Post Office MIS Calculator

How the post office MIS calculator works

MIS pays simple interest every month: deposit × yearly rate ÷ 12. There is no compounding inside the account, because each month's interest is paid out. At 7.4%:

The deposit itself is returned in full after 5 years. Your rate is locked on the opening day for all five years.

MIS interest calculator: making the income grow

Because the interest leaves the account each month, the deposit stays flat. A standing instruction can sweep spare payouts into a post office RD. ₹5,550 a month into an RD for 5 years would build a second sum on top of the returned deposit; the post office RD calculator estimates it. Older terms also used the phrase “FD MIS” for monthly payout bank FDs; for those, use the monthly payout option in the FD calculator.

Rules of the Monthly Income Scheme

• Minimum deposit ₹1,000; a single person's total across MIS accounts is capped at ₹9 lakh, a joint account at ₹15 lakh.
• Guardians may open accounts for minors, and children from age 10 can hold one themselves.
• No withdrawal in the first year.
• Closing after 1 year but before 3 years costs 2% of the deposit; after 3 years and before 5, 1%.
• Interest that is not withdrawn earns no extra interest, so move it out or set up an auto transfer.

Tax on MIS income

Every rupee of MIS interest is taxable income, and the deposit brings no deduction. The post office does not usually deduct TDS on MIS interest, so declare it yourself when filing. Senior citizens can count it within their deduction for deposit interest under the old regime. At a 20% tax slab, 7.4% gives roughly 5.9% after tax.

MIS vs SCSS vs bank monthly payout FD

Senior citizens usually get more from the Senior Citizens Savings Scheme, which pays 8.2% but quarterly. Many retirees put up to ₹30 lakh in SCSS and use MIS for an extra monthly stream. A bank FD with monthly payout offers flexible tenures and amounts but rates vary by bank. All schemes are lined up on the post office hub.

Who MIS suits, and who it does not

MIS fits people who already have a lump sum and want a fixed amount on a fixed date every month: a retired couple topping up a pension, a parent sending a monthly allowance to a student, or someone who sold land and wants steady cash without market swings. It fits less well if you are still earning and saving, because the payouts do not compound and the rate is fixed for five years while prices keep rising. In that case a PPF account or an RD may serve better, with MIS added later.