All banks today offer both term and fixed deposit schemes. Although they may sound to be one and the same, they are actually different, in the way the payout works.
Both fixed deposit and term deposit may have a same ‘deposit term period’ but the maturity payout is different.
In case of a fixed deposit, your principal amount will remain as is and the interest it earns from time to time (according to the rate during the opening of deposit) will be given to you monthly, quarterly, half yearly or annual basis. You can chose to have this interest amount transferred to your savings account directly for your daily needs.
And in case of a term deposit, the principal amount and the interest it earns will be provided only when the deposit matures (or prematurely cancelled by the customer).
Both term and fixed deposits will be auto-renewed (at the prevailing interest rate) for the same period at the end of maturity of no maturity instructions are given.
Also see: Central Bank Cent Double scheme and SBH Double deposit.
