The National Pension System (NPS)is one of the government-supported pension schemes that matures at retirement or upon reaching the age of 60. It is open to all Indian citizens aged between 18 and 70. Contributions up to Rs 2lakh under the scheme are exempt from income tax under sections 80C and 80CCE. NPS allows partial withdrawals and premature exitsduring emergency financial requirements, subject to certain conditions. Upon retirement, the subscriber can withdraw 60 per cent of the accumulated corpus in a lump sum or systematic withdrawals, while the rest must be invested in annuity for monthly pensions.

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Here are the two ways one can open an NPS Account

Offline Process

Obtain PRAN Number

Collect an application form for a Permanent Retirement Account Number (PRAN)from any designated Point of Presence (PoP), the service provider where you wish to register. Fill out the form with mandatory details, such as scheme preference, etc.,and submit a passport-size photograph, signature, know-your-customer documents, like identity and addressproofand PAN number, as prescribed by the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA).

After submitting the form and the documents, the PoP will forward the details to the Central Recordkeeping Agency (CRA), which will verify the information, and after that, it will courier the PRAN number via India Post to your registered address provided in the form.

Track Your Application

The PoP will provide a receipt number upon submitting the form and the documents which you can use to track your application status on the NPS website.

First Contribution

You will need to make a mandatory minimum contribution of Rs 500 during the PoP registration process. It will provide you an NPS contribution slip, mentioning the details of your payment to the PRAN account.

Online Or eNPS Process

To register via eNPS, you must provide bank information and KYC details to the designated bank for validation. If the details don’t match, the request may be turned down. In that case, you must physically approach the PoP. During the registration process, you must also upload a scanned copy of your PAN card, cancelled bank check, scanned photo, and a signature in the jpeg, or PNG format. After this, you will be directed to a payment portal for your initial contribution.

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For NRI Subscribers

NRI subscribers must select repatriable or non-repatriable account status and provide details of non-resident external (NRE) or non-resident ordinary (NRO) bank account status, a scanned copy of the passport and communication address (home or international). They must also give demographic details, such as name, phone number, address, date of birth, scanned signature, etc., generally auto-filled from the Aadhaar database, and other necessary documents for verification. One can contribute via the account provided during registration in a repatriable account. In non-repatriable accounts, contributions can be made via net banking and credit and debit cards.