Post Office Child Plan (Bal Jeevan Bima) is a type of life insurance under Postal Life Insurance (PLI). The plans by India Post provide guaranteed returns and carry minimal risk. This insurance plan for children is a hit, especially among the economically humble sections of the society where risk appetite is not much, while guarantee and safety is the prime concern.
Table of Contents:
What is Postal Life Insurance Child Plan?
Bal Jeevan Bima, the children policy under Postal life Insurance, is designed to help Indian parents build a decent corpus to secure the future of their children. Since this is powered and monitored by India Post, there is minimum risk involved. All the money pooled in this policy is safely returned at the end. However, due to such low risks, the returns from the plan are humble too, i.e. for every Rs.1,000, there is a bonus of just Rs. 58.
What Postal Life Insurance Child Plan Covers?
Let us look at the coverage provided by the post office child plan:
- Being a highly basic insurance instrument, post office child plan covers only the death of the proposer, i.e. the parent
- In case of the untimely demise of the parent, the child shall receive the sum assured along with all the bonuses accrued on the completion of the policy. Although at the event of death of the parent, payment of all future premiums is waived off
- The maximum sum assured under the plan is Rs. 3 lakh or the sum assured of the parent, whichever is less
How PLI Child Plan Functions?
It is the easiest and most convenient way of building a decent corpus for your child without having to worry about risks involved in the finance market. Let us understand how the plan works.
- The parent purchases the policy in his/her name, with the child as the beneficiary. This is because the onus of paying premiums falls directly on parent(s), while the child simply reaps the benefits
- This premium is to be paid till the end of the policy term. As soon as the term expires, so does the policy and it cannot be further renewed
Eligibility Criteria
| Particulars | Details |
| Entry Age | Child: 5 – 20 years
Proposer: 18 – 45 years |
| Maximum Sum Assured | Rs. 3 lakh |
| Maximum No. of Members | 2 children |
Employees of the following organisations are eligible for this children policy (Bal Jeevan Bima) by Postal Life Insurance:
- Central Government
- Defence Services
- Para Military forces
- State Government
- Local Bodies
- Government-aided Educational Institutions
- Reserve Bank of India
- Public Sector Undertakings
- Financial Institutions
- Nationalized Banks
- Autonomous Bodies
- Extra Departmental Agents in Department of Posts
- Employees Engaged/ Appointed on Contract basis by central/ State Government where the contract is extendable
- Employees of all scheduled Commercial Banks
Note: It is not an exhaustive list. Employees of private sector are excluded from this list.
Documents Required to Purchase Plan
Make sure to submit the following documents when applying for Postal life Insurance Children Policy:
- Proposal Form or Application Form
- ID Proof of the child and proposer (Aadhaar Card, Ration Card, etc.)
- Age Proof (Birth Certificate, Matriculation Certificate, Aadhar Card, etc.)
- Address Proof (Ration Card, Voter’s ID, etc.)
- Passport-sized Photographs
- Any other document demanded by the insurer
Important Aspects
Following points are noteworthy in order to have a better understanding of Post Office Child Plan, i.e. Bal Jeevan Bima:
- This plan can be easily bought from any nearest post office
- Nominee can be changed any time during the policy, making the plan quite flexible
- Maturity benefits include both the sum assured and bonuses accrued
- In case of the death of the child, the policy ceases to exist and bonus + sum assured becomes immediately payable
- There is no loan facility in this plan, i.e. one cannot take loan against Bal Jeevan Bima
Advantages of Buying Post Office Child Plan
Taking this child plan is beneficial for people who cannot invest much, but would want to financially secure their children’s future. Some of the benefits of the plan are:
- On the unfortunate demise of the parent, premiums are waived off but policy continues to exist till the completion period
- If one is not able to pay premium due to some reasons, they can convert the policy to paid-up plan which will cancel out some of the benefits of the plan (Only if premiums have been paid for 5 continuous years)
- No risk involved, i.e. payback is guaranteed
- It’s one of the most affordable child insurance plans available in the market
- Duplicate bond certificate can be issued in case the original policy document is lost
FAQs
Q1. Do I get any tax benefit under this plan?
Yes, all the premiums paid towards this plan are exempted from tax as per Section 80C of the Income Tax Act, 1961.
Q2. I work in a private company. Can I buy this plan for my children?
No. As per the policy rules, employees of private sector are not eligible for Postal Life Insurance Child Plan.
Q3. What is the bonus offered under Bal Jeevan Bima?
PLI child plan Bal Jeevan Bima gives the same bonus that if provides for its endowment policy. For every Rs.1,000 of the Sum Assured, there is a fixed bonus of Rs. 58.
Q4. Do I need to submit medical reports of my child for buying this plan?
No, no medical test report needs to be submitted, though it is imperative that the child is in a healthy state.
Q5. Can you make the premium payment online for this child plan?
Yes, you can make online premium payment through the website of India Post.