Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance has announced the launch of a unit-linked plan that offers a minimum guarantee of 170% at maturity. This Ulip with guaranteed returns will be available for customers from January 11. This is a single-premium life insurance policy, known as Shield Plus, and the term is fixed at 10 years and the minimum premium requirement is Rs 25,000. The returns, which work to around 5.45% on this product, could be compared to that of a bank or a post office deposit. But since the product has an equity exposure, there is a strong possibility of outperformance over the long term, say experts. The sum assured could be equal to 1.1 times or five times of the single premium paid, which takes care of the protection element of the Ulip. However, the insurer has capped the maximum sum assured at 1.1 times the single premium for individuals in the age group of 56-65 years. The product offers a choice of six funds but only Shield Plus Fund offers minimum guaranteed unit price at maturity.
Though the deduction offered under Section 80CCD (1B) is `50,000 , it is not advisable to put the entire amount at one go. It is best to stagger your investments across several months, much like the SIP strategy in a mutual fund. However, don't make too many small contributions. There is a transaction charge of 0.25% or `20 (whichever is higher) on every contribution. If you invest `500-1,000 every month, you pay `20 per contribution, which works out to 2-4%. Invest at least `5,000-10,000 at one go. Remember, at most `2,500-5,000 of this will go into equities if you have chosen the maximum 50% allocation to stocks. The rest will flow into corporate bonds and gilt funds as per your desired allocation. Best Tax Saver Mutual Funds or ELSS Mutual Funds for 2015 1. ICICI Prudential Tax Plan 2. Reliance Tax Saver (ELSS) Fund 3. HDFC TaxSaver 4. DSP BlackRock Tax Saver Fund 5. Religare Tax Plan 6. Franklin India TaxShield 7. Canara Robeco Equity Tax Saver ...