On a ₹20 lakh CTC, a SIP of about ₹30,000 a month fits for someone who spends ₹85,000 a month and has no emergency fund yet, rising to about ₹44,800 once the fund is full. The SIP amount comes from what is left after spending, EMIs and a monthly share to the emergency fund, not from a fixed share of salary. Vikram's split below starts from about ₹1,29,800 in hand.
What does a SIP do with your monthly in hand?
A SIP, or systematic investment plan, moves a fixed amount into a mutual fund scheme each month at that day's NAV. What is a SIP explains units, NAV and cut-off times.
What a SIP cannot do is choose its own size. Working out a SIP on salary alone, such as "invest 20% of CTC", ignores your rent, your EMIs and whether you have cash for a hospital bill. Without that cash, a surprise expense forces you to sell fund units, possibly after a fall, and many equity funds charge an exit load, set by each scheme and commonly up to 1%, on units sold within a year. So the order is emergency fund first, or at least started, then the SIP.
How much SIP fits on Vikram's ₹20 lakh salary?
Vikram's CTC is ₹20,00,000, all fixed pay with no variable pay. After employee PF on his full labour-code wages, new-regime tax for FY 2026-27 and ₹2,500 of professional tax (the maximum; some states levy none), his monthly in hand is about ₹1,29,800. The CTC to take home table has his ₹20 lakh row; if his employer kept PF on the ₹25,000 wage ceiling, he would get about ₹1,41,900 instead.
He spends ₹85,000 a month, all of it essential (rent, groceries, bills, insurance and a ₹15,000 car EMI), which leaves ₹44,800 a month.
He has no emergency fund, so he sets a target of six months of those essentials: 6 × ₹85,000 = ₹5,10,000. The emergency fund guide shows why six months of essential spending, EMIs included, is the baseline, and why a sole earner with dependants or largely variable pay needs nine to twelve; Vikram has fixed pay and no dependants, so six months applies.
The split is a choice between speed and starting now: all ₹44,800 to the fund would fill it in about 11 months (₹5,10,000 ÷ ₹44,800 is 11.4) before any SIP starts, while ₹30,000 to the SIP starts investing at once. He sends ₹30,000 a month to a SIP and the remaining ₹14,800 to the emergency fund, which fills in about 35 months, since ₹5,10,000 ÷ ₹14,800 is 34.5. From then on the ₹14,800 joins the SIP, which rises to ₹44,800 a month, about 35% of his in hand. On the PF-ceiling figure, the same spending leaves ₹56,900 a month: ₹30,000 to the SIP and ₹26,900 to the fund fills it in about 19 months, after which the SIP can rise to ₹56,900.
What does ₹30,000 a month build?
At an assumed 12% a year, ₹30,000 a month for 15 years is ₹54,00,000 invested and grows to about ₹1,49,87,000, roughly ₹1.5 crore. That uses a monthly rate of 1% (12% ÷ 12), with each instalment paid at the month's end. Equity returns are not fixed, and the real figure will be higher or lower.
| Monthly SIP for 15 years | Invested | Value at an assumed 12% |
|---|---|---|
| ₹30,000 throughout | ₹54,00,000 | about ₹1,49,87,000 |
| ₹30,000, rising to ₹44,800 from month 36 (Vikram's plan) | ₹75,46,000 | about ₹1,97,71,500 |
| ₹44,800 throughout | ₹80,64,000 | about ₹2,23,81,200 |
The gap between the first two rows is what the step-up after the emergency fund adds. Put your own monthly SIP, spending and savings into the FI calculator to see the year they could make you financially independent.
When should Vikram step up the SIP?
At three points. The first is built in: when the emergency fund is full, its ₹14,800 moves to the SIP. The second is a pay rise. A step-up SIP, offered by many fund houses, raises the instalment by a set amount or percentage each year. If a raise adds ₹10,000 to his monthly in hand and his spending stays at ₹85,000, all of it can go to the SIP; if spending rises too, only the difference can, and each ₹1,000 of new essential spending adds ₹6,000 to the emergency fund target.
The third is when the car loan ends. If his other essentials stay at ₹70,000, the freed ₹15,000 EMI can go to the SIP, taking it to ₹59,800 a month. The fund target also falls to 6 × ₹70,000 = ₹4,20,000, so the ₹90,000 above that can stay as extra cushion or move into investments.
Where should the emergency fund sit while it fills?
For 35 months, Vikram's ₹14,800 a month needs a place he can reach within a working day with little or no loss: a savings account, a sweep-in fixed deposit or a liquid fund. A liquid fund charges a small graded exit load if redeemed within six days of investing, none from the seventh day, and a sweep-in FD may pay slightly less interest on the part broken early. Keeping the ₹5,10,000 apart from his SIP's scheme means the SIP never has to be sold to pay a bill.
Dhi answers from your own numbers how much a pay rise or a finished loan frees for a SIP, with your cash flow, net worth, protection and goals in one view. Dhi earns no commissions and never mis-sells.
Frequently asked questions
This is general information for salaried individuals in India, not personalised financial advice.
