Why SWP Corpus Can Run Out

A corpus can reach zero when withdrawals outpace the modeled balance

Corpus exhaustion depends on the starting amount, monthly withdrawal, entered return and withdrawal duration. The calculator answers what happens under those inputs; it does not label a withdrawal amount safe or unsafe.

Use the SWP Calculator to test a scenario.

Engine-derived exhaustion example

With an initial corpus of ₹10,000.00, a requested ₹6,000.00 monthly withdrawal, a 0% return and a one-year period, the scheduled request would total ₹72,000.00. The engine actually withdraws ₹10,000.00 over 2 months, leaves ₹0.00, and reports exhaustion before tenure as Yes.

The second withdrawal is limited to the remaining ₹4,000 rather than the requested ₹6,000.

The final withdrawal is capped and the loop stops

The engine never lets the balance become negative. It caps a partial final withdrawal at the available corpus, reports the actual total withdrawn and stops processing once the balance reaches zero.

If the corpus reaches zero exactly at the intended end, exhaustion before tenure remains false. For example, the zero-return ₹1,20,000 corpus with ₹10,000 monthly withdrawals reaches zero after 12 months and reports No.

Exhaustion is not a safe-withdrawal calculation

The model does not simulate negative returns, changing return sequences, fees, taxes, inflation-linked withdrawals or actual fund behavior. Sequence risk can affect real withdrawals, but this calculator does not model it. A projected exhaustion result is not individualized financial advice.

The SWP Explained guide covers the broader assumptions.

A zero withdrawal is also a supported input

With ₹1,00,000, no monthly withdrawal, a 12% entered return and one year, the engine reports ₹1,12,682.50 remaining and zero withdrawal months. This is an arithmetic projection, not a forecast.