Break your FD to close a costly loan? Here’s the call to make

Breaking an FD early usually means you do not get the original promised rate

If you’re paying a high interest rate on a loan while also keeping money in a fixed deposit, it’s natural to wonder if you should just break the FD and be done with the debt. In many cases, that move can save real money. In others, it can leave you short on cash at exactly the wrong time. The right answer depends on the kind of loan, the purpose of the FD, and what you will do after the loan is repaid.

An FD is “safe”, but it is not a high return product. Most bank fixed deposits typically earn in the mid-single digits, and the interest is fully taxable at your slab rate. After tax, your effective return can fall sharply, especially if you are in a higher bracket.

Now compare that with what you are paying on the loan. If the loan is a personal loan, credit card balance, consumer durable EMI with high APR, or any unsecured borrowing, the interest cost is usually much higher than what an FD earns. In that situation, keeping the FD while paying the loan is often like earning 6-7 percent and paying 15-35 percent at the same time. That gap is where the logic of breaking the FD comes from.

Breaking an FD is often a sensible move when the loan is expensive and offers no meaningful tax benefit. Credit card dues are the clearest example because interest builds fast and compounds painfully. Personal loans are another. Even if your FD charges a premature withdrawal penalty, the interest you save on the loan can still be far greater than the penalty and the lost FD interest.

It also makes sense when the FD is not tied to a serious goal. If it is just parked money with no clear plan behind it, using it to eliminate a costly loan can be a strong “guaranteed gain”, because you are effectively earning the loan interest rate by avoiding it.

The biggest reason not to break an FD is liquidity. Many people keep fixed deposits as their emergency buffer. If you break that deposit to close a loan, and then a medical expense or job disruption hits, you may be forced to borrow again, sometimes at even worse rates. That defeats the whole point.

The second caution is when your loan is relatively cheap or tax-linked. A home loan is the common case. If the interest rate is moderate and the loan gives you tax deductions on interest, the “save interest at any cost” logic becomes weaker. The better question then becomes whether you are sacrificing safety for a saving that looks good on paper but makes your household more fragile.

Breaking an FD early usually means you do not get the original promised rate. Most banks apply a penalty or pay interest at the applicable rate for the shorter period, plus a haircut. This is not always a deal-breaker, but it must be included when you compare costs. Many people ignore this and overestimate the benefit of breaking the deposit.

If your FD is large and your bank allows it, a loan or overdraft against the FD can be a cleaner bridge. Interest on an FD-backed loan is often lower than a personal loan, and you keep the deposit intact. This approach can work if you need time to repay but want immediate relief from a high-cost loan elsewhere. It is not always cheaper than closing the loan outright, but it can protect your liquidity.

If the loan is high-cost and unsecured, breaking a non-essential FD to close it is usually the financially efficient move. If the FD is your emergency fund or supports a key goal, protect it, and look for other ways to restructure the loan first. The worst outcome is closing a loan and then being forced into fresh, expensive borrowing because you depleted your cash cushion.

In the end, treat the FD as more than an investment. For many households, it is also insurance against bad timing. If you can repay the loan and still keep a solid emergency buffer, breaking the FD can be the right decision. If repayment leaves you exposed, the “savings” may not be worth the risk.