NPS Vatsalya Calculator – Project Your Child's Pension Corpus
See what a yearly contribution could become by 18, when the account converts to NPS Tier I, and by retirement
NPS Vatsalya is a National Pension System account for a child. A parent or legal guardian opens and operates it on the minor's behalf, contributions are invested in the same pension funds that run regular NPS, and on the child's 18th birthday the account converts into a standard NPS Tier I account in their own name. Its appeal is the length of the runway: money contributed for a seven-year-old has four decades of compounding ahead of it before a normal NPS vesting age.
Who Can Open an NPS Vatsalya Account?
Any Indian citizen below 18 is eligible, including NRIs and Overseas Citizens of India under 18. The account is opened and run by a parent or legal guardian, and a court-appointed guardian can continue it if both parents die. The child becomes the subscriber at 18 and must complete fresh KYC within three months of that birthday to keep contributing.
On the minimum contribution, official sources currently disagree: PFRDA's scheme FAQ states ₹1,000 a year, PFRDA's scheme page lists ₹250 at opening and ₹250 each financial year, and the NPS Trust master circular gives ₹500 per transaction with a ₹1,000 annual minimum. Confirm the figure that applies to you on the official NPS Trust or PFRDA site before opening an account. There is no maximum.
Formula
Corpus (next year) = (Corpus + Yearly Contribution) × (1 + Return ÷ 100)
Corpus at withdrawal = Corpus at 18 × (1 + Return ÷ 100)^(Withdrawal Age − 18)
Contributions run from the child's current age to 18 and are assumed to be made at the start of each year. The second line models leaving the converted account untouched after 18, which isolates how much of the final figure is compounding rather than contribution.
Worked Examples
Example 1: ₹12,000 a year from age 1, drawn at 60, 10% assumed return
Contributions over 17 years = ₹2,04,000. Corpus at 18 = ₹5,35,190. Left untouched to 60 it projects to ₹2,93,08,988, of which ₹2,87,73,798 is growth after 18 with no new money.
Example 2: ₹50,000 a year from age 12, drawn at 60, 10% assumed return
Contributions over 6 years = ₹3,00,000. Corpus at 18 = ₹4,24,359, projecting to ₹2,32,39,444 by 60. Note that Example 1 pays in far less in total yet ends ahead, which is the whole argument for starting early.
Account Details
15 years of contribution before it converts at 18
No upper limit under the scheme
Your assumption, not a promised rate
NPS normally vests at 60
Projected Corpus at 60
₹2,29,67,718
Assuming 10% a year and nothing added after 18
- You contribute (15 years)
- ₹1,80,000
- Corpus at 18, when it becomes NPS Tier I
- ₹4,19,397
- Growth after 18 with no new money
- ₹2,25,48,321
NPS Vatsalya has no notified or guaranteed interest rate. Contributions are invested in NPS pension funds and the outcome depends on market returns, so every figure here follows the rate you chose above and not an entitlement. A one-point change in the assumed return moves a 40-year projection substantially, which is worth testing with the slider before relying on any single number.
What Happens at 18
The account does not pay out at 18. It converts to a regular NPS Tier I account in the child's name, and from then on the normal NPS rules apply: the subscriber contributes directly, fresh KYC is required within three months of the 18th birthday, and the usual vesting and annuity rules govern withdrawal. That is the main practical difference from Sukanya Samriddhi, which matures and pays out 21 years after opening.
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Frequently Asked Questions
There is none. NPS Vatsalya is market-linked, not a fixed-rate scheme, so contributions are invested in NPS pension funds and the outcome depends on their performance. Any figure you see quoted as an NPS Vatsalya return is an assumption, which is why this calculator asks you to set the rate yourself.
Any Indian citizen under 18, including NRIs and Overseas Citizens of India under 18. A parent or legal guardian opens and operates it, and a court-appointed guardian can continue it if both parents die.
Official sources currently disagree. PFRDA's scheme FAQ states ₹1,000 a year, PFRDA's scheme page lists ₹250 at opening and ₹250 each financial year, and the NPS Trust master circular gives ₹500 per transaction with a ₹1,000 annual minimum. Confirm the applicable figure on the official NPS Trust or PFRDA site. There is no maximum contribution.
The account converts automatically into a regular NPS Tier I account in the child's name. It does not pay out. The subscriber must complete fresh KYC within three months of turning 18 to continue contributing, after which normal NPS rules on vesting and annuity apply.
They answer different questions. Sukanya Samriddhi pays a government-notified rate, is restricted to a girl child under 10, and matures with a payout 21 years after opening. NPS Vatsalya is open to any child under 18, has no guaranteed rate, and converts into a pension account at 18 rather than paying out. A fixed notified return and a market-linked projection are not comparable on a single number.
The scheme allows limited partial withdrawal in defined circumstances, subject to PFRDA rules that have been revised since launch. Because those conditions and limits have changed, check the current NPS Vatsalya FAQ on the NPS Trust site rather than relying on launch-era summaries.