Transmission of mutual funds and PMS
Claiming mutual funds and PMS holdings after a death.
When an investor dies, their mutual fund units and PMS holdings pass to a surviving joint holder, a nominee or the legal heirs through a process called transmission. SEBI rewrote the rules from 22 August 2026: probate is no longer mandatory, small claims have a quick route, and every claim must be settled within 21 days of complete documents. Here is what each route needs.
Who it applies to
Surviving joint holders, registered nominees and legal heirs of anyone who held mutual funds or a PMS portfolio.
Realistic timeline
21 calendar days once the fund house or DP has every document. Assembling the documents is what takes the time.
What it costs
Nothing to the fund house or DP. Costs are stamp paper, notarisation and, only if you choose that route, court documents.
Is this the right guide
What this process covers, and what it does not.
Transmission is for undisputed claims. If heirs disagree, no form settles that.
This process applies if
- A sole holder died and a nominee is registered on the folio or demat account
- One joint holder died and at least one other holder survives
- The sole holder or all joint holders died with no nominee, and you are a legal heir
- The holdings are mutual fund units, in a statement of account or in demat
- The holdings sit in a PMS demat account in the deceased's name
A different process applies if
- Heirs disagree or a claim is contested — SEBI's framework does not apply and the matter goes to court
- You cannot find the folios at all — trace them first through the inactive folios guide
- The shares are paper certificates — the physical certificates route applies
What you will need
Every document, for your route.
Choose the holding and who is claiming. The list updates, and ticks are saved on this device.
Every claim on this route
Legal heirs, no nominee
If the claimant is a minor
If the death or the claimant is outside India
Mutual funds or PMS
Same rules, different doors.
One SEBI framework covers both. What changes is who holds the records and how the value is counted.
The process
Step by step, from first call to credit.
The 21-day clock starts only once the last document is in.
List every holding the person had
Get a consolidated account statement for the deceased's PAN from CAMS or KFintech for mutual funds, and a depository statement from NSDL or CDSL for demat holdings. For PMS, the portfolio manager's latest statement shows both the securities and the cash balance. Folios that have gone quiet can be searched on SEBI's MITRA platform.
Watch forFolios opened before PAN was mandatory will not show up in a consolidated statement.
Tell every fund house and the portfolio manager
Informing the fund house stops SIPs, STPs and SWPs running on the deceased's folios. For PMS, a written intimation stops trading and ends the agreement on the terms it sets out, with fees settled up to that date.
Watch forUntil the manager is told, the portfolio stays invested and fees keep accruing.
Work out the route and the value
A surviving joint holder comes first, then a registered nominee, then legal heirs. For legal heirs the value decides the paperwork. It is taken at the previous day's closing price or NAV, and counted per fund house for mutual funds and per demat account for PMS.
Watch forTwo fund houses holding ₹8 lakh each are two simplified claims, not one ₹16 lakh claim.
Get the claimant's own accounts ready
The claimant needs valid KYC and a bank account in their own name. For PMS, the claimant also needs a demat account, because the securities move from the deceased's demat account into it.
Watch forOpen the demat account before filing, and get a client master list dated after any name or address change.
Submit to the right place
Mutual fund claims go to the fund house or its registrar, CAMS or KFintech, at a branch or online where offered. PMS securities are claimed through the depository participant holding the deceased's demat account, and the cash through the bank.
Watch forThe acknowledgement must list any missing document up front. Keep it.
The holdings move into your name
Once every document is in, the processing entity has 21 calendar days to complete the transmission. If it delays or rejects the claim, it must give written reasons. Units or securities are credited to you, not paid out as cash.
Watch forA claim stuck past 21 days goes to the entity's grievance desk, then to SEBI SCORES.
Decide what happens next
The holdings are now yours to keep, switch or sell. A nominee holds them as a trustee for the legal heirs and should pass them on as the will or succession law requires. To keep a portfolio professionally managed, the claimant signs a new PMS agreement in their own name.
Watch forThe deceased's purchase cost and date carry over. Keep their old statements before selling anything.
Why claims fail
The reasons claims come back.
Nearly all of these are fixable before filing and slow to fix afterwards.
Probate or a court document demanded when not needed
Probate is no longer mandatory, and below the simplified threshold no court document is required. Ask for any extra requirement and its reason in writing.
Value added up across all fund houses
Mutual fund thresholds apply per fund house, PMS thresholds per demat account. Work each out separately at the previous day's price.
Names do not match across PAN, bank and forms
The most common cause. Make the claimant's name identical everywhere, or attach proof of the change.
Stamp paper of the wrong value
The indemnity and affidavit-cum-NOC go on stamp paper valued under the Stamp Act of the claimant's state. Check before executing.
One legal heir will not sign
The framework needs every heir's affidavit-cum-NOC or a settlement deed. A disputed claim falls outside it and needs a succession certificate or court order.
PMS claim filed without a demat account
Securities can only move into a demat account in the claimant's name. Open it first and attach a fresh client master list.
Working with us
Or hand the paperwork to us.
Transmission is document assembly, exact matching and follow-up across several institutions at once. We do that work for families for a stated fee agreed before we start, not a share of what is transmitted.
We do the administrative work. Tracing every folio and demat holding, preparing the forms for your route, and following up with fund houses, registrars, the DP and the portfolio manager until the transfer is done.
We do not do legal work. Succession certificates, disputes between heirs and anything contested belong with a lawyer, and we will say so rather than attempt it.
We are a mutual fund and PMS distributor. If inherited holdings are later invested through us we earn commission on that, which is worth knowing before you decide who to work with.
Idopia Services Private Limited is an AMFI Registered Mutual Fund Distributor, ARN-331653, and distributes Portfolio Management Services. This page summarises SEBI's transmission framework (circular dated 23 July 2026, in force from 22 August 2026) and AMFI's transmission guidelines. It is educational, not legal or tax advice. Processing entities may ask for additional documents above the simplified threshold. Where heirs disagree or a court document is needed, consult a qualified lawyer. Mutual fund investments are subject to market risks, read all scheme related documents carefully. PMS investments are subject to market risks; read the disclosure document carefully before investing.
Next step
Two checks before you file anything.
List every folio and demat account the person held, and check whether a nominee was registered on each. Those two answers decide which route applies and which documents you need, and both cost nothing. If the heirs are spread across cities or countries, or a portfolio manager is involved, that is the point at which most families would rather hand it over.
Idopia Services Private Limited is an AMFI Registered Mutual Fund Distributor, ARN-331653, and distributes Portfolio Management Services. This page describes an administrative process under SEBI's transmission framework and is educational rather than legal or investment advice. Documentation requirements are set by SEBI, AMFI, the depositories and each processing entity, and change from time to time; verify current requirements with the fund house, registrar or DP before acting. Transmission assistance is charged as a stated fee agreed in advance, never a share of any amount transmitted. Succession certificates, letters of administration and any dispute between heirs are legal work and are referred to a qualified lawyer. We may earn commission if inherited assets are subsequently invested through us.
Common questions
Claims after a death, answered
Most of these come from families partway through a claim that has stalled, or from a nominee unsure what they now owe the rest of the family. Almost every problem here is a paperwork problem, and most have a standard answer.
Nothing is lost and nothing lapses. The units stay invested in the deceased's folio until a surviving joint holder, a registered nominee or a legal heir claims them through a process called transmission. Until then, SIPs and other instructions keep running, so tell each fund house early.
Since 22 August 2026, fund houses, registrars and depository participants must complete a transmission within 21 calendar days of receiving all the required documents. If they delay or reject it, they must tell you why in writing. The time that really adds up is gathering the documents.
No. A nominee receives mutual fund units and demat securities as a trustee for the deceased's legal heirs. The nominee gets them first; the will or succession law decides who finally keeps them. If one of several nominees died before the investor, their share goes to the surviving nominees in proportion.
A shortcut for small claims where no nominee was registered: up to ₹10,000 per fund house for mutual fund units, and up to ₹30,000 per demat account. It is open only to parents, spouse, children and parents-in-law, who submit a one-page request-cum-undertaking and proof of relationship. No indemnity, no stamp paper.
Usually not. Where there is no nominee, legal heirs can claim up to ₹10 lakh per fund house, or ₹30 lakh per demat account, with a notarised indemnity bond and an affidavit-cum-NOC signed by all heirs. Above that, a legal heirship certificate or a will, each with an indemnity bond, is accepted as an alternative to a court document.
No. SEBI removed the mandatory probate requirement in July 2026. Above the simplified threshold, a copy of the will with a notarised indemnity bond is one of the accepted documents.
The claimant declares it using the previous day's closing price, or NAV for mutual funds. For units held in a statement of account it is counted per fund house; for demat holdings, per demat account. Holdings in two fund houses are two separate claims, each measured against its own threshold.
No. Under the rule of survivorship, the fund house or DP may ask a surviving joint holder only for a copy of the death certificate. If anything more is demanded, ask for the requirement and its basis in writing.
Once told, the portfolio manager stops managing the account and the agreement ends on its own terms, with fees settled up to that date. The shares are transmitted through the depository participant to the nominee or heirs, and the cash balance is claimed separately from the bank.
Not in the deceased's name. The heir receives the securities in their own demat account and can then sign a new agreement with the same portfolio manager, subject to the minimum investment that applies to new PMS accounts.
For PMS and any mutual fund units held in demat, yes. Securities can only move into a demat account in the claimant's name, and a recent client master list of that account is part of the claim. Units held in a statement of account move into a folio instead.
Yes, as a certified copy certified in the country of issue by a notary, magistrate or judge, by the Indian embassy or consulate, by apostille, or by an overseas branch of an Indian bank or its correspondent bank. If it is not in English, add a self-certified translation.
SEBI's simplified framework applies only to undisputed claims. Where heirs contest who gets what, no form settles it and the matter goes to court for a succession certificate or decree. That is work for a lawyer.
Inheriting is not taxed. Tax arises only when the holdings are sold, and the deceased's original cost and purchase date are used to work out the gain, which usually makes it long term. Keep the deceased's old statements before selling anything.