While opening a joint account one must know which type of Joint Account in India they need to open since there are different types of Join Accounts, for different purposes.
Opening a Joint Account has its fair share of advantages and disadvantages as we discussed in an earlier post. One needs to be sure of what he/she/they want from a joint bank account and how the dynamics between the joint holders work. However the most important decision to make is the type of joint account in India you wish to open since there are different types for different accessibility and authoritative purposes. If you need specific type of joint ownership, then that is possible and hence knowing the different types of Joint Accounts in India is important.
Either or Survivor:
This is the more well-known and popular mode of Joint Account in India. This type of account is applicable to two individuals and either of them can operate the account. For example if the joint account with Either or Survivor mode is between say a husband and a wife or a father and daughter etc, then either of them can operate the account. On death of anyone of them, the surviving holder can continue the account or get the balance and interest transferred to him/her as per choice.
In case there is a Nominee in the account, then after the death of both the holders, the nominee gets the balance and interest transferred to him/her.
Anyone or Survivor:
This is similar to the Either or Survivor with the only difference that Anyone or Survivor mode of Joint account is opted for when there are More Than Two holders, like say Father, Mother and Son or Father, Mother, Husband, Wife. In such a case anyone of the account holders can operate the account. In case of death of anyone of the holders, the remaining survivors can continue to operate the account or get the balance and interest transferred as they please.
Again if there is a Nominee, after the death of all the holders, he/she gets the balance with interest in the account.
Former or Survivor:
This type of joint bank account in India would allow only the first account holder to operate the account till the time he/she is alive. Once the first holder is no more, the joint second holder can access, operate or get the balance with interest transferred to his/her name. For instance in case of Husband and wife joint holders, if the Husband is the first holder, then only on his death, can the wife operate the joint account.
Latter or Survivor:
This is similar to the Former or Survivor mode of Joint account, only difference being the Second Holder can access the account till the time he/she is alive, only after the death of the second holder, can the first holder have access and operate or get the balance with interest transferred. Example being if a Son and Father are account holders with Father being the second holder, then only after he is no more, can the son have access to this type of joint account in India.
Minor Account:
More than being a type of joint account, this is a requirement as per law. In case there is an account in the name of a minor, then there needs to be an adult guardian as a joint holder in the account, for at least till the time the minor is not of the age of 18.
Well, as we saw above, these are the different types of Joint accounts in India. In case you all were wondering that you needed a joint account mode where more than two individuals are involved and all can have access to it, then Anyone or Survivor can be opted for or if you needed to have a joint account in India, wherein only one of the holders can operate the account till they are alive and automatically give access without any paperwork in the event of death, then Former or Survivor or Latter of Survivor can be opted for. Even in cases where a will is not present, the surviving joint account holders automatically get the rights to the account. This is one the major advantages of having a joint account in India along with the ease and convenience of account operation.
realy helpful
i would like to know when the account was opened in the name of A B C “operated by A and C’ only. jointly”. All account holders or survivors.
in these case if b was died and amount can be paid to A and C .whether it is correct or not.
Hi Devadanam,
If you have an account which says All or Survivors then it means that the person who survives can operate the account in the case of death of the other holder. So in answer to your query, yes A and C can operate the account. The amount as such won’t be payable to anyone as the amount will still be in the account which A and C will continue to operate, unless they decide to close it down. Once they decide to close it down (both parties permission and signatures will be required), then they can withdraw the amount and mutually decide what to do with the money.
Hope that helps.