PNB 666-Day Fixed Deposit in October 2026: 6.50% Rate, Senior Benefits, TDS and DICGC

Summary: Punjab National Bank’s published domestic fixed-deposit schedule for amounts below ₹3 crore lists a distinct 666-day tenor at 6.50% per annum for the general public, 7.00% for eligible senior citizens aged 60 to below 80 and 7.30% for eligible super-senior citizens aged 80 or above. The underlying rate revision is effective 1 June 2026, and PNB’s official interest-rate page was last updated 1 October 2026. These are ordinary domestic callable fixed-deposit rate-card figures, not a promise that every deposit category or renewal qualifies. PNB Uttam non-callable and NRO/NRE deposits have separate eligibility or rate rules. This article explains the specific 666-day deposit, indicative interest calculations, premature-withdrawal risk, tax-year 2026-27 bank-interest TDS under section 393 of the Income-tax Act, 2025, GST treatment and DICGC’s ₹5 lakh aggregate insurance limit without offering a deposit recommendation.

Which Punjab National Bank Deposit Is Being Analysed?

The product examined is the 666-day maturity bucket within Punjab National Bank’s ordinary Domestic/NRO Fixed Deposit Scheme rate card for deposits below ₹3 crore, with the quoted senior-citizen enhancements relevant to eligible domestic resident deposits. This is not the PNB Uttam non-callable product, a five-year tax-saving FD, a foreign-currency deposit or a recurring deposit. PNB’s official interest-rate schedule states that the retail domestic term-deposit rates were revised with effect from 1 June 2026 and the web page was last updated on 1 October 2026. The bank can revise rates for new bookings, so the applicable booking-date confirmation remains essential.

The rate schedule has many neighbouring maturities. For example, the 445-to-665-day ordinary domestic slab shows a lower rate than the exact 666-day tenor, and the following 667-day-to-two-year bucket is again different. This is why quoting a generic “one-to-two-year PNB FD rate” can mislead a depositor. The 666-day period should appear correctly on the deposit application and receipt. An actual deposit receipt also determines interest option, maturity date, holder capacity, nomination and premature-closure rights, subject to the bank’s rules.

Official 666-Day Rates and Effective Date

For ordinary domestic deposits below ₹3 crore, PNB’s official schedule lists 6.50% per annum for the general public, 7.00% for qualifying senior citizens and 7.30% for qualifying super-senior citizens at the 666-day tenor. The bank defines senior citizens in this rate schedule as age 60 years and below 80 years and super-senior citizens as age 80 years or above. The higher rates are eligibility-specific and should not be applied to a non-resident deposit, an ineligible holder or a different slab merely because the depositor is older than 60.

The cited schedule is effective from 1 June 2026, while the website displays a later page update of 1 October 2026. A website update date is not the same as the effective date of every rate. The bank’s actual contract rate is generally established when the deposit is accepted or renewed, subject to its terms. The Reserve Bank of India regulates deposit-rate practices, but it does not publish a guaranteed universal rate for every PNB retail tenor. An October 2026 article must therefore report the bank’s own effective-date schedule rather than infer a rate from the RBI repo rate.

Callable FD Versus PNB Uttam Non-Callable Deposit

PNB separately publishes the PNB Uttam non-callable fixed-deposit schedule for eligible deposits above ₹1 crore and below ₹3 crore. At the 666-day tenor that separate column shows 6.60% general, 7.10% senior and 7.40% super-senior. Those figures should not be presented as rates for an ordinary small retail deposit or as universally available. The non-callable feature materially restricts premature withdrawal and has a minimum deposit-size condition. A saver with ₹1 lakh cannot assume eligibility merely because the same bank publishes the rate.

The ordinary domestic FD and the non-callable alternative are different contractual products. A callable FD normally allows early closure subject to bank conditions, a possible interest-rate recalculation and any prescribed penalty. A non-callable FD is intended to restrict withdrawal before maturity except where specific contractual or regulatory exceptions apply. Depositors should examine the actual product name and deposit receipt, not rely on a promotional rate table that merges the two. The economics of higher nominal interest cannot be separated from the value of liquidity and emergency access to funds.

Illustrative Interest: ₹1 Lakh for 666 Days

For illustration only, take a principal of ₹1,00,000, a 666-day tenor and an annual simple-interest approximation using a 365-day year. At 6.50%, interest is ₹1,00,000 × 6.50% × 666 ÷ 365, approximately ₹11,860.27 before tax. At 7.00%, the same calculation is about ₹12,772.60; at 7.30%, approximately ₹13,320.00. These are simple-interest comparators, not the bank’s contractual maturity quotes. Actual amounts can differ with the chosen interest-payout frequency, compounding convention, holiday adjustments, exact dates, withholding and bank product terms.

A cumulative deposit may compound interest at the frequency specified in the contract; a periodic-interest deposit may pay cash quarterly or monthly under the bank’s applicable methodology. A higher maturity amount from compounding does not mean the nominal annual rate itself has changed. The depositor should ask for the official maturity illustration and compare it with the receipt. A useful control is to reconcile principal, annual rate, start date, maturity date, payout option, expected gross interest and tax deducted at source. The example is not an investment-return prediction and excludes reinvestment of periodic payouts.

Premature Withdrawal, Renewal and Liquidity

The practical cost of breaking an FD may be more than a single flat fee. A bank may recalculate interest using the rate applicable for the period the money actually remained deposited and then apply the contractual premature-withdrawal penalty, if any. The bank’s exact schedule and account terms must be checked at the time of opening and closing; a generic percentage taken from another bank is not reliable. Some withdrawals may have minimum-run-period conditions. An auto-renewal instruction can also change the rate and maturity at renewal, because the renewed deposit generally follows the then-prevailing product terms.

Liquidity planning should account for whether the deposit is pledged as collateral, whether there is a lien, whether a joint holder’s consent is required and whether the bank permits a loan or overdraft against that particular receipt. A loan against an FD can preserve the deposit contract but creates a separate borrowing cost and security obligation. It should not be assumed cheaper than closure without actual bank quotations. The 666-day product is a term deposit; it is not a savings account with unrestricted access to funds. The bank’s contractual rights and the customer’s chosen instructions govern the outcome.

Income Tax on Interest in Tax Year 2026–27

Interest from an ordinary bank FD is generally taxable in the hands of the beneficial owner under the applicable income head, often income from other sources, unless the facts support business-income treatment. The Income-tax Act, 2025 applies to tax year 2026-27 beginning 1 April 2026. The 666-day tenure does not create a tax exemption. Interest recognised on accrual or receipt should be handled consistently with the taxpayer’s lawful accounting method, while avoiding double taxation of interest already offered in an earlier period. Joint holding and beneficial ownership require factual review rather than automatically splitting income equally.

Section 393(1), Table serial number 5(ii), of the Income-tax Act, 2025 sets the specified banking-interest withholding threshold at ₹50,000 for a person other than a senior citizen and ₹1,00,000 for a senior citizen, subject to the statutory conditions and aggregation provisions. The ordinary resident bank-interest TDS rate is generally 10% where applicable and PAN requirements are satisfied. The threshold is for tax deduction at source, not a blanket exemption from income tax. A person whose interest falls below the threshold may still owe tax after combining all taxable income.

No-TDS declarations and tax-saving FD confusion

Eligible depositors who satisfy the statutory conditions may use the prescribed Form 121 framework under the 2025 Act to seek non-deduction, but the declaration must be truthful and does not change the underlying taxability of interest. A senior citizen’s higher TDS threshold does not mean all interest up to ₹1 lakh is tax-free. Separately, the ordinary 666-day FD is not a prescribed five-year tax-saving bank deposit. A deduction under the old section 80C framework, where available for the relevant year and tax regime, cannot be claimed merely because money was placed in a normal term deposit. Bank-interest and DICGC explainer is contextual reading, not a substitute for the statute.

GST on FD Interest and Separate Bank Charges

Ordinary consideration represented by interest on deposits is generally exempt from GST under the relevant exemption for services by way of extending deposits, loans or advances where consideration is interest or discount. That does not mean every banking service associated with an FD is exempt. Separate fees for taxable banking services, where charged, may attract GST under the applicable classification and rate. The depositor should distinguish the interest earned from bank fees debited. An individual depositor generally does not charge GST on the interest merely because the bank reports interest income for income-tax purposes.

A business entity holding an FD should separately examine whether the interest affects its financial reporting, exempt-supply calculations or input-tax-credit reversal under the relevant GST rules. The answer depends on the entity’s status and specific statutory exclusions. Interest from a deposit is not the same as a taxable sale of goods or services. Nor does the exemption automatically mean a business may ignore bank fee invoices or credit restrictions. In audited financial statements, interest income, accrued interest, withholding receivables and any bank charges should be classified and reconciled consistently.

DICGC Insurance: ₹5 Lakh Is an Aggregate Ceiling

Eligible deposits with insured banks are covered under the Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC) framework up to ₹5,00,000 per depositor per insured bank in the same right and same capacity, including principal and accrued interest. Fixed, savings, recurring and current accounts at different branches of the same bank are aggregated for that purpose. Opening several FD receipts or changing branches does not multiply the protection for the same ownership capacity. Deposits with separate insured banks are evaluated separately under the statutory framework, while genuinely different ownership capacities require the specific DICGC rules.

For example, if a depositor holds ₹4,90,000 of principal and ₹30,000 accrued interest at PNB in the same insured capacity, the combined ₹5,20,000 exceeds the normal insurance ceiling by ₹20,000, assuming no other relevant deposits. DICGC cover is not a promise that the bank will pay any amount immediately on request or that all deposits of unlimited size are government-guaranteed. The trigger and settlement process are governed by the insurance statute. TaxGuru’s DICGC deposit-protection explanation offers context; the official DICGC guide is authoritative.

NRO, NRE and Other Depositor Categories

The bank’s ordinary domestic rate card includes a Domestic/NRO heading, but PNB explicitly says the additional senior-citizen interest concession on domestic deposits is not applicable to NRO deposits. An NRO depositor must not copy the resident-senior rate into an NRO calculation. NRE deposits are governed by a separate rate schedule and FEMA eligibility requirements; tax treatment also depends on the account’s status and conditions. Corporate, partnership, trust and joint depositors may have different documentation, withholding and ownership consequences. This article’s illustrative senior rates are not an NRO or NRE quotation.

The applicable customer category should be confirmed before booking: resident or non-resident, individual or entity, age category, deposit size, callable or non-callable, and whether special staff concessions apply. The published 666-day rate is an annual percentage; it should not be presented as the return on every deposit regardless of payout frequency. Where the amount reaches ₹3 crore or more, the quoted below-₹3-crore table is no longer the relevant rate card. If the customer’s status changes during the term, the bank’s contractual and regulatory rules determine the treatment.

Documentary Checklist for an October 2026 FD

Before confirming the deposit, preserve a screenshot or copy of the bank’s rate card, its effective date, the branch or digital quote and the final receipt. Check the deposit tenor of exactly 666 days, rate, category, maturity date, interest option, nomination, renewal instruction and premature-withdrawal provisions. For tax reconciliation, collect the bank’s interest certificate, Form 26AS or applicable tax-information statement and TDS certificates where issued. Reconcile the bank’s gross interest with the return of income; a net credit after TDS is not the same as taxable gross interest.

The information should be refreshed if PNB changes rates after the official schedule reviewed for this article. The 1 October 2026 website update and 1 June 2026 effective date are distinct facts. A later rate revision, if any, may change new-deposit quotations but not necessarily existing contractual deposits. This article does not compare PNB with other banks or recommend a deposit. Its purpose is to document the specific published product terms, tax consequences and risk limits so that readers can verify an actual bank offer rather than rely on a generic headline.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is PNB’s published 666-day domestic FD rate in October 2026?

The official below-₹3-crore domestic rate card, revised from 1 June 2026 and last updated online 1 October 2026, shows 6.50% general, 7.00% eligible senior and 7.30% eligible super-senior, subject to customer and product eligibility.

2. Are the 666-day rates the same for NRO deposits?

Not necessarily. PNB expressly states that the additional senior-citizen rate concession for domestic deposits does not apply to NRO deposits. Confirm the applicable NRO rate and tax treatment separately.

3. Can a ₹1 lakh customer obtain the PNB Uttam non-callable 666-day rate?

The bank describes PNB Uttam non-callable eligibility for amounts above ₹1 crore and below ₹3 crore in the cited schedule. Its higher quoted rate should not be treated as available to a ₹1 lakh ordinary retail deposit.

4. Is interest on a 666-day FD exempt from income tax?

No. Ordinary FD interest is generally taxable under the applicable provisions. A bank’s failure to deduct TDS does not convert taxable interest into exempt income.

5. What are the bank-interest TDS thresholds for tax year 2026-27?

Under section 393 of the Income-tax Act, 2025, the specified bank-interest thresholds are generally ₹50,000 for non-senior persons and ₹1,00,000 for senior citizens, subject to aggregation, PAN and other legal conditions.

6. Does DICGC insure each PNB FD separately up to ₹5 lakh?

No. The statutory cover generally aggregates eligible principal and interest across the same insured bank in the same right and capacity and applies a single ₹5 lakh ceiling. Multiple receipts or branches do not create separate limits.

7. Does the PNB 666-day FD qualify for the five-year tax-saving deduction?

No. The analysed 666-day ordinary deposit is not the prescribed five-year tax-saving deposit. Deduction eligibility, where relevant, requires a qualifying scheme and the applicable tax-regime conditions.

Key Takeaways

• PNB’s below-₹3-crore ordinary domestic 666-day FD rate card lists 6.50%, 7.00% and 7.30% for specified categories.
• The rates are effective 1 June 2026 on a page last updated 1 October 2026; booking-date confirmation is necessary.
• PNB Uttam non-callable and NRO/NRE products have different conditions; do not mix rate cards.
• FD interest remains taxable; section 393 withholding thresholds are not tax exemptions.
• DICGC insurance is limited to ₹5 lakh of aggregate eligible principal and interest per depositor per bank in the same capacity.

Sources Reviewed: Punjab National Bank: official deposit interest rates (updated 1 October 2026), Income Tax Department: section 393 of Income-tax Act, 2025, DICGC: official guide to deposit insurance

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Disclaimer: This article is an informational explanation of Punjab National Bank’s published 666-day deposit rate card and Indian tax and deposit-insurance provisions reviewed on 14 October 2026. It is not an investment recommendation, comparison, ranking, return guarantee, tax opinion, banking advice or solicitation to open a deposit. Quoted rates are based on the official schedule effective 1 June 2026 and page last updated 1 October 2026; the rate, availability, deposit size, eligibility, senior-citizen concession, premature-closure rights, payout option and maturity amount must be verified with PNB on the actual booking date. Interest illustrations use simple interest only and are not bank maturity quotations. Income-tax, GST, TDS and DICGC consequences depend on current law and individual facts; DICGC protection is limited by statutory conditions and aggregation rules. TaxGuru, its owners, management, editors, authors, employees and associates accept no responsibility or liability for any financial loss, tax, interest, penalty, banking dispute, deposit decision or other consequence arising from use of or reliance on this article.