Post Office Interest Adjustment Rules have been revised for several small savings schemes, including PPF, SCSS, Sukanya Samriddhi Account, Monthly Income Scheme and Post Office Savings Accounts.
The Department of Posts has introduced an additional verification layer for interest adjustments.
The revised process is designed to strengthen internal controls, improve accountability and reduce the possibility of unauthorised or incorrect interest corrections in Post Office accounts.
Post Office Interest Adjustment Rules Revised
Under the new procedure, interest adjustments will be processed through the HIARM, or Interest Adjustment Register Maintenance, menu in the Finacle core banking system.
The changes follow an order issued by the Department of Posts on September 29, 2026.
The new system introduces a Maker-Checker mechanism.
Earlier, interest adjustment entries created after approval could be auto-verified in the Finacle system without a second-level verification.
Under the revised process, the entry will have to go through an additional verification stage before the adjustment is completed.
Which Post Office Schemes Are Covered?
The revised procedure applies to interest adjustments involving several Post Office savings instruments.
These include the Post Office Savings Account, Public Provident Fund, Sukanya Samriddhi Account, National Savings Scheme accounts, Monthly Income Scheme and Senior Citizens Savings Scheme.
The change does not alter the interest rates offered under these schemes.
The government has separately kept small savings interest rates unchanged for the October-December 2026 quarter.
For the current quarter, PPF carries an interest rate of 7.1%, while SCSS offers 8.2%. The Monthly Income Scheme carries a 7.4% annual rate.
How the New Interest Adjustment Process Works
Under the revised Post Office Interest Adjustment Rules, only the SBCO Supervisor of the concerned Head Office can initiate the interest adjustment entry for eligible accounts under its jurisdiction.
The CPC Supervisor of the relevant Circle will then verify the HIARM entry.
This creates a second level of checking before the adjustment is processed.
The adjustment must also be based on written approval or sanction from the competent authority.
The Head Postmaster is required to examine the matter and verify the relevant facts and documents before the case moves forward for approval.
After approval, the SBCO Supervisor must verify details including the account number, adjustment amount, applicable date and scheme information before entering the correction in the system.
Interest Adjustment Limit Set at ₹5 Lakh
The system has a threshold of ₹5 lakh for interest adjustments.
If an adjustment above this limit is required, the matter has to be referred to the designated authority along with the sanction memo and relevant documents so that the threshold can be released.
The SBCO will also maintain a register containing details of approved interest adjustment cases.
This is intended to improve record keeping and help ensure that adjustments are made only after the required approvals.
The revised procedure is therefore mainly an internal control change for Post Office operations.
It does not mean that PPF, SCSS or other small savings account holders will automatically receive a change in their interest rates.
Post Office Interest Adjustment Rules are intended to make corrections more controlled by separating the responsibility for creating and verifying interest adjustment entries.
For account holders, the change primarily affects how authorised corrections are processed within the Post Office system.
