Transferring Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) was a big hassle for many account holders as many times, they were unable to track record of their old PF accounts. Sometimes, they had two or more Universal Account Numbers (UAN) and at times, the mere transfer took many months. But many of such hassles can now be a thing of the past for most members as the recent EPF reforms offer automatic EPF transfer while changing jobs. Under the new scheme, EPF will be transferred automatically for account holders with an Aadhar-linked, KYC-compliant Universal Account Number (UAN).

Earlier, the EPF transfer was initiated by the employee and was approved by the previous and new employers and the EPFO office.

Employees had to share their UAN with the new employer for opening an EPF account in that company. Once the new account was active, the employee would file an EPF transfer request through the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation’s portal or submit a form offline at an EPFO office to transfer PF amount from the old account(s) to the new account.

Under the recent EPF reforms, the EPF amount transfer will happen automatically while switching a job. However, for that the EPF subscriber’s UAN should be Aadhaar-linked and KYC-compliant.

However, employees working with organisations having private and exempted EPF won’t have automatic EPF transfer facility. The facility will be available to those EPF members whose accounts are directly managed by the EPFO.

Before initiating an EPF transfer, you must ensure your UAN is activated, your KYC (Aadhaar, PAN, and bank details with the IFSC) is updated and verified, and your previous employer has marked your official date of exit in the EPFO database.

EPF members can login to the unified member portal by entering their UAN and password to access, then use their registered mobile number to authenticate using an OTP.

After logging in, individuals can access and download their employment records by going to the ‘Service History’ area. EPF members can verify all previous employment details.

Your Universal Account Number is a unique 12-digit identifier that is linked to your EPF account(s) and should stay with you throughout your career, regardless of how many times you change employers.

Here are a few updates that Union Labour and Employment Minister Mansukh Mandaviya announced recently.

New digital interface
Subscribers will have access to a unified digital interface to view their EPF membership details, provident fund balances, claim status, pensionable service records and benefits availed.

Pre-validation EPF automation
Under the new EPF framework, member claims will undergo automated pre-validation prior to processing at EPFO offices, says Mandaviya.

Any deficiencies or discrepancies will be identified upfront and appropriate guidance will be provided to members, thereby significantly reducing claim rejections and improving first-time acceptance rates, says the minister.

Members will know about eligible EPF withdrawal amount

EPF members will be able to know what is the eligible amount for EPF withdrawal under different categories.

Earlier, members often did not know the PF amount they were eligible to withdraw under different categories, which resulted in claim rejections when applications exceeded permissible limits, says the minister.

Auto-settlement for up to Rs 5 lakh advance EPF withdrawal

A substantial proportion of advance claims of up to Rs 5 lakh, which are fully KYC-linked and validated, would now be processed through an auto-settlement mechanism. An auto-settlement method will now handle Rs 5 lakh advance EPF claims, which are fully KYC-linked and approved.

Quicker EPF claim resolution

EPFO offices will be able to post questions online, enabling members to reply digitally, whenever further details or clarification are needed throughout the processing of claims, the minister said

EPFO members would be able to ask for help and seek clarifications from any PF office nationwide thanks to the centralised IT system.

EPS pension credit to any bank account

EPS pension claims processed in any regional office might be credited to any bank account anywhere in India under the centralised pension payment system, Mandaviya said.