PPF Claim After the Account Holder's Death: The Nominee Process
A Public Provident Fund account does not pass on like a bank account. On the holder's death the account is closed and the balance is paid to the nominee or legal heirs. Here is exactly how the claim works under the PPF Scheme, 2019 — including the rule most families get wrong: the nominee cannot keep the account going.
What Happens to a PPF Account on Death
Under Para 12 of the Public Provident Fund Scheme, 2019, on the death of the account holder the PPF account is closed. The nominee or legal heir cannot continue the account — there is no option to keep depositing into it, extend it in blocks, or transfer it into the nominee's own PPF account. The entire balance, with interest, is simply paid out to the claimant.
Two consequences follow from this:
Make no further deposits into the account after the holder's death. The account is on its way to closure.
There is no premature-closure penalty on a death claim — the full balance with interest is payable.
The Interest Rule: You Don't Lose Interest by Claiming
Para 12 also fixes how interest is calculated: the balance in the account earns interest at the PPF rate till the end of the month preceding the month in which the amount is paid to the nominee or legal heir. In plain words, interest keeps accruing at the full PPF rate until just before the payment month — the money is not idle while your paperwork moves. Even so, file the claim promptly: interest stops at closure, and an unclaimed account helps nobody.
PPF proceeds also remain tax-exempt in the receiver's hands under Section 10(11) of the Income-tax Act, as PPF interest and maturity amounts are.
If You Are the Nominee: Step by Step
Go to the office where the account is held — the post office or the bank branch that operates the PPF account — and inform them of the death. Ask them to note the claim on the account.
Submit the death-claim form — Form G — the prescribed PPF claim form for nominees/legal heirs, duly filled and signed.
Attach the documents: a certified copy of the death certificate, the PPF passbook (or account statement/number), and your identity and address proof (KYC). If the nomination was registered, the office verifies it against the account records — this is why the claim is straightforward when a nominee exists.
If the nominee is a minor, the claim is filed by the appointee named in the nomination (or the guardian), who receives the amount on the minor's behalf.
If there are multiple nominees, the balance is paid in the shares recorded in the nomination.
Take a stamped acknowledgment of your application and note the reference/diary number for follow-up.
Payment is made to the nominee's bank/post office account after verification, and the PPF account is closed.
If the nominee has also died, the claim does not lapse — the nominee's own legal heirs can claim on the basis of their heirship documents.
If There Is No Nominee: The Legal Heir Route
Without a nomination, the legal heirs claim together, and the paperwork depends on the amount — the claim is governed by the Government Savings Promotion General Rules (GSPR), 2018 for accounts at post offices, and by the operating bank's process for bank-held accounts.
Claims up to ₹5 lakh per account
Where there is no nomination and no legal evidence (such as a succession certificate), the amount can be settled at the sanctioning authority's discretion up to ₹5 lakh per account.
The claim can be filed six months after the date of death under this simplified route.
The document set is: the claim form, death certificate, affidavit (Form 13), disclaimer from the other heirs (Form 14) and indemnity bond (Form 15), with the heirs' KYC.
Claims above ₹5 lakh
Legal evidence of heirship — typically a succession certificate from the court naming the heirs — is required.
Make sure the succession certificate application covers the PPF balance specifically, so it can be produced for this account.
Documents Checklist
Claim form — Form G (PPF death claim)
Certified copy of the death certificate
PPF passbook / account number and the office where the account is held
Nominee's or heirs' identity and address proof (KYC)
Claimant's bank/post office account details for payment
Above ₹5 lakh without a nominee: succession certificate
Common Points of Confusion
"Can the spouse just continue the PPF?" No. Whatever the relationship, a PPF account closes on the holder's death under Para 12 and the balance is paid out. The spouse can, of course, invest the proceeds in their own PPF account afterwards, subject to the usual deposit limits.
"The account was in an extension block." Extension blocks end with the holder's death — the closure rule applies regardless of which block the account was in.
"There is an outstanding PPF loan." Any loan outstanding against the account is adjusted from the balance payable, and the net amount is paid to the claimant.
"We don't know if a nominee was added." The office holding the account can confirm the nomination status from its records when you file the claim — ask before assembling a no-nominee file.