An EPF scheme member can withdraw the money from EPF scheme for various reasons like marriage, buying a house etc. prior to retirement. However, to make these withdrawals, there are certain conditions that must be met by the member.

The Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) scheme rules allow you to withdraw from your EPF account for various reasons. You can withdraw money from your EPF account upon retirement after attainting the age of 55 years. You can also withdraw money from your EPF account for various purposes before retirement.

These include purchasing/constructing a house, child’s wedding and education, and funding financial emergencies caused due to the coronavirus-induced lockdown. You are also allowed to file a claim due to job loss or after you leave your job.

Before filing an EPF claim, you should make sure that the prescribed conditions under the EPF scheme are met.

Eligibility to file withdrawal
Puneet Gupta, Director, People Advisory Services, EY India lists out the basic conditions that must be satisfied by an EPF member before filing for applicable advance or withdrawal from the EPF account:

Reason for partial withdrawal/ advance	When	Purpose	Maximum amount that can be withdrawn
Education	After 7 years of EPF membership	Education of son or daughter after class 10	50% of employee’s share of contribution with interest only
Marriage	After 7 years of EPF membership	Marriage of self, son/daughter, brother/sister	50% of employee’s share of contribution with interest only
Purchase of land for construction of house	After 5 years of EPF membership	Land should in the name of individual and / or spouse	Least of the following: (a) 24 months’ basic wages and dearness allowance of member; or (b) Member’s share of contribution along with employer’s contribution and interest; or (c) Actual cost towards acquisition of the site
Purchase of house / Construction of house	After 5 years of EPF membership	House should in the name of individual and / or spouse	Least of the following: (a) 36 months’ basic wages and dearness allowance of member; or (b) Member’s share of contribution along with employer’s contribution and interest or; (c) Total cost of construction
Renovation of house	After 5 years from the date of completion of the of the house	House should in the name of individual and / or spouse	Least of the following: (a) 12 months’ basic wages and dearness allowance of member; or (b) Member’s share of contribution along with interest
Medical emergency (For e.g. cancer, TB etc.)	–	For specified medical treatment of self and family member	Least of the following: (a) 6 months’ basic wages and dearness allowance of member; or (b) Member’s share of contribution with interest
Non-receipt of wages	–	Employee has not received wages for more than 2 months continuously (for reasons other than strike)	Employee share with interest
Job loss	–	Un-employed for a continuous period of not less than a month	Up to 75% of the EPF balance i.e. member’s share, employer’s share and interest Balance 25% can be withdrawn after remaining unemployed for continuous period of two months
To meet pandemic related financial exigencies (For e.g. Coronavirus)	–	If the area is declared to be affected by epidemic or pandemic	Least of the following: (a) 3 months’ basic wages and dearness allowance of member; or (b) 75% of EPF balance i.e. member’s share, employer’s share and interest
Repayment of housing loan	After 10 years of EPF membership	Loan should in the name of individual and / or spouse	Least of the following: (a) 36 months’ basic wages and dearness allowance of member; or (b) Member’s share of contribution along with employer’s share of contribution (c) Amount of outstanding principal and interest of the said loanincluding the interest; or
Withdrawal within one year before the retirement	After attainment of 54 years of age by the member or; Within 1 year before his/ her actual retirement on superannuation, whichever is later	Any purpose	Upto 90% of the EPF balance i.e. member’s share, employer’s share and interest
Withdrawal for investment in Varishtha Pension Bima Yojana	After attaining the age of 55 years	Amount to be transferred to the Life Insurance Corporation of India for investment in Varishtha Pension Bima Yojana	Upto 90% of the EPF balance i.e. member’s share, employer’s share and interest

Other than the above mentioned reasons, an individual can also claim applicable advance or withdrawal from the EPF account under the following circumstances:

a. Withdrawal/ financing for purchase of house or construction of house including acquisition of site from the Central Government, State Government or a Housing Agency under a notified Housing Scheme;
b. Withdrawal/ financing for purchase of house or construction of house including acquisition of site from the Central Government, State Government or a Housing Agency under a notified Housing Scheme – for a member of a co-operative society or a registered society having 10 or more members;
c. Where establishment has been locked out or closed down for more than 15 days and the employees are unemployed without any compensation;
d. Where member is discharged or dismissed or retrenched by the employer and such discharge or dismissal or retrenchment is challenged by the employee in a court;
e. Where establishment has been locked out or closed down for more than 6 months and the employees continue to remain unemployed without any compensation;
f. Where member is affected by calamity of exceptional nature such as floods, earthquake or riots;
g. Where members are affected by cut in the supply of electricity in the establishment;
h. For purchase of the equipment required by physically handicapped member.

Documents required for filing claim online
Gupta says “To file an EPF withdrawal claim online, you are not required to submit any documents, however, the scanned copy of cheque/ passbook has to be uploaded on the Member e-Sewa portal.”

He adds, “The bank account number, IFSC and name should be visible on the scanned copy of the cheque and should be readable. EPFO can reject the claim application if the scanned copy of the cheque is not readable.”

Checklist to file withdrawal from EPF account online
Once you have ensured that the conditions (minimum membership requirement, etc.) for the purpose for which claim is being filed are satisfied, certain additional eligibility conditions must be satisfied to be eligible for filing a claim online.

These conditions are as follows:
A) Universal Account Number (UAN) must be activated;
B) Aadhaar number should be linked and verified with UAN;
C) Bank account with correct IFSC should be seeded with UAN;
D) EPF account must be KYC-compliant;
E) Mobile number linked with Aadhaar should be active;
F) In case of retirement, correct date of birth should be updated in the EPFO records.

Gupta says “It is important to have the correct date of birth seeded in the records of EPFO for availing the Provident Fund and Pension benefits.”

Step-by-step guide to file EPF withdrawal claim online
Step 1: Visit Member e-Sewa portal https://unifiedportal-mem.epfindia.gov.in/memberinterface/ on the EPFO portal

Step 2: Log in to your account by entering UAN, password and captcha code

Step 3: Once logged in, click on ‘Claim (Form-31, 19, 10C & 10D)’ under the ‘Online Services’ tab.

Step 4: A new tab will open where you will be required to enter the correct bank account number (seeded with UAN). Click on verify.

Step 5: Once your bank account details are verified, you will be required to confirm terms and conditions as stated by the EPFO.

Step 6: Click on ‘Proceed For Online Claim’.

Step 7: From the drop-down menu, you will be required to select the reason for applying for withdrawal from your EPF account. Only those options will be visible for which you are eligible.

Suppose, if you are applying for advance for purchase of a house, then ensure that you have completed five years of EPF membership and other specified conditions. Similarly, in case where the claim is filed due to job-loss, then ensure that date of exit is updated in EPFO records before filing a claim.

Step 8: Once the reason for withdrawal/advance is selected, you will be required to enter your complete address. For an advance claim, the amount to be claimed is also to be stated. The individual will be required to upload the scanned copy of cheque/ passbook. Do make sure that the scanned copy of cheque/ passbook uploaded is as per the instructions provided by the EPFO. Select the terms and conditions once again. Click on ‘Get Aadhaar OTP’.

Step 9: A one-time password (OTP) will be sent to your mobile number registered with Aadhaar. Enter the OTP in the required box.

Once the OTP is entered successfully, then your claim application will be submitted.

Tracking your claim status
To track the status of your claim, you can log in to your account on the Member e-Sewa portal. The status can be tracked in ‘Track Claim Status’ under the ‘Online Services’ tab.

After the submission of your withdrawal claim, the EPFO will match the data in its records from the data submitted by you in your online claim form. Once the data matches, the EPFO will process the application and credit the money to your bank account linked with UAN.

Points to note

• The online process to file a claim from your EPF account can be done only if your PF money is held with the EPFO.
• If your PF money is managed by a private trust or your organisation is an exempted organisation, then you have to file the claim process with your employer.

Steps to enter exit date and withdraw your pf easily

If the withdrawal of your Provident Fund (PF) is getting delayed, then it may happen due to the exit date not being mentioned. Hence, in order to avoid this, The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has come up with a facility in the Unified Portal where the employee can enter the date of exit from the previous employer by himself. Prior to this only the employer could enter the exit date, but now even employees can enter the date of exit.

You can change the exit date by logging to the UAN portal using your Unified Account Number (UAN) and password. However, you must check whether the exit date is mentioned by clicking on ‘Service History’ under ‘View’ on the top panel.

Given below are the steps you will have to follow in order to enter the Exit Date:

• Log in to your UAN portal using your Unified Account Number and Password
• On the top panel, click on ‘Manage’ and click on ‘Mark Exit’ located under it
• From the drop-down option choose the employer
• You will be directed to a new page where you will have to enter your date of birth, date of joining, and date of exit. Mention the date of exit as the one mentioned in your resignation letter if your exit date is before the 15th day of the month

Tax-Free Limit for PF Withdrawals

When you make PF withdrawals, you can enjoy tax exemptions. However, this is applicable only when you make a withdrawal after offering 5 years of continuous service. It is also determined by the tax slab that is applicable to you. If you withdraw your PF balance before the completion of 5 years, then tax deducted at source (TDS) or tax will be applied on your funds.

However, no tax will be levied on EPF withdrawals before 5 years in certain cases depending on the situation. They are:

• When you need to withdraw funds for medical emergencies or health issues that cannot be avoided
• When your full PF amount is lower than Rs.50,000
• When you withdraw your PF balance with Form 15G or Form 15H (If you submit PAN, then there will be a TDS at 10%)
• When you transfer your PF balance from a PF account to another account
• When the employer’s business is withdrawn

Online Grievances Portal for PF Withdrawal

If you want to register any grievance regarding the services provided by the EPFO, you can visit the EPF grievance management system online. In this system, you can file a grievance, send a reminder, check the status of your complaint or grievance, upload your grievance document, or even change your password.

How to register a grievance?

• You will have to go the EPFO Grievance Management System and click on ‘Register Grievance’.
• You will then see a grievance registration form. Here, you will have to fill all the required fields accurately.
• You will need to choose your status from the drop-down option.
• Next, you will have to key in your PF number, your establishment, address of establishment, name of complainant, contact details, grievance details, etc. You can then enter the captcha code and click ‘Submit’.

Types of EPFO grievances

You can register a grievance when you face issues associated with:

• Return of cheque or misplacement of cheque
• Scheme certificate (10C)
• Transfer of your PF accumulations (F-13)
• Settlement of your pension (10-D)
• Provision of PF balance or PF slip
• Others

You can file a grievance online and then check its status on the portal itself. In case your complaint is not resolved within the stipulated period of time, you can send a reminder to them by clicking on ‘Send Reminder’. Here, you will need to enter your grievance registration number and password (if you have any).

Types of PF Withdrawals

Subscribers can make three different types of PF withdrawals on the EPFO member portal. They are:

• PF final settlement
• PF partial withdrawal
• Pension withdrawal benefit

Subscribers can make the above-listed withdrawals on the EPFO member portal with the attestation of their employer if they have seeded their Aadhaar card details with their UAN.

PF Withdrawal Rules

In order to ensure that employees continue to be enrolled in the scheme and avoid making withdrawals from their PF corpus and instead save it for the future or for retirement, EPFO has listed a number of PF withdrawal rules. They are as follows.

• All withdrawals made before completion of 5 years of continuous service are subject to tax. Withdrawals after completion of 5 years of continuous service in the EPF are tax-free.
• In case the employee was terminated or is unemployed as a result of ill-health and so on, withdrawals will not attract tax.
• If the employee makes a withdrawal before the completion of 5 continuous years in the scheme, the principal amount as well as the interest accrued, is subject to tax. That said, the amount will be taxable in the current financial year.
• For withdrawals before completion of 5 continuous years towards the scheme, the employee will be taxed 30% of the principal amount and the interest accrued if he/she has not submitted their PAN to the EPFO authorities. If the employee has submitted his/her PAN details to the EPFO authorities, 10% TDS (tax deducted at source) will be applicable.
• Funds transferred from one’s PF account towards the National Pension Scheme (NPS) will not attract tax when one makes a withdrawal.
• If the employee shifts jobs and in the process has different PF account, it will be considered as continuous service to the scheme provided there has been no gap in contributions.
• Employees have to facilitate the use of the Composite Claims Form to make a partial withdrawal or a final settlement claim.
• If the employee has seeded his/her Aadhaar card details with their UAN, they can submit the Composite Claims Form to make a withdrawal directly to the EPFO without the requirement of the attestation of their employer. Those who have not seeded their Aadhaar card details with their UAN have to submit the Composite Claims Form with the attestation of their employer to make a withdrawal.

PF Withdrawal Procedure

With the amendments made by the Employees’ Provident Fund Organization (EPFO), now subscribers to the scheme do not require the attestation of their employer to make a partial or complete withdrawal. All that the subscriber has to ensure is that his/her UAN is seeded with their Aadhaar card details. The EPFO has also rolled out the Composite Claims Form, which can be used to request for a partial or complete withdrawal. Subscribers can carry out the whole process of making a withdrawal online either on the EPFO member portal or on the UAN portal.

PF Withdrawal Claim Forms

The PF Withdrawal Claim Forms that need to be submitted to withdraw the provident fund or pension fund vary based on the age, reason for making the claim, and whether or not the employee is still in service. Earlier, Form 19, Form 31, and Form 10C were used to make withdrawals. But recently, a composite claim form has replaced the above-mentioned forms. The forms that required the UAN details of the employee have now been replaced with a composite claim form that requires the Aadhaar details of the employee.

As mentioned earlier, the PF claim form that needs to be submitted varies based on certain criteria.

Criteria’s for PF Withdrawal

1. When an employee is still under service

• If he/she wishes to take an advance from the PF account, the composite claim form (Aadhaar/Non-Aadhaar) has to be submitted.
• If he/she wishes to finance his/her LIC policy through the PF account, Form 14 has to be submitted.
• If he/she has crossed 58 years of age and wishes to claim the pension fund.
• Form 10D should be applied for a monthly pension if 10 years of eligible service has been completed.
• The composite claim form (Aadhaar/Non-Aadhaar) should be submitted if 10 years of eligible service has not been completed.

2. When an employee switches the job

• And wishes to transfer EPF account, Form 13 should be applied
• When an employee leaves an establishment and doesn’t join another
• He/she can make a PF and pension fund claim using the composite claim form (Aadhar/Non-Aadhar)
• Is above the age of 58, and has completed 10 years of eligible service, he/she can make a PF claim using the composite claim form (Aadhaar/Non-Aadhaar) and a pension claim using Form 10D

3. When an employee leaves an establishment due to a physical disability

• He/she can make a PF claim using composite claim form (Aadhaar/Non-Aadhaar).
• He/she can make a pension claim using Form 10D.
• Is above the age of 58 and has not completed 10 years of eligible service, he/she can make the PF and pension claim using the composite claim form (Aadhaar/Non-Aadhaar).

4. When an employee is deceased while in service

• Before the age of 58 while still in service, the nominee/heir/beneficiary can apply for the PF settlement using Form 20, monthly pension using Form 10D, and EDLI (Employees’ Deposit Linked Insurance) amount using Form 5IF.
• After the age of 58 and had completed 10 years of eligible service, the nominee/heir/beneficiary can claim the PF using Form 20, the pension using Form 10D, and the EDLI amount using Form 5IF.
• After the age of 58 and had not completed 10 years of eligible service, the nominee/heir/beneficiary can make the PF settlement using Form 20, withdraw the pension using the composite claim form (Aadhaar/Non-Aadhaar), and claim the EDLI amount using Form 5IF.

5. When an employee is deceased

• Before the age of 58, the nominee/heir/beneficiary may claim the PF amount through Form 20, and pension amount through Form 10D.
• After the age of 58 and had completed 10 years of eligible service, the nominee/heir/beneficiary can claim the PF amount using Form 20, and the pension amount using Form 10D.
• After the age of 58 and had not completed 10 years of eligible service at the age of 58, the nominee, heir or beneficiary can apply for a final PF settlement using Form 20 and for the pension fund using the composite claim form (Aadhaar/Non-Aadhaar).

Reasons for PF withdrawal

The situations under which you can go ahead and withdraw money from your EPF while you are still working

1. Medical Treatment
2. Marriage purposes
3. Construction of house or purchase of property
4. Repaying the existing home loan
5. Education purposes
6. Alterations or repairs for your house

1. Medical Treatment

In case you are covered by a health insurance policy, then you are all good. But, if you do not have one and in that situation you need to be hospitalised, you might be shelling out a huge amount of your hard earned money. However, in a time like that, your money in the EPF can really help you out. You may withdraw money from your EPF account for any of the three reasons provided below. However, please, do keep this in mind that can choose only one situation and not all of them.

• Any major surgery in a particular hospital
• The hospitalisation period is more than a month
• The individual is suffering from Tuberculosis, Leprosy, Cancer, Mental Derangement, Paralysis, heart problems, etc. and is on leave that has been granted by the employer for the mentioned illness

You can actually withdraw the money in EPF at any given time during the period of your service. It is not needed that you have a complete a specific number of years in the organisation to claim that money. You can always draw the money for treatment purposes, even if you have completed one or two years in your present organisation.

You must also remember that the maximum amount that can be availed by you is your six months’ salary. This amount may not be very big but still it will offer you some help that you might need in a crisis situation. Not only can this advantage be taken anytime, but also, it can be enjoy as many times as you want. Thus, your PF will save you for sure.

Certain documents must be provided by you along with the Form 31

• Your employer must give a certificate stating the insurance scheme offered by him and the benefits that are not available for the member. If not this, then the member must provide a certificate issued by Employees’ State Insurance Corporation that would state that fact that the member can no longer avail the cash benefits provided by the Employees’ Insurance Scheme
• The doctor must certify that hospitalisation for a period of one month is required in the case. Also, if there is a requirement for surgery, that must also be stated by the doctor in that certificate

2. Marriage Purposes

Money from your EPF can be withdrawn for an occasion like marriage in case you have already completed seven years of your service life. You can use up to 50 % of the amount that is there in your EPF account and you can enjoy this advantage for a maximum of three times. So, let us consider that you have around INR 5 lacs in your EPF account. However, you must not calculate the entire amount when you wish to withdraw it for your marriage purposes. Just your own contribution towards EPF along the interest accumulated on it is supposed to be calculated by you. Applicable cases are as follows.

• Your wedding
• Son’s wedding or daughter’s wedding
• Brother’s wedding or sister’s wedding

3. Construction of house or purchase of property

You can withdraw some money from the EPF when you are planning to purchase a house or construct a house. However, you must understand a few rules first.

• The land or house that you wish to purchase must be on your name, your spouse’s name or jointly in both your names. Any other combination will not be allowed
• You must have completed a period of 5 years in your service
• The maximum amount that you can avail from your EPF account is 24 times your monthly salary

If the property that you intend to purchase is in question then it should first become free from all related disputes. The property must be a registered one and the proof of the registration must also be provided.

4. Repaying the existing home loan

If you have taken a home loan and wish to prepay it then you may withdraw some amount from your EPF. But to avail this benefit you must have completed ten years of your service. However, you can only avail this advantage once in your entire lifetime. Also, you can either use the EPF for purchasing house or property or for repayment of present home loan. You cannot avail money for both of them.

The property for which you are making the payment must be in your name, your spouse’s name or jointly held by both of you. Many people have joint home loans with their siblings or parents. In such cases, you will not be able to avail this particular benefit. An amount equivalent to 36 times your monthly salary can be availed from the EPF for the repayment of the existing home loan.

5. Education purposes

Some money from your EPF can be withdrawn for Education purposes. This advantage can be availed only for post matriculation educational expenditures. This means, if you admit your daughter or son to any university or college then you will be able to draw money from the EPF account. You must complete seven years in your service before you can avail this benefit.

6. Alteration or Repairs of your house

After several years of staying in a house, you might think that it needs some repairs. Some alterations can also be an option which will make things convenient for you. But this is a costly affair and could very well burn a hole in your pocket. You can avail some money from the EPF for this purpose. But first you need to know some rules.

• You can withdraw and enjoy a maximum of 12 times your monthly salary
• From the date of construction, the house that you wish to repair must be at least five years old
• You must have completed a period of ten years in your service life
• This particular facility can be availed only once in the entire lifetime
• The house that you wish you repair must be under your name, your spouse’s name or jointly under both of your names

Other reasons for withdrawing money from EPF

• If the member has reached the age of retirement.
• If they have been unemployed for a duration of more than 60 days or two months.
• If they wish to move permanently abroad.
• If a female employee is resigning due to reasons such as pregnancy, childbirth, getting married, etc.

Limits of EPF Partial Withdrawal

Employees can make withdrawals based on the below-listed circumstances. Listed below are the withdrawal purpose, the minimum service requirement to be eligible to make the withdrawal, the PF withdrawal limit and the relations for who the employee can make the withdrawal.

PF withdrawal reason	Minimum service	PF Withdrawal Limit	Relations
House Construction or purchase of plot	5 years	24 times the monthly salary for purchasing/36 times the monthly salary for purchase and construction, or the cost of the property or the total of employee and employer’s shares with the interest amount, whichever is less	The PF account holder and spouse or joint
Home Loan Repayment	3 years	90% of PF balance	The PF account holder and spouse or joint
House renovation or alteration	5 years from completion of construction of a house	12 times the monthly salary	The PF account holder and spouse or joint
Marriage	7 years	50% of the employee’s contribution with interest	The PF account holder, siblings, and children
Medical treatment	Not required	Employee’s share with interest or 6 times the monthly salary, whichever is lower	The PF account holder, parents, spouse, or children

Requirements for PF Withdrawal

To ensure the process of making a withdrawal is seamless, subscribers have to meet the requirements that are listed below, if they wish to carry out a withdrawal without the attestation of their employer.

• Subscribers have to ensure that their UAN is active and their mobile number is seeded with their PF account.
• The PF member should also seed his/her Aadhaar card details with their PF account.
• The member’s bank account details and the bank’s IFSC code has to be integrated as well.
• For final settlements prior to completion of 5 years in the EPF scheme, the member will be required to seed his/her PAN details.
• Check out for more about PF Withdrawal Guidelines

Rules pertaining to EPF

Contributions from employees as well as employers add to the EPF. However, unlike what is commonly thought to be, the entire portion of contribution from an employer doesn’t go exclusively towards the EPF. The division of funds are mentioned as follows –

1. 12% of Salary of Employee goes directly towards EPF
2. 12% of Salary of Employer is divided as follows –
   • 3.67% of contribution towards EPF
   • 1.1% of contribution towards EPF Administration Charges
   • 0.5% of contribution towards Employees’ Deposit Linked Insurance (EDLI)
   • 0.01% of contribution towards EDLI Administration Charges
   • 8.33% of contribution towards Employees’ Pension Scheme

As per the latest changes made to the EPF rules, the following should be borne in mind –

• Revision of minimum salary limits – Earlier, an employee having salary below INR 6500 per month had to mandatory contribute towards EPF. The minimum salary limit has been revised to INR 15000. Thus, employees with monthly salaries less than or equal to INR 15000 now have to contribute mandatory towards EPF.
• Changes to pension amount – The minimum monthly pension amount has been now set at INR 1000 for the widow of a member of the Employees’ Provident Fund. For children and orphans, it has been set at INR 250 and INR 750 per month respectively. The pension amount henceforth will be calculated as per the average salary of the last 60 months, instead of 12 months.
• Insurance Coverage – The initial coverage amount under EPS had been INR 156,000. As per the recent changes, this amount has now been increased to INR 300,000 per member.
• Employer Contribution towards EPS – Due to the change in the minimum salary amounts, employer contribution has increased to INR 1250 per month towards EPS irrespective of if the salary is below or above INR 15000 per month.
• Change in threshold limit – Instead of 20 employees per organization as the minimum group size, 10 employees in an organization will be considered eligible for EPF contribution.
• Withdrawals – Withdrawals can be made from an EPF account through claim forms for financing an insurance policy, buying or building a house and a few other acceptable situations as per the EPFO.