New bank nomination rules from Nov 1, 2025: Multiple nominees for deposits & lockers
India's Finance Ministry introduces new bank nomination rules effective November 1, 2025. Customers can now name up to four nominees for deposit accounts and safety lockers, choosing between simultaneous or successive distribution. This aims to provide greater control, flexibility, and transparency for asset distribution, minimizing disputes and benefiting heirs in unforeseen circumstances.
New Delhi: The Finance Ministry has recently issued new guidelines, which ensure changes to the rules relating to enrolment (nomination) for bank deposit accounts, safety lockers and safe-maintained properties. These changes will come into effect from November 1, 2025. Its objective is to give customers more control and flexibility over their deposits and assets. Now customers will be able to decide who gets their money or property kept safe and how to distribute it.
Customers can now nominate more than one person under the new rules that will come into effect from November 1, 2025. You can now nominate up to four people simultaneously for your deposit account or safe-kept property. It will have two modes, Simultaneous and Successive (Successive) nomination. In parallel nomination, you can select all four nominees simultaneously and decide the stake of each. In successive nominations, the next nominee will not be active until the above name is alive.
Nomination for Deposit Accounts
In deposit accounts, customers can now opt for parallel or sequential enrollment as per their convenience. This facility will help in benefiting the account holders' family or heirs, especially in unforeseen circumstances.
Nomination for Safety Lockers
As far as safe-maintained properties and safety lockers are concerned, only gradual nomination will be allowed. This means that the property will be distributed only after the first nominee will be given to the next nominee.
In parallel enrolment, customers can clearly decide the share or percentage of each nominee. The total stake should be 100%. This makes property sharing transparent and dispute-free.
A maximum of four nominees can be placed in successive nominations. If the first name is not there, then the next name will be active. This feature provides continuity and clarity in the distribution of assets to customers.
Purpose and procedure of nomination rules
The Finance Ministry says that the purpose of these changes is to increase transparency and customer comfort in the banking sector. Along with this, these nomination rules will be equally applicable in all banks. The Banking Companies (Nomination) Rules, 2025 will be issued soon for the enrolment process, paperwork required for name change or cancellation.
According to the Central Bank and SBI, the nomination facility is available in all personal account, safe maintenance and safe deposit vaults. This feature is only for individual accounts, i.e. single or joint accounts and accounts of sole proprietorship business. Nomination is not applicable for accounts opened in a representative capacity.