No nominee, no problem: RBI proposes easy claim settlement for deceased accounts up to ₹15 lakh

The draft circular has asked banks to adopt a simplified procedure to settle claims up to ₹15 lakh in cases where account holders die without declaring a nominee or in cases of joint accounts without a survivorship clause.

"A bank shall adopt a simplified procedure for settlement of claims in deposit accounts where a deceased depositor had not made any nomination or in cases of joint accounts without nominee/ survivorship clause, keeping in view the imperative need to avoid inconvenience and undue hardship to the claimant/ legal heir. For settlement of such claims, a bank, based on its risk management systems, shall fix a threshold limit, subject to a minimum of ₹15 lakh," the draft circular said.

When the claim amount is up to ₹15 lakh

If the deceased depositor has not left a ‘Will’ nor is there any contesting claim nor an order from a competent court restraining the claimants nor the bank from receiving/making the payment, then the bank shall settle the claim up to the threshold limit, based on the following details:

• Claim form duly filled and signed by the claimants, other than those who have signed the letter of disclaimer/ no objection;

• Death certificate;

• Officially Valid Document of the claimant towards verifying his/ her identity and address;

• Bond of indemnity/ surety, as given in Annex I-C, signed by the claimants;

• Letter of disclaimer/ no objection, as given in Annex I-D, from non-claimant legal heirs, if applicable; and

• Legal Heir Certificate issued by a competent authority or Declaration regarding the legal heirs of the deceased depositor by an independent person, who is well known to the family of the deceased but unconnected with it and acceptable to the bank.

The draft circular said that no bond of indemnity/ surety from a third party shall be obtained in case of claims up to the threshold limit.

When the claim amount is above the ₹15 lakh threshold limit

In case the claim amount is above the threshold limit, then in addition to the documents mentioned above, the claim shall be settled based based on the following:

• Succession certificate; or

• Legal Heir Certificate issued by a competent authority or Declaration regarding the legal heirs of the deceased depositor, sworn as an affidavit before a Judge/ Judicial Magistrate, by an independent person who is well known to the family of the deceased but unconnected with it and acceptable to the bank.

Such a claim may be accompanied by a Bond of Indemnity/ surety from third-party individuals acceptable to the bank and good for the claim amount.

Please note that the draft circular is open for comments/feedback by stakeholders and members of the public until August 27, 2025. It may come into effect from January 1, 2026, or even earlier, subject to the central bank's final approval.