An easier way to earn interest on your savings is through a fixed deposit account. There is a 6.5% interest rate on one-year fixed deposits offered by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Banks will offer a higher interest rate depending on how much you invest. There is a limit on the interest rate that banks are allowed to offer for investments over Rs. 10 lakhs, imposed by the Reserve Bank of India. 

One of the most popular products of banks is fixed deposits. When people have excess funds and need a place to invest them, they usually invest them in fixed deposit accounts. Before investing in a fixed deposit account, make sure that you check FD rates today between banks.

An online fixed deposit account is a type of investment account that accepts FDs. The public accepts deposits, and you earn back your profits from them. Lending bodies sell securities to investors and agree to buy them back later as part of repurchase agreements (or repos).

The process of opening a fixed deposit

You can open a fixed deposit at a bank where you have a savings account through Internet Banking, Phone Banking or walking in with a check. A fixed deposit account can also be opened at any bank without opening a savings account, though some banks require you to open one. 

How safe are fixed deposits?

The Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Scheme of India (DICGC) covers deposits up to Rs 1 lakh in any bank.

Fixed Deposits and Interest Rates

Whenever you open an online fixed deposit with a bank, you make a loan, and the bank pays you interest. There is no standard rate for fixed deposits; each bank or financial institution sets its own. It is possible for FD rates today to change at any time. Fixed-term deposits have varying interest rates based on the deposit amount and the time they have been held. Banks usually offer senior citizens higher interest rates.

The bank will determine the applicable interest rate as of the day it receives the funds, and it will be fixed for the specified period. In the course of the FD, regardless of whether FD rates today rise or fall, you will still get the interest rate promised to you at the time of deposit and make the idea how much you can get by using an FD interest calculator. 

Two methods are available for paying interest:

• There is an option to pay interest every month or every quarter, called the Traditional scheme. 
• Cumulative Fixed Deposits or reinvestment schemes where interest is calculated quarterly and reinvested into the principal amount. Thus, the principal increases every quarter by the interest earned in the last quarter. Invested funds, along with interest, are only available at maturity.

Taxes and fixed deposits

According to their tax slab regarding Income from Other Sources, the deposits’ income from fixed deposits is subject to taxes. It is still possible for depositors to claim credit on their income tax returns for such TDS. The bank deducts TDS or tax after reaching a certain threshold. 

For all deposits held in a branch, if the cumulative interest income from fixed deposits is higher than Rs 10,000 in a given financial year, you will be subject to TDS.Form 16A, the consolidated TDS certificate issued in April of the following financial year, for TDS deducted during a financial year. In Form 26AS, TDS is reflected.