Planning a safe, government-backed way to build a tax-free corpus over the long term? Use this PPF calculator to estimate your Public Provident Fund maturity value based on your yearly deposit, interest rate, and investment tenure. PPF remains one of India’s most trusted long-term savings instruments thanks to its triple tax exemption and sovereign guarantee.
PPF Calculator
| Year | Deposit | Interest | Closing Balance |
Simplified model: compounds annually on year-end balance. Actual PPF interest is calculated monthly on the lowest balance between the 5th and last day of the month – see rules below.
What Is PPF?
The Public Provident Fund (PPF) is a long-term savings scheme backed by the Government of India, launched to encourage small savings with attractive, tax-free returns. It is available at post offices and most banks, and any resident Indian individual can open a PPF account with as little as Rs. 500. PPF has a mandatory 15-year lock-in period, after which it can be extended indefinitely in blocks of 5 years. Because the interest rate is set by the government and the principal is sovereign-guaranteed, PPF is considered one of the safest fixed-income instruments available to Indian investors, making it a core part of most retirement and tax-saving portfolios.
PPF Interest Calculation Rules Explained
PPF interest is calculated monthly, not annually, though it is credited to the account only once a year at the end of the financial year. The rule that trips up most investors is this: interest for a given month is calculated on the lowest balance in the account between the 5th day and the last day of that month. This means that if you deposit after the 5th, that deposit does not earn interest for that month at all – it only starts earning from the next month.
For this reason, financial planners consistently recommend depositing your PPF contribution on or before the 5th of April (or the 5th of any month you contribute) to maximize the interest earned for the full year. The calculator on this page uses a simplified annual compounding model on the year-end balance to keep things easy to understand and plan around; your actual passbook figures may be marginally higher if you consistently deposit before the 5th, since real accounts compound monthly on the qualifying balance.
PPF Contribution Limits
PPF rules set both a floor and a ceiling on contributions:
Minimum deposit: Rs. 500 per financial year (account can lapse if this is not met, though it can be revived with a small penalty).
Maximum deposit: Rs. 1,50,000 per financial year, across a maximum of 12 deposits.
Deposits above the limit: Any amount deposited beyond Rs. 1,50,000 in a financial year does not earn interest and is not eligible for tax deduction; it is typically refunded.
PPF Tax Benefits (EEE Status)
PPF enjoys “Exempt-Exempt-Exempt” (EEE) tax status, one of the very few instruments in India that offers this at all three stages:
Investment stage: Contributions up to Rs. 1,50,000 per year qualify for deduction under Section 80C of the Income Tax Act.
Interest stage: Interest earned every year is completely tax-free, with no upper limit.
Maturity stage: The final maturity amount, including principal and all accumulated interest, is fully exempt from tax on withdrawal.
This makes PPF especially attractive for investors in higher tax brackets who want a guaranteed, tax-free long-term return without any market-linked risk.
PPF vs SSY vs NPS
| Feature | PPF | SSY | NPS |
| Eligibility | Any resident individual | Girl child below 10 years | Any citizen aged 18-70 |
| Lock-in | 15 years | 21 years or marriage after 18 | Till age 60 |
| Returns | Fixed, ~7.1% (govt set) | Fixed, ~8% (govt set) | Market-linked, variable |
| Tax treatment | EEE (fully tax-free) | EEE (fully tax-free) | EET (partly taxable) |
| Best for | General long-term, tax-free savings | Girl child’s education/marriage | Retirement pension corpus |
If you’re also planning for a daughter’s future or building a retirement pension, check out our Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana (SSY) Calculator and NPS Maturity Calculator.
Partial Withdrawal and Loan Rules
PPF is not entirely illiquid during its 15-year lock-in. Two facilities are available:
Loan against PPF: Available between the 3rd and 6th financial year of account opening, up to 25% of the balance at the end of the 2nd year immediately preceding the loan application year.
Partial withdrawal: Allowed from the 7th financial year onward, up to 50% of the balance at the end of the 4th year, or the immediately preceding year, whichever is lower. Only one partial withdrawal is permitted per financial year.
How to Extend PPF After 15 Years
Once the initial 15-year term is complete, you have three choices:
1. Withdraw the entire balance tax-free and close the account.
2. Extend with fresh contributions in blocks of 5 years by submitting Form H within one year of maturity, continuing to earn interest and claim Section 80C deductions.
3. Extend without fresh contributions – the existing balance keeps earning interest, and you can make one withdrawal per year, but no new deposits are added.
Worked Example
Suppose you deposit Rs. 1,50,000 every year for the full 15-year term at an assumed interest rate of 7.1% per annum, compounded annually as modeled by the calculator above:
Total Invested: approximately Rs. 22,50,000
Total Interest Earned: approximately Rs. 18,18,000
Maturity Value: approximately Rs. 40,68,000
Use the calculator above with your own deposit amount and tenure to get an exact year-by-year breakdown, including how much of your maturity value comes from interest versus your own contributions.
FAQs
Is PPF better than a fixed deposit?
For long-term, tax-free goals, PPF is usually better than a regular fixed deposit because FD interest is fully taxable while PPF interest and maturity are completely tax-free, and PPF also offers a Section 80C deduction on contributions.
Can I open more than one PPF account?
No, an individual can hold only one PPF account in their own name, though a separate account can be opened on behalf of a minor child.
What happens if I miss a yearly minimum deposit?
The account becomes inactive (discontinued), but it can be revived by paying the minimum Rs. 500 for each missed year along with a small penalty of Rs. 50 per missed year.
Is the PPF interest rate fixed for the full 15 years?
No, the interest rate is revised quarterly by the Ministry of Finance based on government bond yields, so it can go up or down over the tenure. This calculator uses a single illustrative rate for the entire period for simplicity.
Can NRIs open or continue a PPF account?
NRIs cannot open a new PPF account, but if an account was opened while the holder was a resident Indian, it can be continued until maturity on a non-repatriable basis, without extension after that.
Related Calculators
Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana (SSY) Calculator
NPS Maturity Calculator India
EPF Withdrawal Calculator India