Are You Ready to Open a Joint Bank Account With Your Partner?

Posted by Abhay Kumar on September 22nd, 2022

When you are in a long-term relationship with someone, you share almost everything, including your finances and debts. Managing money with your partner requires a like-minded perspective toward your life goals. A joint account provides many benefits and is a great place to keep your money safe if you plan to make major life decisions with your partner. However, if you are stuck on whether to open a joint account with your partner or not, let’s walk you through the accounts’ features to help you decide. 

 Reasons to Open a Joint Account

 Shared Financial Goals: With a joint bank account, it’s easy to save up for a common financial goal – like saving up for a down payment on a house or investing in mutual funds, or even taking a luxurious trip abroad.

 Convenience: When you live together, it makes sense to share expenses, pay bills, and rent on time. Having a joint account provides convenience to both parties to transfer funds, make payments, and access the account information anytime.

 Fewer Surprises: There is almost nil chance of encountering any financial surprises as all savings go into one account and all expenses are met by using one account.

 Access to the Funds in Uncertainties: In cases of death, all legal affairs also get streamlined as the surviving joint owner retains access to the funds.

 Complimentary Features: Many banks provide various services to joint account holders – complimentary vouchers for luxury dinners, complimentary airport lounge access, unlimited ATM withdrawals, etc.

Cons of Opening a Joint Account

There are some potential downsides of sharing a bank account –

Loss of Financial Independence: Millennials now prefer keeping finances separate as sharing a joint account may result in loss of financial independence. In other words, there is a risk of ‘checking up by the other partner on all kinds of expenses by the other.

 Outstanding Debt: Problems may arise if one of the partners has an undisclosed financial debt. A creditor can also try to collect a debt from the joint account.

 End of a Relationship: All relationships are not perfect. In cases of separation, sharing a joint account may get messy as each partner has equal access to the shared funds. One can also close the account without informing the other partner. Having a separate bank account provides an easier option for a couple to part ways.

 Pros Outweigh Cons

When you decide to open a joint bank account to fulfil shared goals in life, make sure to go through various benefits that you can avail. For instance, you get the following benefits –

• Free movie tickets worth INR 6,000 * 2 in a year
• 100% discount on locker services up to INR 10,000 in a year
• Annual discount on Swiggy orders up to INR 7200 * 2
• Annual discount on orders from bigbasket.com worth INR 2400 * 2
• Times prime complimentary voucher worth INR 999
• Daily ATM withdrawal limit is INR 1.5L (comes with the recommended debit card for the joint account)
• POS limit is INR 3L (comes with the recommended debit card for the joint account)

 The attractive awards in a year are worth INR 59,699!!

 The added features and discounts are doubled since the account is powered with two cards. The opening minimum balance for a joint account is INR 1L. Many banks provide such attractive features exclusively for joint bank accounts to help you plan for your future together.