The rules for withdrawing your National Pension System (NPS) corpus have officially changed. I just reviewed the May 15 2026 circular from PFRDA that makes this official. I will break down exactly how much cash you can expect at different ages under these new NPS Retirement Income Schemes (RIS).
Asset Class E = Equity; Asset Class C = Corporate Bonds; Asset Class G = Government Bonds
What is the NPS Retirement Income Scheme (RIS)?
Instead of a generic scheme this is a dedicated life cycle fund for your payout phase. Once you exit NPS your fresh contributions stop. Your money moves into RIS to give you cashflow predictability while keeping the corpus growing. Currently PFRDA offers one variant called the RIS steady fund. From a financial planning perspective I see this as a major upgrade for retirees who want continued market exposure instead of locking all their funds away.RIS Steady: How the Glide Path Works
The RIS steady fund uses a declining equity glide path. Your portfolio shifts away from equity toward safer government bonds as you age. This reduces market risk while allowing growth early in retirement. Asset rebalancing happens annually on your birthday based on the prevailing market value. Here is a snapshot of the asset class distribution at key milestone ages to show how your money shifts:| Age Bracket | Asset Class E (Equity) | Asset Class C (Corporate Bond) | Asset Class G (Govt Bond) |
| Up to 60 years | 35% | 10% | 55% |
| 61 years | 33% | 11% | 56% |
| 62 years | 31% | 12% | 57% |
| 63 years | 29% | 13% | 58% |
| 64 years | 27% | 14% | 59% |
| 65 years | 25% | 15% | 60% |
| 66 years | 23% | 16% | 61% |
| 67 years | 21% | 17% | 62% |
| 68 years | 19% | 18% | 63% |
| 69 years | 17% | 19% | 64% |
| 70 years | 15% | 20% | 65% |
| 71 years | 14% | 20% | 66% |
| 72 years | 13% | 20% | 67% |
| 73 years | 12% | 20% | 68% |
| 74 years | 11% | 20% | 69% |
| 75 years | 10% | 20% | 70% |
| 76 years | 10% | 19% | 71% |
| 77 years | 10% | 18% | 72% |
| 78 years | 10% | 17% | 73% |
| 79 years | 10% | 16% | 74% |
| 80 years and above | 10% | 15% | 75% |
Two Drawdown Options: SPR vs SUR Explained
PFRDA drawdown options give you two ways to manage your money. The default option is the Systematic Payout Rate (SPR). Your NPS systematic payout rate increases as you get older but the actual cash depends on the market. For example if you exit at age 60 your payout rate starts at 4%. It climbs to 6.67% at age 70. By age 80 your rate hits 20% and it maxes out at 100% at age 84. The payout amount resets every year on your birthday. The second choice is Systematic Unit Redemption (SUR). Here you redeem the exact same number of units every month. The catch is that the cash value fluctuates with the NAV. If the market drops your monthly rupee income falls too.What Happens to the Residual Corpus?
Under the SPR option you might have money left over at the end of your drawdown period. You can withdraw this residual corpus as a lump sum. You also have the option to combine it with your annuity component to purchase an annuity.When Does This Come Into Effect?
The PFRDA circular is dated May 15, 2026. However, the guidelines state clearly that they will take effect from the date notified by the authority, following the implementation of the necessary system capabilities and operational framework. This is important: the RIS and drawdown options are not yet operational. Subscribers cannot opt in today. PFRDA will publish a separate go-live date once the backend infrastructure is ready. If you are approaching retirement in the near term, it is worth watching for that announcement.Key Takeaways for NPS Subscribers
Here is what the May 2026 PFRDA circular means in practical terms.- NPS subscribers can now receive systematic, periodic income from their drawdown corpus without being forced to purchase an annuity with the lumpsum portion at retirement.
- SPR is the default drawdown option. The payout rate starts at 4% at age 60 (for a drawdown end age of 85) and rises every year, reaching 20% at age 80 and 100% at age 84.
- SUR offers a fixed-unit redemption approach. You redeem the same number of units every period, but the rupee amount changes with NAV.
- The mandatory annuity requirement of 20% or 40% of the corpus is not changed. Drawdown applies only to the remaining lumpsum portion.
- All payouts are market-linked. There is no income guarantee. Corpus value and payout amounts will vary with market conditions.
- Both Government and Non-Government NPS subscribers are covered.
- The scheme is not yet live. PFRDA will notify the go-live date separately.
