LGBTQ persons can open joint bank accounts, nominate partners as beneficiaries

NEW DELHI: Union finance ministry issued an advisory on Wednesday, August 28, clarifying that persons from the LGBTQ community face no restrictions in opening joint bank accounts or nominating their partners as beneficiaries.
“This is to clarify that there are no restrictions for persons of the queer community to open a joint bank account and also to nominate a person in the queer relationship as a nominee to receive the balance in the account in the event of the account holder,” the finance ministry said in the advisory dated August 28.

The advisory was posted by department of financial services, which comes under the finance ministry, on its X (formerly Twitter) account.
This advisory follows the Supreme Court’s order dated October 17, 2023, in the case of Supriyo@Supriya Chakraborty and another vs Union of India. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has also issued a clarification to all scheduled commercial banks on August 21, 2024, regarding the same matter, advisory said.
In 2015, the RBI had already directed banks to include a separate column for ‘third gender’ in their forms and applications, enabling transgender persons to open bank accounts and access related services.
Subsequently, several banks have introduced services specifically designed for the transgender community. For instance, ESAF Small Finance Bank Ltd launched the ‘Rainbow Savings Account’ in 2022, offering exclusive features such as high savings rates and advanced debit card facilities to transgender customers.
Following the Supreme Court judgment in October 2023, the Centre established a six-member committee chaired by the cabinet secretary in April 2024 to address various issues concerning the queer community. The committee’s mandate included examining measures to prevent discrimination against LGBTQ+ people in accessing goods and services and ensuring their protection from violence, harassment, or coercion.