How to add, change or check your mutual fund nominee

A nominee is the person you name to receive your mutual fund units if you die. Since 1 September 2026 you can name up to three for each folio, and a new folio in your sole name needs either a nominee or a signed opt-out. You can change the nomination as often as you like.

These rules come from SEBI's circular of 29 May 2026. It replaced every earlier nomination circular for mutual fund folios and demat accounts. Older articles that mention a freeze or a March 2023 deadline are out of date.

What is a nominee in a mutual fund?

A nominee is the person who receives your units when you die. A folio is your account with one fund house, and a nomination covers the whole folio.

SEBI's regulations say your units vest in the nominee "as trustee on behalf of the legal heir". Legal heirs are the people who inherit from you. So naming a nominee decides who the fund house pays. It does not decide who finally keeps the money, and it does not replace a will.

The rules also allow you to name someone to act for you if you become incapacitated; ask your fund house how it handles this.

Is nomination compulsory?

For a new folio in your name alone, yes, unless you opt out. For any single-holder folio opened on or after 1 September 2026, SEBI's circular says you must give a nomination or submit an opt-out declaration.

Joint folios are different. Nomination is optional there, but every joint holder must agree to providing or changing a nominee, whatever the mode of operation.

What does opting out mean?

You can opt out with a signed declaration, or by choosing "opt-out" online and agreeing to the declaration message. The declaration says you understand two things. Without a nomination, your legal heirs may need extra legal or court-issued documents, which may delay the process. And unclaimed holdings may be transferred to the Investor Education and Protection Fund Authority (IEPF).

What if your old folio has no nominee?

It is not frozen. SEBI's circular has no provision that freezes a folio for want of a nominee. What it does ask for is reminders. For folios without a nomination, the fund house's registrar must send reminders by email and SMS twice a year. It must also show a pop-up on your first log-in of the day.

How many nominees can you add, and how is the money split?

You can add up to three nominees. Giving each one a percentage is optional.

If you leave the percentages out, the units are shared equally. Any odd lot left after dividing goes to the first nominee named on the form.

SEBI's framework of 23 July 2026 for transmission (the transfer of units after a holder's death) covers a nominee who dies before you. If you have not changed the nomination, that nominee's share goes to the surviving nominees pro rata. That means in proportion to the shares you had given them.

A worked example with three nominees

Sunita opened a folio in 2019 with her father as the only nominee. She married in 2025 and had a daughter in 2026. She now names three: her husband, her daughter and her father. Assume the folio is worth ₹4,80,000.

The last row follows the pro rata rule. The husband gets 50 parts out of 80, the daughter 30 out of 80. The figures are only an illustration of the arithmetic, on an assumed folio value.

After your death, several nominees may stay together in the same folio or open separate folios for their own holdings.

Who can be a nominee?

According to SBI Mutual Fund's Statement of Additional Information of 30 June 2026, a minor, a non-resident Indian, a government body or a religious or charitable trust can be a nominee. A company, firm, society, other trust or power of attorney holder cannot. That one fund house's document says:

• Only individuals investing on their own behalf can nominate. Societies, trusts, companies and the karta of a Hindu undivided family cannot.
• A minor can be a nominee, with the guardian's details.
• A non-resident Indian can be a nominee, subject to exchange control regulations.
• The Central Government, a State Government, a local authority, a person designated by virtue of office, or a religious or charitable trust can be a nominee.
• A trust (other than a religious or charitable one), society, company, partnership firm, karta of a Hindu undivided family or power of attorney holder cannot be a nominee.
• A folio held on behalf of a minor cannot carry a nomination, and a power of attorney holder cannot make a nomination for you.

If you invest in a child's name, see investing in a minor's name for how that folio works.

Only two details are mandatory on the nomination form: the nominee's name and relationship. If the nominee is a minor, you also give the date of birth. Mobile number, email, percentage share, an identifier such as the nominee's KYC (identity) details and the guardian's details are optional. SEBI does not require any ID from your nominee.

How do you add or change a nominee?

You can do it online or on paper. Online, SEBI's circular accepts a digital signature certificate, an Aadhaar e-sign or another e-sign under the IT Act. It also accepts an OTP sent to your registered mobile number and email address. On paper, you sign the form yourself. No witness is needed, except that a thumb impression must be witnessed by two persons.

You can change or cancel a nomination any number of times. Each time, you must receive an acknowledgement.

Koshex customers can add, change or check nominees on Koshex.

What about units held in a demat account?

If your units sit in a demat account, the nomination registered with your depository applies to them, according to SBI Mutual Fund's document. SEBI's circular covers demat accounts and folios under the same rules. If you are unsure which route you use, read whether you need a demat account for mutual funds.

How do you check who your nominee is?

Look at your account statement. Under the circular it shows either the nominees' names or a simple "Yes / No" for whether a nomination has been made. You choose which.

You can change it with your fund house, its registrar or the platform you invest through.

What will your nominee have to do?

The nominee will have to make a claim, and the fund house transfers the units to them. SEBI's transmission framework of 23 July 2026 covers this when a sole holder or all joint holders have died. Here is how it goes in each case.

• A joint folio: the surviving holder gets the units with just a copy of the death certificate.
• A nominee: the nominee receives the units, but holds them on behalf of the legal heirs. Once the units are transferred, the fund house is fully discharged from its liabilities.
• Neither: the legal heirs claim the units, with more paperwork.

The claims guide below covers how long a fund house has to act and what happens if heirs dispute a claim.

Koshex helps families with the claim (transmission) after an investor dies. The documents, the steps and the tax on transmission are in how to claim mutual fund investments after the death of the investor.