NPS Transaction Statement: CAF, AAF, SAF Explained

NPS is run by Central Recordkeeping Agencies (CRAs). Depending on when you opened your account, yours will be with:

• Protean eGov (formerly NSDL) — Go to cra.nps-proteantech.in
• KFintech — Go to nps.kfintech.com

Your login ID is your 12-digit PRAN (Permanent Retirement Account Number). The password (I-PIN) is the one you created when you first registered.

Forgot your password? Click "Reset Password" on the login page. You can get a new one instantly using an OTP sent to your registered mobile number.

Once you log in, look for the menu option that says "Transaction Statement" or "Statements". That is where all the download options live.

The CRA portal gives you three types of statements. Each one has a different job.

This is your full NPS history from day one. It includes every single transaction.

• Every contribution — yours and your employer's
• Every unit purchase with the NAV on that date
• Any switch transactions between fund managers
• Your current fund value and total corpus

Use the CAF when you want to see the complete picture. How much have you invested in total? What are your overall returns? This statement answers both.

By the way, PFRDA has also tied up with NSDL and CDSL so your NPS transactions can show up in the same CAS (Consolidated Account Statement) you get for your demat and mutual fund holdings. You need to opt in for this on the CRA website. That is a separate thing from the CAF inside the NPS portal.

PFRDA rules say CRAs must send every subscriber an annual statement. It usually arrives within 3 months after the financial year ends (by June or July).

• Summary of contributions made during the financial year
• Total units held at year end
• Scheme-wise break-up (E, C, G)
• Current value of your investments

This is the statement you need for tax filing. It proves your NPS investment when claiming deductions under Section 80CCD(1) and 80CCD(1B) of the Income Tax Act.

You can choose to get this by email or as a physical copy. On the CRA login page, look for "Opt for Email Annual Transaction Statement". Email costs 10 paise. Physical costs Re 1. The email version also reaches you faster.

This is a snapshot of your holdings on a specific date. No transaction history, just the current status.

• Current NAV of each scheme
• Total units held under each scheme
• Current market value
• Total corpus (Tier I + Tier II combined)

Use the SAF when you want a quick status check. How is my NPS doing today? That is the only question this statement answers.

Your NPS statement will show rows that look something like this:

Here is what each column means:

- Date — When the transaction happened. Contributions usually take 1-3 working days to show up.

- Particulars — What happened. "Contribution" means money came in. "Redemption" or "Switch Out" means units were sold.

- Contribution — The rupee amount you put in.

- NAV — Net Asset Value. This is the price of one unit on that day. It changes daily based on the market.

- Units — How many units you got. Calculated as Contribution divided by NAV.

- Fund Value — Running total of your investment after this transaction.

Simple way to think about it: If NAV is higher than when you bought in, you are making money. If it is lower, you are sitting on a loss. But do not panic if that happens. NPS is a long-term product. Markets go up and down.

Your statement will also show which Pension Fund Manager (PFM) is handling your money and which schemes they invest in.

NPS has three main scheme types:

• Scheme E (Equity) — Invests in stocks. Higher returns, higher risk.
• Scheme C (Corporate Bonds) — Invests in company debentures. Moderate returns.
• Scheme G (Government Securities) — Invests in government bonds. Lowest returns, safest.

If you picked the "Auto Choice" option (also called the Lifecycle Fund), your allocation shifts automatically from E to C to G as you get older. At 30, you might have 70% in equity. At 50, that drops to around 20%.

How do you know if your fund manager is doing a good job?

Compare your fund's NAV growth against the benchmark for that category. For example:

• Scheme E usually tracks the Nifty 50. Check if your fund's NAV grew more or less than the Nifty over the same period.
• PFRDA publishes performance data for all Pension Funds on its website. You can also check the National Pension System Trust's "PRIDE" dashboard to compare funds side by side.

If your fund has been consistently behind its benchmark for 2-3 years, you can switch to another PFM. You can do this online through the CRA portal.

If you have both a Tier I and a Tier II NPS account, your statement will show them separately.

On the CRA portal, when you generate a statement you can pick which tier to view. Some portals show both tiers in one statement with separate sections.

One thing to note. Your Tier II statement will usually show more redemption transactions because you can withdraw anytime. If you use Tier II actively, check it monthly to track your activity.

The statement looks simple, but a handful of reading errors quietly cost people money over the years. These four show up again and again:

• Watching the fund value, never the units. Fund value moves with the market every day, so on its own it tells you very little. Units tell you what actually happened. If units grew but fund value dipped, the market simply fell. If units did not grow in a month you contributed, that is a problem worth investigating.
• Assuming a debited rupee is an invested rupee. Your bank shows the money left; the statement shows the money arrived. The two should match within 1-3 working days. A debit with no matching contribution row means the gateway failed somewhere and your money is sitting in refund limbo.
• Skimming past switch entries. A "Switch Out" from one scheme and a "Switch In" to another at the same NAV is routine rebalancing. A switch at a different value deserves a closer look.
• Missing the contribution flag. An employer contribution looks almost identical to your own row; the difference is a small flag. The two are deducted differently at tax filing — your own contribution falls under 80CCD(1), the employer's under 80CCD(2) — so mixing them up distorts your ITR maths.

Reconciling takes five minutes a month. Open your bank statement, open the CAF, and match the debits to the contribution rows. That one habit catches almost every problem this article describes.