. This government-backed scheme remains a popular choice for long-term savings and tax benefits.

 

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