Sukanya Samriddhi (SSY)

Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana (SSY) is a government small-savings scheme for a girl child under 10. A parent deposits ₹250 to ₹1.5 lakh a year for 15 years, the balance compounds annually at a government-set rate, and the account matures 21 years after opening. This calculator shows exactly what it grows to.

SSY currently pays 8.2% a year — the highest rate of any small-savings scheme — and it is EEE: deposits qualify under Section 80C, and both the interest and the maturity amount are fully tax-free. Move the sliders above to see the maturity value, your total deposits and the interest the account earns.

How is SSY maturity calculated?

SSY compounds annually on a balance that includes the deposit made at the start of the year, so each year the balance becomes (previous balance + deposit) × (1 + r), where r is the annual rate as a decimal. Deposits are only accepted for the first 15 years, but the account stays open and keeps compounding until year 21 — those last six deposit-free years are where a large slice of the growth comes from.

Take the maximum: ₹1,50,000 a year at 8.2%. Over the 15 deposit years you put in ₹22,50,000 and the balance reaches ₹44,75,989. From year 16 to year 21 no fresh money goes in, yet compounding alone carries the balance to ₹71,82,119 at maturity — ₹49,32,119 of it interest. If the account was opened when the girl was 5, that amount is payable when she turns 26.

How to use this calculator

• Set the yearly deposit — anything from ₹250 to the ₹1.5 lakh statutory maximum, which is also the Section 80C ceiling.
• Enter the girl's current age; the account matures 21 years later, and the calculator shows the age at which the money is payable.
• Adjust the interest rate only if the government revises it — 8.2% is the rate in force.
• Read the maturity value, total deposited and interest earned from the result cards.
• Open the year-by-year table to see when deposits stop (year 15) and how the balance grows on its own through year 21.

SSY rules every Indian parent should know

The account can be opened at any post office or authorised bank before the girl turns 10, and a family may open at most two accounts (three if the second birth is twins). Missing the ₹250 minimum in a year makes the account inactive; it is revived by paying ₹50 penalty per defaulted year plus the missed minimums. Deposits can be made in lump sum or instalments, but interest is credited on the lowest balance between the 5th and month-end, so depositing early in April earns the most.

Money is not locked away entirely: from the year the girl turns 18 or passes class 10, you can withdraw up to 50% of the previous year's closing balance for her higher education, and the account can be closed early for her marriage after she turns 18. Otherwise it runs the full 21 years. Because SSY is EEE-rated and pays above PPF, it is usually the first place a parent should park long-term money earmarked for a daughter — with PPF or an equity SIP handling anything beyond the ₹1.5 lakh cap.

Frequently asked questions