“Within the existing initial/subsequent contribution charges of up to 0.25% of contribution amount, the minimum fee/charge shall not be less than Rs 20/- per subscriber, per contribution for initial as well as for subsequent transactions. This fee/charge of Rs 20/- per subscriber, per transaction shall be non-negotiable and the maximum fee/charge would be 0.25% of contribution amount subject to an upper cap of Rs 25,000,” as per a PFRDA circular issued on December 13, 2021.
As per the December 13, 2021, PFRDA has made a modification in its previous circular dated September 14, 2020 regarding the fee/charge structure for POPs under NPS.
Let us understand this modification in charges with an example. Suppose an individual makes an investment of Rs 5,000 in the NPS account via POP, then POP should charge Rs 12.50 (0.25% of Rs 5,000), however, it will charge a minimum fee of Rs 20. The maximum fee charged by the POP will not exceed Rs 25,000, as per the PFRDA circular.
In the previous circular dated September 14, 2020, there was no mention of an upper cap limit that a POP could charge when an individual made contributions to his/her NPS account. As per the old circular, “Within the existing ad valorem charges of up to 0.25% of the contribution amount, the minimum 0.10% of the contribution amount with minimum of Rs 20/- shall be non-negotiable.”
No other changes were made to the charges levied by POPs. Other charges include initial subscriber registration charges, non-financial transaction charges etc.
Different ways to invest in NPS
An individual can invest in NPS via two routes – online on the eNPS website and by issuing cheque and depositing the same at a POP office. The process of opening account, making contributions etc. is carried out through entities known as POPs appointed by the PFRDA. POPs shall provide the services under NPS through their network of branches called POP Service Providers (POP-SP).
One can locate the POP-SP via this link: https://npscra.nsdl.co.in/POP-sp.php
