When do my Savings Bonds mature?
Thursday, April 27th, 2006
Categorized as: Series HH or H US Savings Bonds • Series E US Savings Bonds • Series EE US Savings Bonds
I invested in Savings Bonds in 1996 and 1997. When do they reach maturity?
Tom's response
It depends on what you mean by maturity.
Final maturity - when they stop earning interest - is 30 years after the issue date for all Series EE and I Savings Bonds, as well as for all Series E bonds that are still earning interest. For Series HH and H Savings Bonds, final maturity comes after 20 years.
Series EE bonds also have an original maturity date - when they will be worth at least double your original investment. Series I, H, and HH bonds are all sold at face value and don't have this feature. All Series E and EE Savings Bonds have already passed their original maturity date except for those listed in the following table:
Series EE Savings Bond original maturity |
|||
| Issue Date | Original term |
Implied interest rate |
|
| Mar 93 - Apr 95 | 18 years | 3.89% | |
| May 95 - May 03 | 17 years | 4.12% | |
| Jun 03 - present | 20 years | 3.50% | |
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My wife, Kazuko Yamaga, was given a $25 US Defense Savings Bond due 10 years from February 1942 by Mr Moshiro Murakami, Walnut Grove, CA. Exactly how does she redeem this bond?
Hi Philip - the information you're looking for is on our page about how to cash in a Savings Bond.
Tom Adams
I have EE bonds issued 5/83. When do they stop earning ingterest?
Bob - as the article on this page notes, all Series EE and I bonds stop paying interest 30 years after issue, so your bonds are good until 5/1/2013.
Tom Adams
I want to invest in savings bonds for my grand daughter, which series would be a better choice for investment and whose name to I put them in
Thank You
Gloria Berglund
Gloria - the information you're looking for is on our page about Savings Bonds as gifts.
Tom Adams
can you cash in a savings bond after 30 years?
Alishia - yes. After a Savings Bond is one year old you can redeem it. There is no maximum time. You can hold it longer than 30 years and then cash it, but it's a financial mistake to do that. From a financial perspective, you should cash a Savings Bond when it stops earning interest and invest in a new Savings Bond.
Tom Adams
I have several Series E US Savings bonds purchased in 1979. Are these bonds still earning interest? If so at what rate?
I also have several Series EE US Savings bonds purchased 1991 and 1992. At what rate are these bonds earning interest?
Hi Jean - Your Savings Bonds will earn interest for 30 years, so the 1979 bonds will stop paying interest in 2009. You can use the Savings Bond Calculator on this page (upper right) to find out the interest rate and redemption value of your bonds.
Tom Adams
Hi, I purchased series EE bonds in December 1994 and would like to know when it reaches face value so that I can cash it in.
Thanks,
Nancy
Hi Nancy-Angela - There's nothing special about the day your bond reaches face value. It stops earning interest after 30 years - in Dec 2024. You can cash it now or anytime between now and then. You don't even have to cash it then, but it's a mistake not to.
However, if you really want to do it on the day the bond reaches face value, as the chart above shows, bonds issued in 1994 take 18 years to reach face value, so that will be Dec 2012.
Tom Adams
I have savings bonds in my children's names. Am I able to cash those in for them, as they are still minors?
Jill - the information you're looking for is here.
Tom Adams
Overly matured E bonds….I recently discovered that my stack of E bonds had matured back in 1998, 2002, and 2005.
I've read that I will need to file an amended tax return with the IRS.
Has anyone been through this, that could guide me through the various steps I need to take to cash in these overly matured E savings bonds, and to square up with the IRS?
Dave - You should cash the bonds and reinvest the money. Don't hold on to these stinkers.
When you do that, the bank will send you and the IRS a 1099-INT tax form reporting the interest. If the 1099 is dated for the 2008 tax year, you can just report the interest income when you do your return next spring.
On the other hand, if the bank gives you 1099-INTs with the correct tax years, it would be best to speak with a tax advisor.
Tom Adams
If they do give me interest statements for each if the seperate years, do you have any idea of how the IRS determines a penalty payment?
Do they base it on a percentage of the total dollar amount, or perhaps a flat fee?
Dave - yes there would be a penalty. It's basically the interest you owe on the amounts.
It's as if the government loaned you the amount of the taxes in the year it was due and now you're paying it back with interest. The penalty amount is calculated like interest would be.
In other words, with Savings Bonds you flip from earning interest from the government to paying interest to the government (if you don't cash the bonds in the year they stop earning interest).
Tom Adams
Hi, I have EE bonds in my kids names and my name is also on them. Can I cash them in my name and not theirs, so they are not liable for them?
Sharon - Do you mean liable for the taxes? Unless your kids are over 18 you're liable for the tax in any case (see this post).
But if your kids are older: if your name comes first or if the names are separated by OR and your name is second, you can cash them and the 1099-INT tax form will be issued under your Social Security Number.
Tom Adams
I purchased EE bonds 10/92. For the best return, should they be cashed in 30 years? Which month? (I heard April). Would it be April 2022?
My series I bonds were purchased 10/01. What interest rate are these getting? For how long? Are penalties ever involved?
Sandra - In April 2022 your EE bonds would be 29-1/2 years old. Why not wait until Oct 2022 and get the full 30 years?
You can find out the current interest rate of your I bonds by using the calculator at the top of this page. I bond rates change every six months. The 10/01 I bonds have a fixed base rate of 3%, which makes them among the best U.S. Treasury securities to own.
There's more information about cashing Savings Bonds here.
Tom Adams
I have a bond issued 02/1986, EE $50 Bond. Why is not the value $114.14 versus $89.14 shown in the charts?
Clay - The charts say $89.14 because that's what the redemption value of the bond is.
In 1986, you paid $25 for the bond. Since then it's earned $64.14 in interest - more than 2.5 times the original investment.
Tom Adams
Hi Tom,
I just discovered that I had savings bonds in my name that are now 19 years old. How do I calculate what they will be worth in another 11 years when they reach their 30 years? I used the calculator to see what they would be if issued 29 years ago, but I'd like to find a more accurate calculation. Thanks for your help!!!
Julia - the interest rate paid by your Savings Bonds is to some extent sensitive to the general level of interest rates. The rates those bonds pay can adjust up or down.
Consequently, it's impossible to answer your question. Since we don't know what interest rates will do over the next 11 years, we don't know what the final value of the bonds will be.
Tom Adams
I have HH bonds that were bought 4-01 and some bought 12-92 when do they stop paying interest?
I thought it said on the face on the bonds that it was 30 years not 20.
It will make a big difference in my tax bracket if I cash the all at once so I am trying to plan on what is best.
Shirley - your HH bonds will stop paying interest after 20 years. My book has an extensive analysis about whether you should cash in HH bonds early because their rates are so low. You might find it helpful.
Tom Adams