Ending your term deposit early.
Plans can change – and you might suddenly need access to savings you weren’t looking to touch for a while.
It’s always possible to end your term deposit early so you can access your cash, but there are a few conditions to keep in mind.
31 days’ notice
If you started your term deposit after 29 May 2016, you’ll need to give at least 31 days’ notice before you can end your term deposit.
If your term deposit was started before 29 May 2016, you can end your term deposit immediately, at any time. However, if it has since rolled over after 29 May 2016 you will still need to give at least 31 days’ notice.
Interest adjustments
The interest your term deposit earns is reduced if you end it early, with the size of the reduction depending on how much of your term you still had left to go. Here are the numbers:
| Amount of term elapsed |
Reduction to your interest rate |
| 0% to less than 21% |
90% |
| 21% to less than 41% |
80% |
| 41% to less than 61% |
60% |
| 61% to less than 81% |
40% |
| 81% to less than 100% |
20% |
Note that if you get regular interest payments from your term deposit, it’s possible that ending it early may result in you having to repay some interest.
Cooling off period
If your term deposit has just rolled over within the last seven days you can request changes to the term, or withdraw your money – there’s no penalty or waiting period.