Minimum ₹1,000, then multiples of ₹100
Current NSC issue with 5-year maturity
Current NSC interest rate: 7.7% p.a.
Date of NSC purchase

What is NSC?

The National Savings Certificate is a 5-year savings certificate backed by the Government of India. It currently pays 7.7% per annum, compounded annually (Q2 FY 2026-27, July to September 2026), and the rate on the day you buy stays locked for the full term. There is no upper investment limit, and you can start with just ₹1,000.

What Will Your NSC Be Worth?

₹1 lakh invested today matures at about ₹1,44,903 after 5 years at 7.7%. The interest is not paid out along the way. It accrues and compounds inside the certificate until maturity.

The Tax Treatment, and NSC's Useful Quirk

The purchase qualifies for the 80C deduction in the old regime, within the ₹1.5 lakh limit. Each year's accrued interest is taxable, but here is the quirk that makes NSC attractive: because that interest is reinvested into the certificate, it also counts as a fresh 80C deduction for the first four years. For anyone within the 80C limit, the tax on the interest largely cancels out. Only the fifth year's interest is taxable without the offset. The post office deducts no TDS.

A Worked Example of the Tax

On a ₹1 lakh certificate at 7.7%, the first year's interest is about ₹7,700. You declare it as income, and in the old regime you claim the same ₹7,700 as a reinvested 80C deduction, netting to roughly zero tax. The same pattern repeats through year four. The fifth year's interest, about ₹10,360, is simply taxable. The classic filing mistake is skipping the yearly declarations and reporting the whole ₹44,903 at maturity, which bunches five years of income into one year's slab.

Practical Notes

You can buy NSC at any post office, or online through post-office internet banking with a linked savings account. Certificates can be pledged as collateral for bank loans. Premature encashment is allowed only on death, a court order, or forfeiture by a pledgee, so treat the 5 years as genuinely locked. Joint holdings and minor accounts through a guardian are permitted, and completing the nomination at purchase is worth the minute it takes. For your 80C allocation, weigh the NSC-versus-tax-saver-FD choice — 7.7% against roughly 6.0% to 6.6% on tax-saver FDs — and PPF at 7.1% but with a 15-year horizon. The 80C deduction itself matters only in the old regime, which the income tax calculator compares for you.

FAQs about NSC Calculator

NSC pays 7.7% per annum, compounded annually, for certificates bought in the July–September 2026 quarter (Q2 FY 2026-27). Your purchase rate stays fixed for the full 5 years regardless of later revisions.
At 7.7%, every ₹1,000 grows to about ₹1,449 in 5 years — so ₹1 lakh matures at roughly ₹1,44,903. The calculator computes it for your exact amount.
Yes, annually on accrual — but for the first four years the reinvested interest also qualifies as a fresh 80C deduction (old regime), largely neutralising the tax if you are within the ₹1.5 lakh limit. The final year's interest is simply taxable. No TDS applies.
Both lock 5 years and give 80C benefit. NSC currently pays more (7.7% vs ~6.0–6.6% at major banks), is government-backed, and its accrual enjoys the 80C reinvestment quirk — the FD's advantage is bank convenience and optional payout modes.
Declare each year's accrued interest as income from other sources, and in the old regime claim the same amount as a reinvested 80C deduction for years 1–4. Reporting the entire maturity interest in year 5 bunches five years of income into one year — legal on a cash basis but usually costlier.
Yes — through post-office internet banking if you hold a POSB account (as an electronic certificate). Offline purchase at any post office continues; either way, keep the certificate/passbook entry safe as your proof of investment for 80C.