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LIC’s Bonus rates for 2013-14

LIC declared it’s bonus rate on 6th September 2013. So let us see some big movers and changers this year. 

For more infor, visit : http://basunivesh.com/2013/10/25/lics-bonus-rates-for-2013-14-and-comparision/

You Passport Application Status online

Now, you can track you Passport Application status online by visiting : PASSPORT STATUS ONLINE

IRDA Life Insurance Regulations 2013

Recently IRDA revamped so many changes when it comes to Life Insurance. All these changes will be effective from 1st October 2013 (Now IRDA extended it to 1st Jan 2014) . It is very important for all Life Insurance buyersto understand these changes well before going ahead for any buying.

Non Linked Regulations-

1. Non Linked products like traditional life insurance policies will be classified as “PARTICIPATING PRODUCTS OR “PAR PRODUCTS” and NON-PARTICIPATING PRODUCTS OR “NON-PAR PRODUCTS” .
2. PAR PRODUCTS will be eligible for Bonus on annual basis + Interim Bonus + Final Additional Bonus.
3. Minimum Death Benefit will be   A) For Single Premium it is 125% for age up to 45 years, 110% for others.  B) For Non Single Premium it is minimum 10 times of the annualized premium (for age up to 45 years), for the rest       it is 7 times of annualized premium.
4. For Non Single Premium it is minimum 10 times of the annualized premium (for age up to 45 years), for the rest       it is 7 times of annualized premium.
5. The minimum policy term will be 5 years and minimum premium paying term for non single premium policies will be more than 5 years.
6. Guaranteed Surrender Value (for regular premium policies) will be as below.  A) 30% of premium paid less any survival benefit already paid, if surrendered within 2nd Or 3rd Year. B) 50% of premium paid less any survival benefit already paid, if surrendered within 4th To 7th Year. C) 90% of premium paid less any survival benefit already paid, if surrendered in the last 2 years of policy , if term of the policy is less than 7 years.
7. Premiums will be equal throughout the period of the policy.

For more, visit : http://basunivesh.com/2013/08/27/irda-life-insurance-regulations-2013-do-you-know-these-changes/

Indian Passport Seva Online

Get All details of Passport at one place : Indian Passport Seva

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PAN Card Application, Apply & Track PAN Card Status India,

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What India's job hunters must know right now

Are you looking for a job? Do you want to know where the jobs are right now? Then you might soon confirm your interview and get hired in one of the country’s bright spots.

For more info, visit : http://in.finance.yahoo.com/news/what-india-s-job-hunters-must-know-right-now-075401825.html

5 major changes in life insurance policies from Jan 1, 2014 – How it affects you ?

Some major changes are going to happen in life insurance industry from Jan 1, 2014, especially in traditional policies like Endowment Plans, money-back plans and even ULIP’s. You will surely have a LIC policy or any other private sector traditional plans or might buy them in coming times. Here are 5 major changes which you should be aware about and they will come  into effect from Jan 1, 2014.

1. Service Tax introduced in LIC Policy Premium

Till now LIC was not charging the service tax of 3% from the customers and paying it to govt from the pool of money collected itself, but now the service tax will have to be charged separately from policy holders. Which means that if your LIC premium was Rs 50,000 per annum, now it will be 3.09% higher in first year, which is Rs 51,500  and after 1st year, it will be 1.545% as per moneylife article.

While customers see it as additional burden, note that its not the case exactly, Earlier – LIC was paying the service tax from the pool of money collected from investors only, which reduced the bonus amount given back to them. But now because it will not be taken out from the funds, that means the bonus declared each year will go up by that much margin and will come back to investors only. Note that Pvt companies were charging the service tax already, so nothing changes on their side. Only LIC was not charging it separately, which they will have to do from Jan 1, 2014 deadline.

2. Increase in Surrender Value

One of the major changes which has happened, is the change in surrender value for policy holders. The rules of surrender value depends on the premium paying term of the policy. If the premium paying term for policy is less than 10 yrs. Then the policy will acquire the surrender value after paying premium for 2 yrs (earliar it was 3 yrs), however if the premium paying tenure is more than 10 yrs , then the surrender value will be acquired only after paying 3 yrs premium.

In both the cases, the minimum surrender value would be 30% of the premiums paid without excluding the first year premium. Note that earlier, if you used to surrender after paying 3 premiums, you got 30% of premiums paid MINUS first year premium, but now as per new rules, the first year premium will not be deducted. Learn everything about LIC policies working before Oct 1

Another good change is that, from 4th-7th year, the minimum surrender value would be 50% of the premiums paid, and has to reach 90% of premiums paid in last 2 yrs of policy paying tenure.

3. Possible Decrease in Premium on LIC Policies

There is a great possibility that the premiums on LIC policies will come down by some margin, because the mortality rates will now be revised by LIC in calculating the premiums.

Mortality rates are the rates at which the insurance company deducts the fees for insuring you based on your age. LIC had been using old mortality rates till now, but now they will have to use new mortality rates . Just to give you an idea on reduction of premium, when I check the mortality rate for a 40 yrs old person in old table, its 0.001803 . But in new rates its 0.002053 . Which is approx 10% better. Lets not go into detailed calculation at the moment, but your risk premium part should go down by 10% (not the full premium, because only some part of whole premium in traditional policies are risk premium and rest is investment part) .

4. Higher Death Benefit

If the policy holder is above 45 yrs of age, then the Sum Assured has to be more than 10 times the annual premium, and for those who are less than 45 yrs old, it can be minimum 7 times the premiums. Note that for claiming the tax exemptions, your sum assured has to be 10 times the base yearly premium. So when you buy the policy in-case, you need to keep it in mind.BasuNivesh has done a great point by point notes on each aspect of regulation, in-case you want to go into details.

5. Agents’ incentives have now been linked to the premium paying term

Now agents commissions is linked to the premium paying tenure. Earlier a lot of agents used to sell the policies which had higher maturity tenure, but limited premium paying tenure (like 30 yrs policy with 10 yrs premium payment) . Here is the 

For more info, visit : http://www.jagoinvestor.com/2013/09/5-major-changes-in-life-insurance-policies-from-oct-1-2013.html#.UmzOyPmvDZE

LIC Housing Finance floats two new home loan products

New Delhi: Indian mortgage lender LIC Housing Finance said that it has introduced two home loan products, Bhagyalaxmi Plus and New Fixed 10.

Bhagyalaxmi Plus is aimed at women seeking to become the sole owner of a property, LIC Housing Finance said in a statement.

Under this scheme, the lender is offering a fixed interest rate of 10.35% for loans up to Rs 7.5 million for the first two years, the statement said. The interest rate will then be linked to the floating rate, it added.

Besides, customers availing loans under this scheme will be provided a discount of 0.25% throughout the loan term on conversion to floating rates.

For more info, visit : http://in.finance.yahoo.com/news/lic-housing-finance-floats-two-113311109.html

Why Life Insurance claim gets rejected

For more info, visit : http://www.tflguide.com/2011/04/why-life-insurance-claim-gets-rejected.html

How to calculate interest on credit card balance?

For more, Visit : http://basunivesh.com/2013/10/21/how-to-calculate-interest-on-credit-card-balance/

One of the easiest way of shopping these days is by using our credit cards. Reason is, we buy now but pay later. But at the same time have you noticed or understood the way the interest is calculated on such transactions? We hardly take notice of the calculation method used.

Reason for such neglect is, we mainly concentrate on terms such as billing cycle, grace period we get, minimum balance amount or the annual charges. But forget to notice the rate of interest or the method of interest calculation. Hence it is better to understand it. I try to simplify it with a simple example.

In India lot of card providers usually use the method of calculation called Average Daily Balance Method. Here in this method of calculation each day’s transaction will matter most for calculating interest on how much you owe. Let us say Mr. Arun has an XYZ bank credit card. Billing cycle will be 30 days. Assume annual interest levying will be 24%. He started the billing cycle with the balance of Rs.25,000. On the 10th day of the billing cycle he purchased some household goods worth of Rs.8,000. On the 20th day of the billing cycle he paid an amount of Rs.10, 000 to your credit card billing cycle. Now calculation will be done in below steps.

1) Calculating the average balance for the 30 day period.

From 1st day to 9th day balance is Rs.10,000. So we need to add this balance for the 9 days like Rs.10,000+Rs.10,000+Rs.10,000+Rs.10,000+Rs.10,000+Rs.10,000+Rs.10,000+Rs.10,000+Rs.10,000=Rs.90,000.

From 10th day to 19th day of billing cycle the balance will be Rs.10,000+Rs.5,000=Rs.15,000. So total balance for the period will be Rs.15,000+Rs.15,000+Rs.15,000+Rs.15,000+Rs.15,000+Rs.15,000+Rs.15,000+Rs.15,000+Rs.15,000+Rs.15,000=Rs.1,50,000.

From 20th day to 30th day of billing cycle the balance will be Rs.Rs.15,000-Rs.7,000=Rs.8,000. So total balance for the period will be Rs.8,000+Rs.8,000+Rs.8,000+Rs.8,000+Rs.8,000+Rs.8,000+Rs.8,000+Rs.8,000+Rs.8,000+Rs.8,000+Rs.8,000=Rs.88,000.

Now the total average balance will be (Rs.90,000+Rs.1,50,000+Rs.88,000)/30 days=Rs.10,933.

2) Divide the number of days in a year into billing cycle days. In this case billing cycle is for the period of 30 days. Hence 30/365=0.0821.

3) Multiply this 0.0821 factor with annual interest chargeable on credit card i.e. 24% . So it is (0.0821)*(0.24)=0.197.

4) Final step will be multiplying this interest to his daily average balance, i.e. (0.197)*(Rs.10,933)=Rs.2,154. This will be the interest Mr.Arun need to pay.

The same step can be achieved by putting appropriate values in below formula.

Average daily balance method for credit card=(days in billing cycle/365) (Annual Percentage Rate) (Average Daily Balance).

But do remember that while calculating this average daily balance, few banks adds charges made during the month. If they add so then your average daily balance will increase. In return you need to pay higher interest. Hence make sure what type of calculation they are doing.

Sabarimala Temple Darshan Tickets Online booking

How to book your online tickets for E-queue at Sabarimala Temple 

Things you need to book the tickets online

1) Your scanned passport size photo must be in jpg / jpeg and size below 30 KB.
2) Identity Card – can be any one of these - Election ID Card, PAN card, Ration Card, Driving License, Passport, Educational ID card, Employee ID Card.


Go to : Sabarimala Darshanam

LIC is best - why?

The article by V.K. Shunglu in The Hindu , “The risk business needs better cover” (Op-Ed, February 14, 2013) is one-sided and conspicuously understates certain key aspects of insurance reforms undertaken in the country a decade ago. It misses the basic premise on which an insurance business is run — that of “trust” and the long-term “promises to be upheld.”

This industry should not be seen merely in economic terms. The settlement of the death claim of Hemant Karkare, chief of the Mumbai Anti-Terrorist Squad, who was killed in Mumbai’s 26/11, presents a clear-cut example of Trust.

Mumbai’s Dadar branch of the Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) had settled the death claim amount of Rs.25 lakh within five days whereas a private company (name withheld), where Karkare had coverage for a similar amount, had rejected the claim — and, after a lapse of six months — by stating that the deceased had wilfully risked his life, even after knowing that his life was in danger. That’s why I said the insurance business should not be seen in purely economic terms.

The tag of public sector should not be the reason for spewing venom. There are certain “Crown jewels such as LIC”; it settles 98.6 per cent of claims, the only insurance company in the world to do so. It is true, as Mr. Shunglu says, that the insurance business has become a key player in underpinning the long-term foundations of India’s capital markets and financial system. But for satiating the needs of India’s capital markets, these private insurance companies have done little good for gullible policyholders and their hard-earned monies.

This is an industry in which even with a small amount of investment i.e. Rs.100 crore, thousands and lakhs of crores of public money can be garnered. It is firmly believed that the Foreign direct investment (FDI) hike will allow foreign capital with small investments to gain greater access and control over large domestic savings. The annual report (2011-2012) of the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) points out that FDI brought in by private life insurance companies up to March 31, 2012, was a meagre Rs.6,324.27 crore, which was to meet share capital requirements prescribed by the regulator. Not a single pie was invested in the infrastructure sector. It is LIC which is a saviour, and the government of the day is utilising it as a captive investor, just as it has done in the case of petroleum major ONGC.

In our country, insurance companies are mopping up people’s savings. During 2011-12, domestic savings were 32 per cent of GDP. Financial experts say that domestic savings, and not FDI, are crucial for any country’s economic development. In India, LIC has provided Rs.7,04,151 crore to the 11th Five-Year Plan (2007-2012) while the four general insurance companies and GIC of India have contributed about Rs. one lakh crore. Where will the government get these huge investments from if it tries to weaken the public sector insurance companies?

The World Economic Forum Financial Development Report 2012 tells the success story of LIC. It shows that given the low level of income and low disposable income of most Indians, insurance penetration in India is much greater than in countries with a per capita income that is 10 times higher. It is remarkable that with a per capita GDP of $1,388.80, India has achieved a life insurance penetration of 3.61 per cent as against 3.56 per cent of the United States with a per capita GDP of $4,8386.77. It is also a matter of pride that the report places India at the top of global rankings in terms of Life Insurance Density (measured as a ratio of direct premium to per capita GDP of 2011).

The LIC, the four general insurance companies in the public sector and GIC of India are doing an excellent job despite competition from private insurance companies. In 2011-12, LIC earned a premium of Rs.81,514.49 crore registering a market share of 71.36 per cent in premium income. It sold 3.57 crore new policies, to take an 80.9 per cent market share in the number of policies. Similarly, the four insurance companies have earned a premium income of Rs.30,532 crore and registered 58 per cent of market share.

The financial crisis in the U.S. and Europe has seriously eroded confidence in the banking and insurance sectors. At the same time, our domestic private insurance partners hardly need capital to be infused by their foreign counterparts, as put forth by the votaries of FDI increase.

Partners of private insurance companies in India like the Tatas and Reliance are on an acquisition spree, spending billions of dollars, both on the domestic and foreign fronts during the last five years. The others, like the State Bank of India and other public sector banks have capital reserves of their own. Some foreign partners have exited not due to a delay in the increase of FDI cap but because they are in search of greener pastures.

The author has also put forth another interesting argument — that shareholders and company boards be left free to determine whether additional investment should be through FDI or FII or by other means.

The world saw the bubble burst in 2008 due to such flawed and mistaken judgements by company boards and shareholders, when they invested the earnings/savings of innocent policyholders into Collateralised debt obligations, or CDOs. India was saved from such a situation because of the domination of the public sector in the banking and insurance sectors. Even the Prime Minister and the Finance Minister have shared this view.

Looking back, it is time to learn lessons from the global collapses of banks, insurance companies and other financial institutions like Lehman Brothers, etc. Foreign investment per se, does not bring any good with it, especially in fragile sectors like insurance. This sector is the pillar of any upcoming and growing economy.

(M.S.R.A. Srihari is a former joint secretary, Insurance Corporation Employees Union, Warangal division. E-mail: msra.srihari@licindia.com )

Read more at : http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-opinion/yes-insurance-needs-better-cover-but-not-with-foreign-capital/article4453695.ece

Non-Residents Eligible For Lower Tax Rate On Capital Gain – HC

Petitioner, a private limited company registered in Scotland. Petitioner during the period relevant to the assessment year 2010-11 had transferred 4,36,00,000 equity shares of Rs.10/- each of Cairn India Limited to Petronas International Corporation Limited, Malaysia for consideration of US$ 241,426,379. This transaction dated 12^thOctober, 2009, pursuant to an agreement dated 14^th October, 2009, was an off market transaction i.e. not through a stock exchange. 

For more, details visit : http://taxguru.in/income-tax-case-laws/nonresidents-eligible-tax-rate-capital-gain-hc.html

The ongoing debt issue of Shriram Transport Finance Company today i.e. October 14, 2013.

Chennai: Shriram Transport Finance Co. Ltd, the country’s largest truck financier, has decided to prune its plans to raise Rs 2,000 crore by selling non-convertible debentures (NCDs) because of uncertainty on interest rates and flat growth in the sales of heavy trucks.

Initially, the company plans to raise Rs 300 crore, less than the Rs 500 crore it had decided to raise earlier. “We will raise only Rs 300 crore with an option to retain over-subscription up to Rs 300 crore as we currently have sufficient resources,” Umesh Revankar, managing director of Shriram Transport Finance, said in an interview.

Source : http://www.livemint.com/Companies/7QUFhsHpr7AaGzg38MRKYJ/Shriram-Transport-Finance-trims-debt-issue.html

Raising investment limit of LIC is 'imprudent': IRDA chief

Mumbai: Insurance Regulatory Development Authority (Irda) chairman J Hari Narayan today said the government's recent move to allow the state-owned insurer, LIC, to invest up to 30 per cent in a company was imprudent.

He also said it is a matter of legal interpretation. "I think, it is imprudent," Mr Narayan told reporters on the sidelines of an Insurance Brokers Association of India event.

"Our interpretation was that LIC should be treated at par with all other private insurers. But the government was of the view that there were certain provisions, only applicable to LIC (as per LIC Act). So, it's a question of legal position," he said.

The government has allowed LIC to invest up to 30 per cent in a company against the existing norm of 10 per cent as stipulated in the Insurance Act, 1999 after the Law Ministry clarified that LIC Act, 1959 supersedes the Insurance Act, 1999.

The government is likely to notify the new rules soon.

Referring to the autonomy of regulators, Irda chief said the regulator has enough autonomy and the present issue of difference in approach to LIC case was a matter of legal position.

Meanwhile, he said the board of the Insurance Advisory Council would meet shortly to discuss the new product design guidelines.

"The product design guidelines have been examined by the council. They now have to be approved by the board and they are meeting on January 9," Narayan said without divulging any details regarding the proposed guidelines.

He also said management expenses of the insurance industry in the country were one of the highest in the world and needed a relook.

For more, visit : http://profit.ndtv.com/news/economy/article-raising-investment-limit-of-lic-is-imprudent-irda-chief-315658

US shutdown to hit exports; pharma, IT see no immediate impact

Indian exports face additional costs due to delays at ports and airports in the US in the wake of government shutdown, but sectors like IT and pharma are likely to remain unscathed as their business is not directly linked to federal spending.
"The shutdown of the US government will certainly hit Indian exports because of crippling of the trade facilities at the ports and airports," Assocham President Rana Kapoor said.
The US government today shutdown ¿ for the first time in nearly 18 years - as the Republican and the Democrats failed to strike a deal on spending and budget mainly due to their differences over 'Obamacare', the flagship healthcare
programme of President Barack Obama. Engineering exporters' body EEPC India today said Indian exports to the US face a demurrage threat due to shutdown in the world's largest economy.
"Commercial ports do not come under emergency service category, so there will be a delay in port services like clearing of goods from ports due to staff shortage. This may result in huge demurrage for exporters," EEPC India Chairman Anupam Shah said.
Demurrage is a charge payable to the owner of a chartered ship in respect of failure to load or discharge the ship within the time agreed.
Engineering exports are close to 20 per cent of the total export basket of the country.
However, the shutdown is unlikely to affect sectors like pharmaceutical and IT atleast in the immediate term. "Indian Pharma Industry is not selling drugs to the US
Government. It is selling mostly private. So, the US government shutdown will not have any impact on the India pharma industry," Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance (IPA) Secretary General D G Shah told PTI.

For more, visit :http://www.indianexpress.com/news/us-shutdown-to-hit-exports--pharma-it-see-no-immediate-impact/1177220/

Should you hire a financial planner or do it yourself

Updated: Sat, Jul 02 2011. 05 21 PM IST

Be it exercising, dieting, curing simple health problems, building a house, tax filing or money management, there are two ways of getting them done—hire a professional for guidance or do it yourself. In each case, the decision to hire a professional is based on many factors varying for every individual. For example, if you are building a house on a plot, you may decide to hire an architect based on the size of the project, the kind of interiors you want and your budget. Else, you may simply brief a local contractor and supervise the construction yourself.

Financial planning is no rocket science, it is a combination of simple financial strategies, few calculations and, most importantly, discipline. You may not have a written plan and a second opinion by a certified financial planner (CFP), but can still do fine doing it yourself if the following five factors are in your favour and you are disciplined and self-motivated to take charge of your money.

Time: You have to commit “time” if you want to manage money successfully. You will first need to start by educating yourself with personal finance matters and products. The best way to do this is by reading money magazines or money sections of your daily newspaper. You may also spend time watching television or surf the Internet. There is too much information floating around, you need to get used to terminology and products on insurance, investments, banking and taxation.

You will also need “time” to understand your needs, set financial goals, learn to use financial calculators (most of them are available on the Internet), compare products, take a decision and execute it. Getting a grip over your money is a continuous affair and doesn’t happen overnight; it will take at least two-three years. Spending 6-9 hours a month over weekends should serve the purpose.

If you are not able to make this commitment, it’s a good idea to hire a financial planner who will do the handholding, advise and maybe even execute the plan. Even in this case you will have to spend 2-3 hours a month in meeting the planner, understanding the plan, executing and reviewing the plan.

Affordability: Hiring an experienced and professional financial planner costs money. In India currently, CFPs charge anywhere between Rs 10,000 and Rs 30,000 to make a plan, execute and monitor it. Its no point having a plan done from self-proclaimed planners who are actually insurance agents or mutual fund distributors doing it for free and in the end recommending the products they want to sell.

”Willingness to pay” is best left to you, but “ability to pay” can be quantified to some extent. You can use this as a benchmark for deciding whether to hire a CFP or do it yourself. It’s a simple trade-off—you pay fee to save your time, efforts and get professional advice, but let this not be the only deciding factor.

 

For more, visit : http://www.livemint.com/Opinion/NHrreRJCkZqYU1tTWJbjWP/Should-you-hire-a-financial-planner-or-do-it-yourself.html

Aadhaar card must be voluntary, says Supreme Court

In the middle of a working day, SM Rehman, a daily wage earner, is at the ration card office in Delhi's Ambedkar Nagar, trying to get a new ration card made for his family of six. His biggest stumbling block isn't the form but an Aadhaar card. Under the Delhi government's food security scheme, an Aadhaar card is required to get a new smart card for ration.

"I took me 15 days to get my Aadhaar card made, but I'm the only one who has an Aadhaar card in my family," he tells us. The new ration card, will entitle his family to subsidised food under the government's ambitious food security scheme. But the long processes have him worried. "I have already spent 30 days of work for 3 kilos of ration."

Mr Rehman is not alone. Some residents of Sarita Vihar we met at the ration office told us the mantra was simple: no Aadhaar, no ration card. Laxmi said, "They won't accept forms here without an Aadhaar number. Even if you have to add the names of children, they need to have Aadhaar cards too."

The Delhi government has maintained that the registration for Aadhar or the unique identification number (UID) is voluntary. But by linking the Aadhaar to the ration card has virtually made enrolling for the UID mandatory.

Now the government's ambitious unique identity project comes with a word of caution from the Supreme Court. While hearing a petition on its distribution among illegal immigrants, the top court said getting an Aadhaar card must be voluntary and not mandatory.

The Supreme Court which is examining the validity of the Aadhar scheme has passed an interim order today saying no citizen should suffer for want of Aadhaar cards and Aadhaar cards should not be issued to illegal migrants.

After the Supreme Court order the Delhi government told NDTV it will study the top court's decision before revisiting its plan although it feels the Aadhaar has already covered 99 per cent of the population and is being used more as a tool of convenience.
 Source : http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/aadhaar-card-must-be-voluntary-says-supreme-court-422675