How to Withdraw Employees Provident Fund (EPF) Online?

How to Withdraw EPF Amount Online

The Government of India will pay the employer and employee contribution to the EPF account of employees for another three months from June to August 2020. The benefit is for establishments with up to 100 employees and where 90% of those employees draw a salary of less than Rs 15,000 per month. The contribution to EPF is reduced to 10% from 12% for non-government organisations.

The EPF (Employees’ Provident Fund), also referred to as PF (Provident Fund), is a mandatory savings cum retirement scheme for employees of an eligible organisation. This fund is intended to be a corpus on which the employees can fall back in their retired life. As per the EPF norm, the employees must contribute 12% of their basic pay every month. A matching amount is contributed by the employer as well. The amount deposited in EPF accounts earns interest on an annual basis. Employees can withdraw the entire sum accumulated in their EPF once they retire. However, premature withdrawals can be made on meeting certain conditions which are explained in this article.

 Here, it would be relevant to mention that the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation has allocated UAN, i.e. the Universal Account Number compulsory for all the employees covered under the PF Act. The UAN would be linked to the employee’s EPF account. The UAN remains portable throughout the lifetime of an employee, and there is no need to apply for EPF transfer at the time of changing jobs.

When can EPF be withdrawn?

One may choose to withdraw EPF entirely or partially. 

Complete Withdrawal

EPF can be completely withdrawn under any of the following circumstances:

  • When an individual retires
  • When an individual remains unemployed for more than two months. To make a withdrawal on this circumstance, the individuals must get an attestation of the same from a gazetted office.
Individuals are not allowed to make a complete withdrawal of EPF balance while switching employers if they don’t remain unemployed for two months or more (i.e. the interim period between changing jobs). 

Partial Withdrawal

Partial withdrawal of EPF balance can be made only under certain circumstances. They are explained in the table below.


Sl. No. 

Particulars of reasons for withdrawal

Limit for withdrawal

No. of years of service required

Other conditions

1

Medical purposes

Six times the monthly basic salary or the total employee’s share plus interest, whichever is lower

No criteria

Medical treatment of self, spouse, children, or parents

2

Marriage

Up to 50% of employee’s share of contribution to EPF

7 years

For the marriage of self, son/daughter, and brother/sister

3

Education

Up to 50% of employee’s share of contribution to EPF

7 years

Either for account holder’s education or child’s education (post matriculation)

4

Purchase of land or purchase/construction of a house

For land – Up to 24 times of monthly basic salary plus dearness allowance For house – Up to 36 times of monthly basic salary plus dearness allowance, Above limits are restricted to the total cost

5 years

i. The asset, i.e. land or the house should be in the name of the employee or jointly with the spouse.
ii. It can be withdrawn just once for this purpose during the entire service.
iii. The construction should begin within 6 months and must be completed within 12 months from the last withdrawn instalment.

5

Home loan repayment

Least of below: Up to 36 times of monthly basic salary plus dearness allowanceTotal corpus consisting of employer and employee’s contribution with interest.Total outstanding principal and interest on housing loan

10 years >

i. The property should be registered in the name of the employee or spouse or jointly with the spouse.
ii. Withdrawal permitted subject to furnishing of requisite documents as stated by the EPFO relating to the housing loan availed.
iii. The accumulation in the member’s PF account (or together with the spouse), including the interest, has to be more than Rs 20,000.

6

House renovation

Least of the below: Up to 12 times the monthly wages and dearness allowance, or Employees contribution with interest, or Total cost

5 years 

i. The property should be registered in the name of the employee or spouse or jointly held with the spouse.
ii. The facility can be availed twice:
a. After 5 years of the completion of the house
b. After the 10 years of the completion of the house

7

Partial withdrawal before retirement

Up to 90% of accumulated balance with interest

Once the employee reaches 54 years and withdrawal should be before one year of retirement/superannuation

 

Procedure for EPF withdrawal

Broadly, the withdrawal of EPF can be made either by submitting:

  1. Physical application
  2. Online application

Physical Application

Download the new Composite Claim Form (Aadhaar)/Composite Claim Form (Non-Aadhaar) to withdraw the EPF balance. 

Composite Claim Form (Aadhaar)

  1. Use the Composite Claim Form (Aadhaar) if you have seeded your Aadhaar number and bank account details on the UAN portal and if your UAN is activated.
  2. Fill and submit the form to the respective jurisdictional EPFO office without the attestation of the employer.

Composite Claim Form (Non-Aadhaar)

  1. You can use the Composite Claim Form (Non-Aadhaar) if the Aadhaar number is not seeded on the UAN portal.
  2. Fill and submit the form with the employer’s attestation to the respective jurisdictional EPFO office.

One may also note that in case of partial withdrawal of EPF amount by an employee for various circumstances as discussed in the above table, very recently, the requirement to furnish various certificates has been alleviated and the option of self-certification has been introduced for the EPF subscribers. (For details, you can refer to order dated 20.02.2017 of the EPFO)

Online Application

The EPFO has come up with an online withdrawal facility, which has made the entire process more comfortable and less time-consuming.
Prerequisites
To apply for the withdrawal of EPF online through the EPF portal, make sure that the following conditions are met:
  1. The Universal Account Number (UAN) is activated, and the mobile number used for activating the UAN is in working condition.
  2. The UAN is linked with your KYC, i.e. Aadhaar, PAN, and the bank details along with the IFSC code.
If the above conditions are met, then there is no need for the previous employer to attest to your withdrawal application.

Steps to apply for EPF withdrawal online in UAN Portal

Step 1: Visit the UAN portal.

Step 2: Log in with your UAN and password. Enter the captcha.



Step 3: Click on the ‘Manage’ tab and select ‘KYC’ to check whether your KYC details such as Aadhaar, PAN and bank details are verified or not.



Step 4: Once the KYC details are verified, go to the ‘Online Services’ tab and select the option ‘Claim (Form-31, 19 & 10C)’ from the drop-down menu.



Step 5: The following screen will display the member details, KYC details and other service details. Enter your bank account number and click on ‘Verify’.



Step 6: Click on ‘Yes’ to sign the certificate of the undertaking and then proceed




Step 7: Now, click on ‘Proceed for Online Claim’.

Step 8: In the claim form, select the claim you require, i.e. full EPF settlement, EPF part withdrawal (loan/advance) or pension withdrawal, under the tab ‘I Want To Apply For’. If the member is not eligible for any of the services like PF withdrawal or pension withdrawal, due to the service criteria, then that option will not be shown in the drop-down menu.

Step 9: Then, select ‘PF Advance (Form 31)’ to withdraw your fund. Further, provide the purpose of such advance, the amount required and the employee’s address.



Step 10: Click on the certificate and submit your application. You may be asked to submit scanned documents for the purpose you have filled the form. The employer will have to approve the withdrawal request and then only you will receive money in your bank account. It usually takes 15-20 days to get the money credited to the bank account.

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. Are EPF contributions eligible for tax deductions? 

Yes, EPF contributions are tax-deductible under Section 80C of the Income Tax Act, 1961.

  1. Can I increase my EPF contributions?

Yes, you can increase your EPF contributions and contribute up to 100% of your basic pay. This is called VPF.

  1. Will employer also contribute higher when I do?

No, the employer’s contribution will still remain the bare minimum regardless of you opting for VPF.

  1. Can I make premature withdrawals?

Yes, on meeting certain conditions, you are allowed to make premature withdrawals, and you need to produce documentary evidence for the same.

  1. Do I need the employer’s permission to withdraw EPF from EPF?

The new amendments have meant that the employer’s permission is not needed to make the EPF withdrawals.


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