A Public Provident Fund (PPF) offers various benefits to account holders, such as guaranteed returns, partial withdrawal, loan facility, tax waiver, etc., making it one of the most sought-after investing options for guaranteed income. But if you move to another city, it can be difficult for you to operate the account if you have requirements other than money transfers.

For most people, depositing money in the PPF account is an annual exercise they can do online. But, since it is a long-term investment tool, for requirements like updating the nominee, withdrawing funds, or extending the period after the completion of 15 years, visiting the bank or the post office’s local branch could be more convenient. In such situations, transferring the account to a local branch will make more sense. Moreover, senior citizens may want to consolidate their investments in one place, so they may prefer transferring their PPF account from one bank or branch to another, where they may have a savings bank account.

Also, there may be situations where your current city or town of residence may not have a bank branch where you initially opened the account, or it may not respond to your queries timely, so transferring the account may make more sense. So, if one seeks to move the PPF account to one’s preferred bank in a different city, this is how to do it.

For transferring an account from one bank to the other, the customer must visit the branch and complete certain formalities.

• To transfer the account, one must first gather the KYC documents (Aadhaar, PAN, accountholder’s photograph, PPF account passbook, etc.)
• Visit the bank’s branch or the post office where one maintains the PPF account and fill up the account transfer request form.
• Fill up the details of the existing PPF account and details of the new bank, along with the bank’s address where one wants to transfer the account.
• Once the form is duly filled and checked by the bank where the PPF account is currently being maintained, the bank will provide an acknowledgement receipt to the account holder and initiate the account transfer process.
• As the request is submitted, the accountholder’s job is done. The bank will send the documents to the other bank where the customer has requested to transfer the account. (The documents shared include a certified copy of the PPF account, specimen signature of the account holder, original account opening form, PPF passbook, nomination form, and a cheque or the demand draft for the outstanding amount.)
• The new bank that receives the documents will verify them and notify the account holder.
• The new bank may ask the account holder to visit the bank, get KYC documents verified, and submit copies. In case of any change, the account holder may be asked to fill up a fresh account opening form for the new bank.
• Once the new bank is satisfied, it completes all the formalities, which may take around a month, and the account transfer is complete.