Atal Pension Yojana (APY) 2026: Chart, Benefits & Rules
Full APY contribution chart for ages 18–40 across all five pension slabs, corpus amounts, eligibility (including the income-tax-payer rule), how to enrol, penalties, and tax treatment under 80CCD.
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Atal Pension Yojana (APY) 2026: full chart, benefits and rules
APY is a government-guaranteed pension scheme for Indian workers outside the formal employment net. You pick a pension amount between ₹1,000 and ₹5,000/month, pay a fixed contribution until you turn 60, and from 60 you receive that pension for life. Your spouse gets the same pension after you. When both of you are gone, your nominee gets the full corpus back as a lump sum.
The catch people miss: if you are, or have ever been, an income-tax payer, you cannot join APY. That rule came into force on 1 October 2022 and remains active in 2026.
This guide covers the full contribution chart, corpus amounts, how to enrol, penalties for missed payments, and the tax angle.
What APY is and who it is for
The Atal Pension Yojana was launched in June 2015, administered by PFRDA (Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority), and sits under the Jan Suraksha scheme umbrella. It targets domestic workers, street vendors, daily-wage earners, gig workers — anyone without a provident fund or employer pension.
The design is deliberately simple. There is no market risk. The pension amount is fixed at enrolment and guaranteed by the Government of India. Whether equity markets crash in your 40s or surge in your 50s, the pension you signed up for does not change.
Eligibility
- Age: 18 to 40 years at the time of joining
- Citizenship: Indian citizen
- Bank account: Savings account at a bank or post office is mandatory; contributions are collected via auto-debit
- Income-tax payer rule: Anyone who is or has been an income-tax payer as of 1 October 2022 onwards cannot join APY. If a subscriber who joined on or after that date is later found to have been an income-tax payer at the time of application, the account will be closed and only the accumulated pension wealth is returned
One account per person. You can hold both an NPS account and an APY account — they are separate schemes with separate PRANs.
APY contribution chart 2026
The table below shows the monthly contribution required based on the age at which you join and the pension amount you want from age 60. The earlier you join, the lower the monthly outflow — an 18-year-old targeting ₹5,000/month pension pays ₹210/month; a 40-year-old targeting the same pension pays ₹1,454/month.
| Entry age | Years of contribution | ₹1,000/month | ₹2,000/month | ₹3,000/month | ₹4,000/month | ₹5,000/month |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 | 42 | ₹42 | ₹84 | ₹126 | ₹168 | ₹210 |
| 19 | 41 | ₹46 | ₹92 | ₹138 | ₹183 | ₹228 |
| 20 | 40 | ₹50 | ₹100 | ₹150 | ₹198 | ₹248 |
| 21 | 39 | ₹54 | ₹108 | ₹162 | ₹215 | ₹269 |
| 22 | 38 | ₹59 | ₹117 | ₹177 | ₹234 | ₹292 |
| 23 | 37 | ₹64 | ₹127 | ₹192 | ₹254 | ₹318 |
| 24 | 36 | ₹70 | ₹139 | ₹208 | ₹277 | ₹346 |
| 25 | 35 | ₹76 | ₹151 | ₹226 | ₹301 | ₹376 |
| 26 | 34 | ₹82 | ₹164 | ₹246 | ₹327 | ₹409 |
| 27 | 33 | ₹90 | ₹178 | ₹268 | ₹356 | ₹446 |
| 28 | 32 | ₹97 | ₹194 | ₹292 | ₹388 | ₹485 |
| 29 | 31 | ₹106 | ₹212 | ₹318 | ₹423 | ₹529 |
| 30 | 30 | ₹116 | ₹231 | ₹347 | ₹462 | ₹577 |
| 31 | 29 | ₹126 | ₹252 | ₹379 | ₹504 | ₹630 |
| 32 | 28 | ₹138 | ₹276 | ₹414 | ₹551 | ₹689 |
| 33 | 27 | ₹151 | ₹302 | ₹453 | ₹602 | ₹752 |
| 34 | 26 | ₹165 | ₹330 | ₹495 | ₹659 | ₹824 |
| 35 | 25 | ₹181 | ₹362 | ₹543 | ₹722 | ₹902 |
| 36 | 24 | ₹198 | ₹396 | ₹594 | ₹792 | ₹990 |
| 37 | 23 | ₹218 | ₹436 | ₹654 | ₹870 | ₹1,087 |
| 38 | 22 | ₹240 | ₹480 | ₹720 | ₹957 | ₹1,196 |
| 39 | 21 | ₹264 | ₹528 | ₹792 | ₹1,054 | ₹1,318 |
| 40 | 20 | ₹291 | ₹582 | ₹873 | ₹1,164 | ₹1,454 |
Source: PFRDA / NPS Trust official APY schedule.
Contributions can be set to monthly, quarterly, or half-yearly — in all cases collected by auto-debit from the linked savings account. The figures above are monthly. Multiply by 3 for quarterly, by 6 for half-yearly.
What your nominee receives: the corpus table
When both the subscriber and spouse have died, the nominee receives the corpus accumulated in the account up to the subscriber's age 60. These amounts are guaranteed by the government:
| Monthly pension | Corpus returned to nominee |
|---|---|
| ₹1,000 | ₹1,70,000 |
| ₹2,000 | ₹3,40,000 |
| ₹3,000 | ₹5,10,000 |
| ₹4,000 | ₹6,80,000 |
| ₹5,000 | ₹8,50,000 |
The logic is proportional: each step up in pension adds ₹1,70,000 to the lump sum the nominee receives.
Benefits in full
Guaranteed pension for life. From age 60, the subscriber receives the chosen monthly pension regardless of how long they live. The government guarantees the amount.
Spouse pension. After the subscriber's death, the spouse receives the same monthly pension for the rest of their life. No separate application; it is built into the scheme.
Nominee corpus. After both subscriber and spouse are gone, the nominee receives the full corpus as a lump sum. The amounts are in the table above.
Government co-contribution (historical). Between FY2015-16 and FY2019-20, the government contributed 50% of the subscriber's annual contribution or ₹1,000 per year, whichever was lower, for subscribers who had joined between June and December 2015 and who were not income-tax payers. This benefit is no longer available for new or existing subscribers.
How to enrol
- Go to your bank or post office. Any bank branch with savings account facilities can open an APY account. Post office savings accounts work too.
- Fill the APY subscriber registration form. The APY form asks for bank account details, nominee details, chosen pension slab (₹1,000–₹5,000), and contribution frequency. Download it from PFRDA's website or pick up a physical copy at your bank. Many banks also offer APY enrolment through net banking or their mobile app.
- Authorise auto-debit. The bank will set up a standing instruction to debit your contribution on the due date. Make sure your account has sufficient balance — failed debits trigger penalties.
- Keep your PRAN. Once enrolled you receive a Permanent Retirement Account Number. Keep this for tracking, upgrades, and exit.
You can change your pension slab upward or downward once per year, in April. You can also switch contribution frequency.
Penalties for missed payments
If the auto-debit fails because your account has insufficient balance, the bank charges overdue interest on top of the missed contribution. The penalty structure:
| Monthly contribution | Penalty per delayed month |
|---|---|
| Up to ₹100 | ₹1 |
| ₹101–₹500 | ₹2 |
| ₹501–₹1,000 | ₹5 |
| Above ₹1,000 | ₹10 |
The penalties are small individually but there are more serious consequences if non-payment continues:
- After 6 months of missed contributions: account is frozen
- After 12 months: account is deactivated
- After 24 months: account is closed
A closed APY account before age 60 returns only the subscriber's own contributions plus net actual interest earned. You lose any government co-contribution (if applicable to older accounts) and its returns.
Premature exit and voluntary closure
APY is designed to run until age 60. Exit before 60 is allowed only in two situations:
- Death of the subscriber — the spouse may choose to continue the account (paying the same contributions until the subscriber would have turned 60, after which the spouse receives the full pension) or withdraw the accumulated corpus immediately.
- Terminal illness — on submission of a disability or terminal illness certificate from a competent medical authority under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016.
Voluntary exit is technically possible under PFRDA's updated guidelines, but the subscriber receives back only their own contributions plus the net actual interest earned on them. Government co-contribution and its returns are forfeited.
Tax treatment
Contributions to APY qualify for deductions under:
- Section 80CCD(1): Part of the overall ₹1.5 lakh Section 80C/80CCD limit. The deduction here is capped at 10% of annual income for salaried individuals (20% for self-employed).
- Section 80CCD(1B): An additional deduction of up to ₹50,000 per year, over and above the ₹1.5 lakh ceiling. APY contributions count toward this limit, shared with NPS Tier 1 contributions.
Both deductions apply under the old tax regime only. If you have switched to the new tax regime, APY contributions do not generate any tax deduction.
Pension received after age 60 is taxable as income at your applicable slab rate.
APY vs NPS at a glance
| APY | NPS | |
|---|---|---|
| Returns | Government-guaranteed fixed pension | Market-linked, varies |
| Entry age | 18–40 | 18–70 |
| Pension amount | ₹1,000–₹5,000/month | Depends on corpus and annuity rate |
| Income-tax payers | Not eligible (from Oct 2022) | Eligible |
| Best for | Guaranteed, low-risk floor pension | Higher corpus over longer horizon |
APY and NPS can be held simultaneously. For someone in the informal sector who wants a guaranteed floor, APY at age 18 for ₹5,000/month costs ₹210/month — that's a credible retirement floor for ₹2,520/year. NPS is a better vehicle for anyone targeting higher retirement wealth and comfortable with market-linked outcomes.
For a deeper look at NPS including fund manager comparison and the Tier 2 account, see the NPS guide. To compare APY with other government-backed schemes, see best government savings schemes in India 2026. If you want to project how a larger retirement corpus grows, use the NPS calculator.
This article is for informational purposes. For personalised advice, consult a SEBI-registered financial advisor.
Frequently asked questions
What is Atal Pension Yojana and who should consider it?
APY is a government-guaranteed pension scheme administered by PFRDA for workers in the unorganised sector. It pays a fixed monthly pension of ₹1,000–₹5,000 starting at age 60, for life. The spouse receives the same pension after the subscriber's death. Anyone aged 18–40 with a bank account who does not file income tax is eligible. It is most useful as a guaranteed income floor — not a wealth-building tool, but a floor that does not depend on markets.
Can a person who pays income tax join APY?
No. From 1 October 2022, anyone who is or has been an income-tax payer is ineligible to join APY. If an account opened after that date is found to belong to an income-tax payer, PFRDA closes the account and returns only the accumulated pension wealth. This rule does not affect accounts opened before October 2022.
What happens to the APY account if the subscriber dies before 60?
The spouse has two options: continue the account by paying the same contributions until the subscriber would have turned 60 (after which the spouse receives the full monthly pension for life), or withdraw the accumulated corpus immediately. If the spouse also dies before the subscriber would have turned 60, the nominee receives the entire corpus accumulated to that point.
How do I fill the APY form and where do I submit it?
Download the APY subscriber registration form from the PFRDA website, or collect one from your bank branch. Fill in your savings account number, date of birth, chosen pension amount, nominee details, and contribution frequency. Submit it at your bank (or post office), along with an Aadhaar copy in most cases. Many banks also offer APY enrolment through net banking — search for "APY" in your bank's investment or government scheme section.
Is the ₹50,000 deduction under 80CCD(1B) available for APY contributions?
Yes. APY contributions count toward the ₹50,000 additional deduction under Section 80CCD(1B), which is over and above the ₹1.5 lakh Section 80C limit. This benefit applies only under the old tax regime. If you contribute to both NPS Tier 1 and APY, the total claimed under 80CCD(1B) across both cannot exceed ₹50,000.
What is the penalty if I miss an APY contribution?
A missed contribution (failed auto-debit) triggers an overdue interest charge: ₹1/month for contributions up to ₹100, ₹2/month for ₹101–₹500, ₹5/month for ₹501–₹1,000, and ₹10/month for contributions above ₹1,000. The account is frozen after 6 months of non-payment, deactivated after 12 months, and closed after 24 months. Ensure your linked savings account has enough balance before the debit date each month.