Parents need a corpus of about 30 times a year's spending, nearer 25 times if nearly all of it earns SCSS's 8.2% (2026), to keep paying a bill that rises with prices until the younger of them is 90. For a couple of 58 and 55 who need ₹25,000 a month, that is ₹75 lakh to ₹90 lakh, so ₹30 lakh of savings covers a third to two fifths.
Why do parents need about 30 times a year's spending?
At 58 and 55, the money has to last 35 years, until the younger parent is 90, while prices rise at an assumed 6% a year, the long-run figure the retirement planning guide uses (2026). The Senior Citizens' Savings Scheme (SCSS) pays 8.2% for October to December 2026, about 2% a year above 6%, and bank deposits earn less.
With spending drawn at the start of each year and raised with prices, 30 times the first year's need lasts about 35 years at a steady 1% real return, and 25 times about 34 years at 2% (the 25x rule in India uses this method). Each parent can put at most ₹30 lakh in SCSS, usually from 60, so a couple can hold ₹60 lakh there and anything above that, or held before 60, earns deposit rates. For ₹25,000 a month, ₹3,00,000 a year, the retirement corpus for parents is 30 × ₹3,00,000 = ₹90 lakh, or 25 × ₹3,00,000 = ₹75 lakh only if nearly all of it earns 8.2%.
What does ₹30 lakh pay Mitali's parents, and from when?
Mitali earns ₹30 lakh CTC, about ₹1,81,400 a month in hand (CTC vs in-hand salary). Her parents need ₹25,000 a month and have ₹30 lakh saved. Her father, 58, closed his shop this year and has no pension; her mother, 55, never had a salaried job.
Neither can open an SCSS account yet: it opens at 60, from 55 only for someone retired from a job, investing at most their retirement benefits within three months, and from 50 for retired armed forces personnel (not civilian defence employees). Her father can open one at 60, in October 2028; her mother, alone, in 2031.
His account can take all ₹30 lakh, the cap; he can add her as joint holder whatever her age, though the whole deposit counts towards his limit.
Until then it sits in deposits at an assumed 6.5% (most banks paid 6% to 6.75% on 1 to 5 year FDs in October 2026; senior rates usually start at 60): ₹1,95,000 a year, ₹16,250 a month, so Mitali adds ₹25,000 less ₹16,250 = ₹8,750 a month. The Post Office Monthly Income Scheme pays 7.4% for October to December 2026 at any age, up to ₹15 lakh jointly, but for five years: it cannot be closed in year one, and closing before year three costs 2% of the deposit. The Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandana Yojana closed to new investors in March 2023.
From October 2028, at 8.2% (assumed to hold), SCSS interest on ₹30 lakh is ₹2,46,000 a year: ₹61,500 a quarter, ₹20,500 a month. That is under the ₹4,00,000 at which new-regime tax starts, so they owe none, and Form 121 stops TDS on it, as on the deposits before.
Mitali's monthly top-up in each year's rupees (today's prices in brackets; years from October):
| Year (father, mother) | Need a month | ₹30 lakh kept: Mitali adds | ₹30 lakh spent: Mitali adds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-27 (58, 55) | ₹25,000 | ₹8,750 | nothing |
| 2027-28 (59, 56) | ₹26,500 | ₹10,250 (₹9,670) | nothing |
| 2028-29 (60, 57) | ₹28,090 | ₹7,590 (₹6,755) | nothing |
| 2031-32 (63, 60) | ₹33,456 | ₹12,956 (₹9,681) | nothing |
| 2036-37 (68, 65) | ₹44,771 | ₹24,271 (₹13,553) | ₹11,679 (₹6,521), savings run out |
| 2046-47 (78, 75) | ₹80,178 | ₹59,678 (₹18,608) | ₹80,178 (₹25,000) |
| 2060-61 (92, 89) | ₹1,81,276 | ₹1,60,776 (₹22,173) | ₹1,81,276 (₹25,000) |
Kept, the ₹30 lakh pays a flat ₹20,500, so her top-up grows to about ₹22,000 at today's prices, and her parents keep ₹30 lakh for a hospital bill or the parent who lives longer. Spent, it lasts about 10.7 years, into 2037, when her father is 68; then Mitali pays the whole ₹25,000 at today's prices for the remaining 24 years. Closing SCSS accounts after their first year costs 1% to 1.5% of the deposit (not in the table).
What if your parents need more than ₹25,000?
The same assumptions at three monthly needs:
| Need a month | Corpus (25x to 30x) | ₹30 lakh lasts if spent | Year-one top-up, ₹30 lakh kept |
|---|---|---|---|
| ₹25,000 | ₹75 lakh to ₹90 lakh | about 10.7 years | ₹8,750 (4.8% of her take-home) |
| ₹40,000 | ₹1.2 crore to ₹1.44 crore | about 6.5 years | ₹23,750 (13.1%) |
| ₹60,000 | ₹1.8 crore to ₹2.16 crore | about 4 years | ₹43,750 (24.1%) |
How much to give parents every month fits the top-up into a child's own budget and FI year, and is money sent to parents taxable shows why it is a tax-free gift.
What could make the gap bigger than the table shows?
Health cover is outside the ₹25,000; its cost is in health insurance for parents over 60. Care usually rises faster than 6% (healthcare costs in retirement sizes this), and an SCSS account extended at maturity earns that day's rate, possibly lower, so the table is a floor.
Dhi looks at your cash flow, net worth, protection and goals together, so a monthly top-up to your parents sits in your cash flow next to your own goals. Dhi answers questions about that support from your own numbers and nudges when something needs attention.
Frequently asked questions
This is general information for salaried individuals in India, not personalised financial advice.
