Disbursement of Government Pension by Agency Banks
The Reserve Bank of India has issued a master circular outlining the guidelines for the disbursement of government pensions by agency banks.
General Instructions: Agency banks are required to follow government orders on dearness relief (DR) and other instructions available on official websites.
Pension Disbursement Timing: Agency banks must disburse pensions to beneficiaries on the last day of the month, or the preceding working day if the last day is a holiday.
Refund of Excess Pension: Agency banks must refund excess pension payments to the government immediately.
Withdrawal of Pension: Old, sick, disabled, or incapacitated pensioners can withdraw their pensions through a written authorization or power of attorney.
Reimbursement of Pension Payments: Agency banks must reimburse pension payments to the government within the prescribed timeframe.
Continuation of Pension Account: After a pensioner’s death, the either-or-survivor pension account can be continued with the surviving spouse or family pensioner.
Life Certificate and Acknowledgement: Pensioners must submit a life certificate to the agency bank, which will issue an acknowledgement.
Single Window System: A single window system has been introduced for the reimbursement of pension payments.
Customer Service: Agency banks must provide excellent customer service to pensioners, including resolving grievances promptly.
Checklist and Annexures: A checklist for internal/concurrent audits and annexures containing a list of consolidated circulars are provided for reference.
Chat with the Master Circular:
Download: Master Circular – Disbursement of Government Pension by Agency Banks (Updated as on May 17, 2021)