Joining Age – The age of joining in Atal Pension Yojana is from 18 to 40 years whereas in New Pension Scheme age of joining is from 18 to 60 years. Who can join – Only resident Indian can join in APY but in NPS any Indian including NRI can also join. Pension slab- In APY there are five pension slab i.e Rs 1000/-, Rs 2000/-, Rs 3000/-, Rs 4000/-, Rs 5000/-(per month). Whereas in NPS it is decided by the Pension Fund Manager's performance. Also in NPS 50% amount will be paid at the time of retirement and rest will be paid on yearly basis. Guaranteed Pension– In APY there is guaranteed pension after retirement. In NPS there is no guaranteed pension although subscriber will have the option to actively decide as to how his/her NPS pension wealth is to be invested in the following three options: Asset Class E - Investments in predominantly equity market instruments. (High Risk but very good returns) Asset Class C- Investments in fixed income instruments other than Government securities. (Medium Risk- good returns)

Joining Age – The age of joining in Atal Pension Yojana is from 18 to 40 years whereas in New Pension Scheme age of joining is from 18 to 60 years. Who can join – Only resident Indian can join in APY but in NPS any Indian including NRI can also join. Pension slab- In APY there are five pension slab i.e Rs 1000/-, Rs 2000/-, Rs 3000/-, Rs 4000/-, Rs 5000/-(per month). Whereas in NPS it is decided by the Pension Fund Manager's performance. Also in NPS 50% amount will be paid at the time of retirement and rest will be paid on yearly basis.

1. Joining Age – The age of joining in Atal Pension Yojana is from 18 to 40 years whereas in New Pension Scheme age of joining is from 18 to 60 years. 2. Who can join – Only resident Indian can join in APJ but in NPS any Indian including NRI can also join. 3. Pension slab- In APY there are five pension slab i.e Rs 1000/-, Rs 2000/-, Rs 3000/-, Rs 4000/-, Rs 5000/-(per month). Whereas in NPS it is decided by the Pension Fund Manager's performance. Also in NPS 50% amount will be paid at the time of retirement and rest will be paid on yearly basis. 4. Guaranteed Pension– In APJ there is guaranteed pension after retirement. In NPS there is no guaranteed pension although subscriber will have the option to actively decide as to how his/her NPS pension wealth is to be invested in the following three options: Asset Class E - Investments in predominantly equity market instruments. (High Risk but very good returns) Asset Class C- Investments in fixed income instruments other thanGovernment securities. (Medium Risk- good returns) Asset Class G - Investments in Government securities. (Low Risk- Normal Returns). In 2014–15, the average weighted return on the NPS fund was 12.5%. 5. Type of account- In APJ only one type of account is there. Where as in NPS there are two types of account namely Tier-I and Tier-II. 6. Premature Withdrawal - In APJ there is no premature withdrawal allowed except death or special condition. Where as in NPS Premature withdrawal is allowed. The premature withdrawal is only allowed in Tier-II account. 7. Government Contribution – In APj 50% or Rs 1000/- (which ever is lower) contribution from Government is done for 5 years only if the account is opened on or before 31 Dec 2015. Whereas in NPS there is no such contribution by the Government. However in NPS the Central Government and State Government employee's contribution is fixed at 10% of salary and Dearness Allowance (DA) per month which is matched by an employer contribution of the same amount. 8. Tax Benefit- In APJ there is no tax benefit, where as in NPS you can avail a Tax rebate upto Rs 2,00,000. 9. Reason to join- In APJ you can join only to get pension after 60 years whereas in NPS there are three reasons which are listed below. To provide old age income. Safe and remarkable return over long period. Extending old age security coverage to all citizens 10. Fund Manager – In APJ there is no option to select Pension Fund Manager whereas in NPS there is a option to select Pension Fund Manager. There are 8 Pensions Fund Manager who will manage your contributions. The Pension Fund Manager are listed below. HDFC Pension Management Co.Ltd ICICI Prudential Pension Fund Management Co. Ltd. Kotak Mahindra Pension Fund Ltd. LIC Pension Fund Ltd. Reliance Capital Pension Fund Ltd. SBI Pension Funds Pvt. Ltd. UTI Retirement Solutions Ltd Pension Fund by Birla Sunlife Insurance Co. Ltd. 11. Permanent Account- In NPS once you are enrolled in Yojana you will be issued Unique Permanent Retirement Number (PRAN). In this way you can operate your account from anywhere within India whereas no such PRAN is there in APJ. The monthly contribution in APJ will be auto debited from your saving account. 12. Where to open account- In APJ you can open in any Indian bank where you have a saving account. Where as in NPS you can open the account at POPs. (Home-Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA)) In NPS the annual contribution is (a) minimum Rs. 6000/- for Corporate Model and All citizens Model or (b) 10% of Salary and DA for Government employees (equally to be contributed by Government as I wrote before) or (c) Between Rs. 1000-Rs. 1200 for economically disadvantaged sections of the society. This is under NPS Swavalamban. Contribution cannot exceed Rs. 1200 per year under Swavalamban scheme

Dear Anju, 1. Joining Age – The age of joining in Atal Pension Yojana is from 18 to 40 years whereas in New Pension Scheme age of joining is from 18 to 60 years. 2. Who can join – Only resident Indian can join in APY but in NPS any Indian including NRI can also join. 3. Pension slab- In APY there are five pension slab i.e Rs 1000/-, Rs 2000/-, Rs 3000/-, Rs 4000/-, Rs 5000/-(per month). Whereas in NPS it is decided by the Pension Fund Manager's performance. Also in NPS 50% amount will be paid at the time of retirement and rest will be paid on yearly basis. 4. Guaranteed Pension– In APY there is guaranteed pension after retirement. In NPS there is no guaranteed pension although subscriber will have the option to actively decide as to how his/her NPS pension wealth is to be invested in the following three options: Asset Class E - Investments in predominantly equity market instruments. (High Risk but very good returns) Asset Class C- Investments in fixed income instruments other than Government securities. (Medium Risk- good returns) Asset Class G - Investments in Government securities. (Low Risk- Normal Returns). In 2014–15, the average weighted return on the NPS fund was 12.5%. 5. Type of account- In APY only one type of account is there. Where as in NPS there are two types of account namely Tier-I and Tier-II. 6. Premature Withdrawal - In APY there is no premature withdrawal allowed except death or special condition. Where as in NPS Premature withdrawal is allowed. The premature withdrawal is only allowed in Tier-II account. 7. Government Contribution – In APY 50% or Rs 1000/- (which ever is lower) contribution from Government is done for 5 years only if the account is opened on or before 31 Dec 2015. Whereas in NPS there is no such contribution by the Government. However in NPS the Central Government and State Government employee's contribution is fixed at 10% of salary and Dearness Allowance (DA) per month which is matched by an employer contribution of the same amount. 8. Tax Benefit- In APY there is no tax benefit, where as in NPS you can avail a Tax rebate upto Rs 2,00,000. 9. Reason to join- In APY you can join only to get pension after 60 years whereas in NPS there are three reasons which are listed below. To provide old age income. Safe and remarkable return over long period. Extending old age security coverage to all citizens 10. Fund Manager – In APY there is no option to select Pension Fund Manager whereas in NPS there is a option to select Pension Fund Manager. There are 8 Pensions Fund Manager who will manage your contributions. The Pension Fund Manager are listed below. HDFC Pension Management Co.Ltd ICICI Prudential Pension Fund Management Co. Ltd. Kotak Mahindra Pension Fund Ltd. LIC Pension Fund Ltd. Reliance Capital Pension Fund Ltd. SBI Pension Funds Pvt. Ltd. UTI Retirement Solutions Ltd Pension Fund by Birla Sunlife Insurance Co. Ltd. 11. Permanent Account- In NPS once you are enrolled in Yojana you will be issued Unique Permanent Retirement Number (PRAN). In this way you can operate your account from anywhere within India whereas no such PRAN is there in APY. The monthly contribution in APY will be auto debited from your saving account. 12. Where to open account- In APY you can open in any Indian bank where you have a saving account. Where as in NPS you can open the account at POPs. Any other query feel free to contact us Writer CA Chitranjan Agarwal