Reserve Bank of India (Regional Rural Banks – Interest Rate on Deposits) Directions, 2025 (Updated as on June 17, 2026)
UR
- Applies toRegional rural banks
- StatusIn force
- ImportanceMUST READ
- IssuedNov 28, 2025
- Last amendedAug 25, 2026 · 3 incorporated
- Length33 points in 4 sections · 4 min read
The four dates on this rule
- PublishedNov 28, 2025The day RBI put this document out.
- Starts to applyJune 17, 2026The day this rule starts to apply, as RBI's own text states it.
- Time to get ready201 daysThe room between the day it was published and the day it starts to apply.
- Last date to actNot statedNo date to act by was found in this document. Other dates may sit inside single paragraphs.
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15 of the 33 points name no product and bind every product. All products.
Numbers to remember
| one lakh rupees | Up to one lakh rupees every savings account gets the same rate. Above that the bank may vary it. RBI Para 8(1) |
| seven days | No term deposit may run for less than seven days. RBI Para 9(1) |
| one crore | Every term deposit of one crore or less held by an individual must allow early withdrawal. RBI Para 9(3) |
| one per cent | The bank may pay its own staff one per cent above the card rate. RBI Para 11 |
| sixty days | Interest on a foreign currency deposit is worked out on a year of three hundred and sixty days. RBI Para 32 |
What it says
Chapter I. Preliminary
1. Starts on the website date
The rules start on the day RBI puts them on its own website.
2. Who must follow this
These rules apply to every regional rural bank.
3. What a bulk deposit is
A bulk deposit is a single rupee term deposit of one crore or more.
Chapter II. General Guidelines (Interest Rate Framework)
1. Same rate everywhere
The rate offered must be the same at every branch and for every customer on the same day.
2. One board policy covers it
The board must approve one policy covering deposit rates and every premature withdrawal penalty.
Chapter III. Domestic Rupee Deposits
Must know
1. No interest on current accounts
A current account earns no interest.
2. One exception, on death
A dead depositor's current account earns the savings rate from the date of death until it is paid out.
3. Uniform rate to a lakh
Up to one lakh rupees every savings account gets the same rate. Above that the bank may vary it.
BankPulse example. Two savings accounts at the same branch close the day, one holding ₹80,000 and the other ₹5 lakh. On the first ₹1 lakh of each balance the bank pays the same rate, because up to ₹1 lakh the rate must be uniform. On the ₹4 lakh that the second account holds above ₹1 lakh, the bank is free to pay a different rate.
4. Seven days is the floor
No term deposit may run for less than seven days.
5. Different rates only in bulk
A bank may offer a different rate only on bulk deposits.
6. A crore and under breaks
Every term deposit of one crore or less held by an individual must allow early withdrawal.
7. Broken early, paid pro rata
On early withdrawal the depositor gets the rate for the period the money actually stayed, not the booked rate.
8. Nothing before the floor
Break it before the minimum period and no interest is paid at all.
9. One per cent for staff
The bank may pay its own staff one per cent above the card rate.
10. Senior citizen schemes allowed
The bank may run term deposit schemes for resident senior citizens at higher fixed rates.
11. Not in a family name
The senior citizen rate is not available on a deposit standing in the name of a Hindu undivided family.
12. Retired staff can get both
A retired staff member who is a senior citizen may get the senior citizen rate on top of the staff rate.
13. Unclaimed on maturity
Money left after a term deposit matures earns the savings rate or the booked rate, whichever is lower.
14. Floating rates need a benchmark
A floating rate term deposit must follow a market benchmark anyone can observe.
15. No penalty on clean split
Splitting a dead depositor's deposit among claimants draws no penalty if the period and the total do not change.
Do it
16. Credit savings interest quarterly
Savings interest must be credited every quarter or more often.
17. Frozen accounts still get credited
A savings account frozen by the authorities must still be credited on the usual cycle.
18. A board policy for penalties
The board must approve the policy on premature withdrawal penalties, including partial ones.
19. Tell the depositor the penalty
The penalty must be explained when the deposit is taken. If it was not, no penalty may be charged.
Chapter IV. Rupee Deposits of Non-Residents
1. Non-resident rupee deposits
Only a bank authorised under the foreign exchange law may take these deposits.
2. No lien on NRE savings
The bank may not mark any lien, direct or indirect, on an NRE savings deposit.
3. Resident claimant, domestic rate
Where the claimant of a dead depositor's NRE deposit lives in India, the deposit becomes a domestic one on maturity.
Chapter V. Foreign Currency Deposits
1. A 360 day year
Interest on a foreign currency deposit is worked out on a year of three hundred and sixty days.
2. Paid every 180 days
Interest on a foreign currency deposit is paid every one hundred and eighty days, then for the days left.
3. Nothing before the foreign floor
Break a foreign currency deposit before its minimum period and no interest is paid.
Chapter VI. Prohibitions and Exemptions
1. No commission for deposits
The bank may pay no fee, commission or brokerage for bringing in deposits, apart from the named exceptions.
2. No prizes for deposits
No prize, lottery or free trip may be used to bring in deposits.
Chapter VII. Repeal and Other Provisions
1. The old instructions are gone
Every earlier instruction to regional rural banks on deposit rates stands repealed.
What RBI has fined people for under this rulebook
RBI has imposed 1 monetary penalty on this kind of lender. In each one its own stated reason names the subject of this rulebook. Each one links to the press release it was read from.
This tells you the rulebook RBI named. It does not tell you which of the points on this page was broken, because RBI does not say. Read the order itself before drawing any conclusion about your own bank.
May 07, 2026. Himachal Pradesh Gramin Bank, Mandi — ₹5 lakh (Rupees Five Lakh only). RBI press release
These come from RBI press releases. The penalty tracker holds them all. It also lists the penalties we could not place on any rulebook, and the reason for each one.
How this rule has changed
The points above are the rule as it stands today, after every change listed here.
Issued on Nov 28, 2025. This is the date RBI put the rule out.
Changed on Jun 17, 2026.
- NRE NRO rate cap. Regional rural banks cannot offer higher rates on NRE or NRO deposits than on matching domestic rupee term deposits.
- FCNRB three to five years. For FCNR(B) deposits of three to five years, banks must not exceed Overnight Alternative Reference Rate plus 350 basis points.
Changed on Jul 30, 2026.
- Start date. These amendment rules apply from October 01, 2026.
- Follow new rules. From the start date, banks must follow these changes to the earlier directions.
- Display deposit rates. Banks must pay deposit interest only as per rates shown earlier on their website.
- Daily bulk rate timing. Banks must show bulk deposit interest rates on their website by 10:10 am on each business day.
Changed on Aug 25, 2026.
- Relaxation end date. The temporary change on FCNR(B) and NRE deposit rates will now end on August 31, 2026.
- Immediate effect. These amendment rules apply right away from the date of this circular.
- Change in para 26(4). In paragraph 26(4)(1), the end date becomes August 31, 2026 instead of September 30, 2026.
- Change in para 31(7). In paragraph 31(7)(2), the end date becomes August 31, 2026 instead of September 30, 2026.
The same subject for other kinds of institution
The same subject for other kinds of institution.
RBI deposit interest rate rules for rural co-operative banks
RBI deposit interest rate rules for urban co-operative banks
Other RBI rules for regional rural banks
RBI credit bureau reporting rules for regional rural banks 2025
RBI credit card and debit card rules for regional rural banks 2025
RBI customer service and fair conduct rules for regional rural banks 2025
RBI digital banking channel rules for regional rural banks 2025
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