How To Close SBI Account?

Thinking to close SBI Account? If you are an SBI customer looking forward to closing your bank account then, you are in the right place. There could be a myriad of reasons for closing a bank account. Some people might wish to close SBI account in case they aren’t satisfied with the banking services, financial products and policies, non-operative state, and more. 

If you hold an account in SBI bank either a savings or salary account or a current account but, not in an operational state then, closing that account is a perfect choice. Instead of maintaining a non-operational account and paying unnecessary charges like debit card charges, non-maintenance of minimum balance charges, SMS charges, and more, better, close it. To close an SBI Account, you must go through the right steps. 

Reserve Bank of India has set some crucial rules and regulations and all the banks under RBI must follow them without fail. Just like all the banks, SBI also follows RBI guidelines whilst a customer opens or closes an account like the duration, charges for the closing account, and more. If you are unaware of the procedure about How to close SBI Account then, here is the right guide. Read on!

When To Close Your SBI Account?

When and Why to Close an SBI Account? Mostly, SBI account holders think of closing or terminating their respective SBI accounts for multiple reasons. Some of the key reasons behind an individual’s wish to close an SBI Account include the following:

• If you have been maintaining multiple bank accounts and thinking of closing an SBI account, you can opt for account closure. 
• If you are not satisfied with the services and products offered by the SBI bank branch. 
• If you fail to maintain a minimum balance on your SBI bank account [savings or current account]. 
• If the bank offers a lower rate of interest on your savings or current account.
• If you have planning to move out of the city and couldn’t find any nearest bank branch in the new location. 
• If you are not fully satisfied with the SBI customer care services.
• If you have some bad experience with the banking personnel.
• If the bank levies a higher rate of interest, additional charges on various transactions are done online.
• In a few cases, the bank itself closes the account of its customer in case he/she hasn’t used the account for several years. As a result, the account turns inactive. Mostly, SBI bank prefers closing the inactive account to prevent unauthorized transactions or illegitimate activities.

Till now, you have seen the reasons behind closing an SBI Account. Now, let’s understand when to close an SBI Account. There is a right time to close SBI Bank Account either online or offline. To evade the SBI account closure charges, the customers need to close the SBI Account within a specific time period. Based on the tenure, the customers will be imposed certain SBI Account Closing Charges.

SBI imposes no charges if you close your bank account within 14 days from the date of account opening. The SBI Account holder must and should pay certain fees if the account is closed between 15 days and 1 year. As per the SBI rules and guidelines, the account holders need to pay a certain fee of Rs. 500 alongside GST charges to close a savings account if the tenure crosses 14 days from the account opening date. 

If you have already planned to close SBI Account, you need to know the right procedure as explained in this article. 

Things To Remember Before Closing SBI Savings Account

Individuals need to keep a few things handy before heading out to closing an SBI bank account. Some of the vital things include SBI Debit Card, Passbook, Cheque Book, Customer’s ID Proof and Proof of Address, and SBI Account Closure Form or Closure Letter. Besides keeping a few things handy, the account holders planning to close the SBI account need to remember some noteworthy points. Check it out!

• Make sure you clear all your SBI account pending dues before closing the account.
• Download your SBI bank account statements for further reference purposes.
• Close or Balance Transfer all your credit card dues and EMI dues associated with this SBI account.
• As you cannot reopen this SBI account again, you need to make your account balance ‘0’. To evade amount transferring issues, maintain zero balance on that particular account before closing your bank account.
• Keep in mind that once you close your SBI bank account, you cannot reopen the account again. Also, the SBI banking authorities don’t allow the customers to reopen the account that has been closed already.

Make sure you keep all the aforementioned vital points in mind before planning to Close SBI Account Online. 

How To Close SBI Account?

The procedure of Closing an SBI Account might appear difficult for you but, it is actually a simple process. One cannot close their SBI bank account online i.e., directly from the official website of SBI. Whether it is an SBI Savings account, Current account, or Salary account, you cannot close the bank account online. If you are willing to close your SBI Bank Account, you must visit the bank branch. 

By carrying the crucial documents such as the closure form, ID documents, and others, you can visit the bank branch and close the bank account. However, one thing you can do right from your home for closing an SBI account is to download the SBI Account Closure Form online. This guide explains the detailed procedure on How To Close SBI Saving Account. Follow the step-by-step procedure furnished below to close the SBI account. 

• First of all, walk into the nearest SBI Bank Branch in your region.
• Ask the corresponding bank executive for an SBI Account Close Application form. Take the account closure request form and fill in the form with precise details.
• You can even download the SBI Account Closure Form Online i.e., from the official website of SBI.
• The vital information that must be filled in the application form includes the account holder’s name as per the bank account, account number, the reason behind closing the bank account, city, state, PIN Code, mobile number, name of the bank branch, branch code, and signature of the account holder.
• You can even find an option to transfer the remaining balance in your account to another account or transfer the balance through cheque, DD, or cash. Based on your preference, select an option in the application form.
• Once you are done filling in the application form with vital details, you can submit the same to the corresponding executive of the bank. 
• Make sure you attach some of the relevant documents along with the application form.
• Mostly, the SBI bank might ask you for Identity Proof and Proof of Address prior to bank account closure. To prove that you are the account holder of the same, you must submit the relevant document proofs.
• You must return the cheque book, debit card, and passbook associated with the bank account that you are seeking to close.
• Give them back to the corresponding bank branch executives whilst closing the bank account. As you are trying to close your SBI account, you need to return the related debit card and passbook as they may not be useful for you in the future.
• Make sure that you withdraw all the money in your account before returning the debit card, passbook, and chequebook.
• After verifying all your documents, the bank authorities will process your request for SBI account closure. 
• Once your SBI account is closed, you will receive an SMS on your registered mobile number. You will also get an email on your registered email id notifying the account closure information.

NOTE: If you face any sort of issues whilst closing an SBI account, you can contact the customer care personnel using the SBI Customer Care Toll-Free Number – 1800112211

SBI Account Closing Charges

Mostly, SBI banks charge at the time of closing the bank account. Not only SBI but also, several other banks in India impose certain charges for account closure. Usually, an individual who opens an account in an SBI bank must remain the account open or maintain it actively for at least 60 days, 90 or 180 days. If you are willing to close your account before meeting the bank’s rules and policies, the SBI bank will charge you an early account closure fee. 

As per the RBI guidelines, rules, and regulations, the banks try to recover the cost for a variety of services that they have provided to the customers at the time of account opening. It includes the cost for the issuance of debit cards, issuance of cheque book, passbooks, and more. In recent times, SBI has waived off SBI account closure charges for accounts that are older than 1 year. 

If you close your SBI account within 14 days or 2 weeks from the date of account opening for any of your reasons, SBI doesn’t impose any kind of SBI Account Closing Charges on the account holder. The 14 days is also referred to as the ‘Free Lock Period’. In case, you close your account between 15 days and 1 year from the date of account opening, you will be levied a charge of Rs. 500 alongside GST charges. 

Hence, we advise you to open an account in a bank that doesn’t impose early account closure charges or levies minimal account closure charges.

FAQs

People might have some doubts or queries about sbi account closing charges, closing a sbi savings account, and more. To clear the doubts of the readers, we have furnished some of the frequently asked questions along with precise answers. Check it out!

It might take up to 7 days or 10 days to completely close SBI Account i.e., terminating all your relationships with the bank account that you want to close.

Final Words

Well, this is everything you need to know about the procedure on how to close SBI account. We hope this guide has covered almost all the vital points about the sbi accounts close application such as the important documents required to submit at the bank, closure form download link, and more. If you still have any doubts or queries over this topic, don’t hesitate to ask us in the comments space. For more articles regarding SBI Accounts, opening or closing accounts, sbi bank timings, and more stay in touch with our website.