PFRDA Revises Service Charges For POPs Under National Pension System

The Pension Fund Regulatory & Development Authority (PFRDA) has revised service charges for Points of Presence (POPs) under the National Pension System (NPS) for all citizens as well as corporations. The revision is made on 31st January 2022 and the new service charges for POPs are effective from 01st February 2022. According to the PFRDA "With a view to incentivize the POPs to actively promote and distribute NPS and provide better customer service, applicable charges for POPs for the various services provided by them is being revised."

Earlier PFRDA was charging a fee of Rs. 200/- for initial subscriber registration, but after the revision, the charging fee will be a minimum of Rs 200 up to a maximum of Rs 400 charged and collected upfront. Whereas the old service charge for initial and subsequent contributions was 0.25 percent of the contribution subject to a minimum of Rs. 20 and a maximum of Rs. 25,000, the new service charge for contributions will be up to 0.50 percent of the contribution subject to a minimum of Rs 30 and a maximum of Rs 25000.

Previously, the PFRDA charged a fee of Rs 20 for all non-financial transactions, but the service charge would now be Rs.30/-.

Whereas the previous persistency service charge was Rs 50 per annum (only for NPS Citizens), the new service charge will be Rs 50/- per annum for annual contributions of Rs 1000 to Rs 2999, Rs 75/- per annum for annual contributions of Rs 3000 to Rs 6000, and Rs 100/- per annum for annual contributions of more than Rs 6000. Each subscriber whose account has been established by POPs and who contributes a minimum of Rs. 1,000/- in a fiscal year is subject to pay persistence fees. In a financial year, the subscriber should have been registered with the POP for at least six months. This charge will be payable annually to the associated POPs by deduction of the units in the CRA system after the closure of the financial year. The new persistency service charge is applicable on Tier-1 accounts.

The former service charge on e-NPS (for subsequent contributions) was 0.10 percent of the contribution, subject to a minimum of Rs. 10/- and a maximum of Rs. 10,000/-. (Only for NPS All Citizen and Tier-II Accounts). However, as a result of the recent modification, the service charge on e-NPS (for subsequent contributions) would be 0.20 percent of the contribution subject to a minimum of Rs 15 and a maximum of Rs 10000.

On processing of exit/withdrawal requests, subscribers will now have to pay a service fee of 0.125% of the amount subject to a minimum of Rs. 125/- and maximum of Rs 500/-. This service fee on exit/withdrawal requests is newly introduced. GST or other government taxes, if applicable, would be added to all of the abovementioned charges.

According to the PFRDA, POPs will be able to negotiate charges with subscribers in the future, but only within the specified minimum and maximum fee structures. The service charges on subsequent transactions by the subscribers associated with the POPs who make a contribution through the eNPS platform have been increased to 0.20% of the contribution amount subject to a minimum of Rs. 15/- and maximum of Rs. 10,000/-. The revision of this service charge will be effective from 15th February 2022.