EPF or Employees’ Provident Fund - The Complete Guide

Whenever you join a new workplace, PF or Provident Fund is a common topic that comes up during interviews. Your in-hand salary is calculated after deducting your PF amount. As confusing it sounds in the beginning, in reality it is quite simple to understand.

Our team did a small research about PF and curated a complete guide (easy and simple) for a better understanding of Provident Fund and how it works for all servicing employees. Check out this detailed guide and be ready to know all  (or as much as you want) about PF!

Table of Content

What is the Provident Fund or Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF)?

The Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF), or PF is a scheme that helps employees in saving a big retirement corpus. The 3 acts that direct this scheme are:

  • Employees’ Provident Fund Act, 1952
  • Employees’ Deposit Linked Insurance Scheme Act, 1976
  • Employees’ Pension Scheme Act, 1995.

The Employees’ Provident Fund Organization or EPFO helps in managing EPF. EPFO works under the control of the government – Ministry of Labour and Employment manage it.

What’s the EPF India monthly contribution?

The employee and the employer contribute monthly towards building a big retirement sum.

An amount equal to 12% of the employees monthly salary is contributed every month. Here, the salary includes the basic pay and the DA (Dearness Allowance). It is then transferred into the EPF account by both the employee and the employer.

The amount in the EPF account draws a certain rate of interest as decided by the EPFO. The interest earned on the EPF contribution is completely tax free as well. Thus, the employee can withdraw the whole sum, without worrying about paying any taxes.

Companies with at least 20 employees need to maintain EPF accounts. As stated above,the EPF contribution is generally around 12%. But in some cases, especially if the company has less than 20 employees then the contribution is 10%. It is also 10% if the company is incurring losses.

You can also add more than 12% to your monthly EPF contribution. It is then called, the Voluntary Provident Fund or VPF.

What’s VPF or Voluntary Provident Fund?

The concept of VPF or Voluntary Provident Fund is self explanatory. It is the amount of money you put into your VPF account over the mandatory 12%. Whatever the amount you put into your EPF account – it will be earning the same percentage of EPF interest rate.

You can put the full amount of your basic salary and DA and earn interest over 100% of it. Note that in this case, unlike the compulsory 12%, the employer is not required to put an equal amount into EPF India.

What’s the Eligibility Criteria for EPF India schemes?

Here’s the list of criterias you need to meet to have an account in EPF India:

  1. Public and Private sector employees are eligible for applying in EPF India schemes.

  2. Companies with at least 20 employees need to maintain EPF India accounts.

  3. An EPF registered employee is eligible for pension, insurance benefits, etc.

  4. An exception to this scheme are employees from Jammu & Kashmir, India. They are not eligible to take part in this scheme.

What are the benefits of EPF contribution?

There are many benefits of making an EPF contribution. Here are the list of the top ones:

  1. Retirement Corpus: Building a retirement corpus is the primary aim of the EPF scheme. Around 8.33% of the EPF contribution goes into the Employee Pension Scheme. It ensures a sense of security for having a healthy retirement life for all employees.

  2. Capital Growth: The interest earned on the monthly amount adds up over the year to build a retirement sum. EPFO decides the rate of interest. It is a pre-fixed constant which helps in making the amount bigger and bigger over the years.

  3. Habit of Saving: It takes years to build the sum so there is no extra pressure on the employee save all at once. The amount is not contributed in the form of a lump sum and thus, nurtures the habit of gradual savings.

  4. Emergency Cushion: The EPF amount is a great emergency cushion to rest on, in case of a dire financial need. EPF India allows partial withdrawal in case of extreme financial hardships.  They include building a house, wedding expenses and going for higher education etc.

  5. Tax-Free: EPF India contributions are tax free including the interest earned on them. EPF investment comes under the category of Exempt, Exempt, Exempt (EEE). Tax is not charged on the amount of money you invest, the interest you earn or the amount of maturity. In case you withdraw your investment before 5 years, you can’t avail these tax benefits.

What’s EPF Interest Rate?

The EPF Interest Rate offered during 2019-20 was 8.65%, both for EPF and VPF. This interest amount is completely tax-free as stated above. A few examples of the Interest rate offered by EPF India over the past few years are:

Year

EPF Interest Rate
   

2019-20

8.65%

2018-19

8.65%

2017-18

8.55%

2016-17

8.80%

 

How’s the EPF Interest Rate calculated for monthly EPF Contribution?

The EPF interest rate for the year 2019-20 is 8.65%. To do the calculation for every month, let’s divide the total percentage amount by 12. So, (8.65/12) equals 0.7208% of interest rate every month.

Now, let’s say the basic salary plus DA of Mr. Shyam is Rs. 25,000 for a month.

Basic Salary+DA = Rs. 25,000

EPF Employee contribution: at 12% of 25,000 = Rs.3,000

EPF Employer contribution at 12% of 25,000 = Rs. 3,000

Employer’s Contribution to EPS at 8.33% of basic salary+DA = Rs.1,250 (Ceiling amount)

Employer’s Contribution to EPF at (Rs.3,000 – Rs.1,250) = Rs. 1,750

Total EPF Contribution of Employee and Employer = Rs. 3,000+Rs.1,750 = Rs. 4,750

Now, the rate of interest earned is at 8.65% per annum or 0.7208% per month.

So, the monthly interest amount earned is at 0.7208% of Rs. 4,750 = Rs. 34.238.

A few point of remember about the EPF Interest rate:

  1. It is applicable every year from the start of the financial year on April 1 to the end of March 31. It gets reviewed every year by the EPFO.

  2. The interest is calculated on a monthly basis.  While the whole amount gets transferred at the end of the year on 31st March to the EPF account.

  3. The amount accumulated at the end of every year is the carry forward for each year. The amount transferred at the end of March will get used in the calculation of interest for April from there on.

If your EPF account is not used for a certain period of time, it becomes an inoperative EPF account. Learn more about it below.

What’s a Dormant or Inoperative EPF account?

If an EPF account does not receive any contribution for over 3 years, it turns to an inoperative EPF account. If the employee has not yet retired, the interest gets added in inoperative EPF accounts. But in case of retired employees, there is no added interest to inoperative EPF accounts.

EPF Registration

Employee: As an employee there’s not much you have to do in case of EPF registration. The process happens at the will of your employer. It is the organization that needs to take care of all the procedures.

Employer: If as an employer, you want to register under the EPF scheme, you have to meet the eligibility criteria stated above. The company should have at least 20 people. It should also be a registered company and must be involved in activities under Schedule 1 of the EPF Act. After that depending on the kind of company, you will need some documents to move the process ahead, . They include:

Proprietorship enterprises: You need to submit the applicant’s name, PAN, ID proof, etc. 

Society: If you want to register your society, you need to submit a copy of the registration certificate of your society along with a copy of the rules and objectives of the society. Also, you will need a Memorandum of Association (MOA), By-Laws, PAN, address proof, phone number of president and members.

Partnership Firm: You will need a certificate of registration and copy of the partnership deed in case of a partnership firm. Besides this, you need  a PAN, ID proof of all partners – passport or Voter ID, and all partners’ address proofs.

LLP/Company: You will need a copy of the certificate of incorporation, ID proof of directors, DSC of directors, MOA and Articles of Association (AOA).

The other common documents required to apply for an EPF account are:

  1. Income Tax Documents
  2. Partition Deed
  3. First sales invoice
  4. Salary details of all employees
  5. Copy of the balance sheet

What’s the Process for EPF Registration?

Here are the steps required to register for an EPF India account:

  1. Visit the online portal called the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation, India.

  2. The home screen will appear and you will see many options. When you see the “Establishment Registration” option, click on it.

  3. After clicking, a new page called “Shram Suvidha” portal will open up. It will ask you to either log-in or sign-up.

  4. Before clicking on the sign-up option make sure you download the instruction manual. Download it from the top tab and read it.

  5. After that click on sign-up and a new page will open.

  6. You are now required to sign in your details like – name, email address, phone number and verify the captcha. Click on the sign-up button after this.

  7. The new page that opens will give an option called, “Registration for EPFO-ESIC”. Once you click on that, the next page will give you an option called “Apply for New Registration”.

  8. Once you click on it, a new page will open which will give you two options. The first one is, “Employees’ State Insurance Act, 1948”. While the second one is, “Employees’ Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provision Act, 1952”.

  9. You can check both the options and then click on the ‘Submit’ button.

  10. Once you submit, a new page will open where you have to fill in the details. The details include establishment Details, eContacts, details of workers, contact persons, identifiers, employment details, activities, branch and attachments.

  11. Fill in these details – a red asterisk marks all the mandatory details . Once you fill everything, click on the “submit” button to register.

  12. Following this, you should complete the Digital Signature Certificate (DSC). This is the final step of EPF registration.

  13. Once the DSC registration is complete, Shram Suvidha portal will send you an email. Your registration is complete and confirmed.

What is the EPFO or Employees Provident Fund Organisation?

The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation or EPFO got established in 1951. It came into being when the Employee Provident Fund ordinance got passed. EPFO later became a part of the modified Employees Provident Fund Act in 1952. Now, it is a part of the Employees Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952.

EPFO is one of the world’s largest social security organisations. The people it serves and the financial transactions that take place under EPFO are huge. The Annual Report of 2016-17 states that it held over 19.34 crore accounts.

EPFO Login

Every EPF account holder can access his/her EPF account online on the EPFO portal. They can also perform functions like withdrawal, KYC update and checking EPF balance. They can use the Universal Account Number or UAN to login into the portal.

Universal Account Number (UAN)

UAN is a 12-digit number allotted to each member by EPFO. In case you change your job, the UAN still remains the same and only the member ID changes. After that, your new ID will get linked to the UAN. Your employer will provide you with your Universal Account number. In case he/she doesn’t, you can login to the UAN portal with your member ID and find the UAN.

EPF UAN Activation

EPF UAN Activation is a very important step. That’s because without actually getting the UAN activated, having your UAN is of not much use. For completing the EPF UAN Activation process you will need to know details like your UAN, Member ID, PAN, etc. The steps for EPF UAN activation are:

  1. Visit the EPFO Member e-SEWA portal. Once you do that, click on the “Activate UAN” option.

  2. On the next page, fill in your UAN details, Member ID, Aadhar Number, PAN, E-mail id, other details and crack the captcha.

  3. Once you fill in the above details, click on “Get Authorization Pin ” button. You will then receive a PIN on your registered UAN mobile number.

  4. On the next page, you can check the “I Agree” box and then, enter the OTP pin you received. Click on the “Validate OTP and Activate UAN” box finally.

  5. After this, you will get a UAN password on your registered mobile number. You can use this password and your UAN to login into the EPFO portal from here onwards. 

EPFO Employee login

For the EPFO employee login to begin, the employee needs to know his UAN, and the password. Once you login you can update your KYC, check EPF Claim status, file for EPF withdrawal, etc. The steps are:

  1. Open the EPFO website. When the home screen appears, click on the “Our Services” option. From the drop down list that appears, click on the “For Employees” option.

  2. A new screen appears and you will see an option called “Services”. Under that option click on the “Member UAN/Online Service” option.

  3. This will redirect you to the Member e-SEWA portal. Here, you can login using your UAN, password and captcha.

This will open for the EPFO Employee page for you. Now, you can update your KYC, check EPF Claim status, file for EPF withdrawal etc.

EPFO Employer login

For the EPFO employer login, the steps are:

  1. Open the EPFO website. When the home screen appears, click on the “Our Services” option. From the drop down list that appears, click on the “For Employer” option.

  2. A new screen appears and you will see an option called “Services”. Under that option click on the “Online ECR/Challan Submission/OTCP” option.

  3. This will redirect you to the “EPF Unified Portal for Employers”. Here, you can login into the “Employer’s sign in” and not the “Establishment sign in” option. You will see the “Employer’s sign in” below the “Establishment sign in” option.

  4. Login using your username, and password. This is the same username you get once you register your establishment.

This will open for the EPFO Employer page and you can approve KYCs, EPF withdrawals etc

EPF Challan

Using the EPFO you can also complete your registration with the E-challan. Once you register at the EPFO e-Sewa portal, you get a unique ID and password.

You can use your ID and password to submit the data with your digital signatures and save it in a PDF. Get it printed and have it approved, after which, your E-challan will get generated online.

EPFO KYC

As an employee you can update your KYC details on the UAN Member e-SEWA EPFO portal. When you update your EPFO KYC is that you can use your UAN and mobile number to do EPF related activities.  Here’s how to update your EPFO KYC:

  1. Login to the UAN Member e-SEWA EPFO portal.

  2. Here you will have to access the KYC option. Select the documents you wish to update on the portal, like PAN, Aadhaar, etc.

  3. Fill in the details of the documents like the name of the member as per the document, expiry date etc.

  4. Once you fill in the details, save the changes and submit.

  5. Your employer will then check the details you have submitted and give the approval.

  6. Once the employer approves, you will receive an SMS confirming the same. EPFO KYC update process concludes here.

EPF Contribution

The EPF contribution is 12% of the employee’s monthly salary which includes basic salary and DA. This 12% is then put into the EPF account to earn the monthly interest.

EPF Employee Contribution

The whole 12% contribution of the employee goes into the EPF account. In some cases, the employee contribution is of 10% as compared to 12% for an organisation. The organisations allowed to deduct 10% are:

  1. Organisations suffering annual losses instead of making gains.
  2. Beedi, gum, brick, jute and similar industries.
  3. Organisations with less than 20 workers.
  4. If BIFR has declared the industry you work in as “sick”

EPF Employer Contribution

The Employer’s contribution of 12% is different from the employee’s contribution. The contributions are both made through the EPFO portal. It is further divided into 5 sections:

Contribution

Amount (%)
   

EPF 

3.67

EPS

8.33

EDLIS

0.50

EPF Admin Charges

1.10

EDLIS Admin Charges

0.01

EPF Payment

The employer makes the EPF payment on the EPFO portal online. Despite the fact that every month, both the employee and the employer make the 12% contribution, it is the duty of the employer to submit the EPF payment to the account. EPF payment is made in two ways – either through the EPFO portal as mentioned above, or through the bank’s website. The Current 10 banks that have a tie-up with EPFO are –

  1. SBI
  2. PNB
  3. HDFC Bank
  4. Icici Bank
  5. Axis Bank
  6. Allahabad Bank
  7. Bank of Baroda
  8. Kotak Mahindra Bank
  9. Union Bank of India
  10. Indian Bank

Steps to complete the EPF Payment

  1. Go to the EPFO portal and log in using your Electronic Challan cum Return (ECR) credentials.

  2. After you get logged in, check whether the details like establishment ID, Member name, etc are okay.

  3. Open the dropdown list and click on the “Payment” option.

  4. Pick the “ECR Upload” option after that.

  5. Pick  “Wage Month”, “Salary Disbursal Rate”, “Rate of contribution” and upload the ECR text file. The uploaded ECR file will then get validated on the predefined conditions.

  6. If you meet all the criteria, a page showing the message “File Validation Successful” will open up.

  7. In case, the file does not get validated, an error message will pop up. It will ask you to change the ECR text file in the required format. Upload it again after making the required corrections.

  8. After the validation, a TRRN will appear. Check on the “Verify” option on the page and move ahead.

  9. Next step is to generate the ECR summary sheet by clicking on the “Prepare Challan” option.

  10. Enter the Admin/Inspection charges and click on ‘Generate Challan’.

  11. After you verify the Challan amount, click on the “Finalize” button. Click on “Pay” against the relevant TRRN.

  12. Choose the payment mode as ‘online’. Then a drop down will open from which you can select the bank you wish to pay from. Now you will be asked to make a payment on the bank’s internet login page through net banking.

  13. Your transaction is complete here. You will be getting your Transaction Id and E-payment slip on successful EPF payment.

  14. Your transaction status will then be updated on the EPFO page.
  15. You will receive a confirmation of the payment made against the TRRN number provided by EPFO.

What is an EPF Form?

There are EPF Forms that allow a user to perform a variety of operations. An EPF form allows you to transfer your EPF money, register, withdraw or do any other operation. Various types of EPF Form are:

Form

Purpose of the Form
   

Form 31

EPF Withdrawal

Form 5

New EPS and EPF Registration

Form 5IF

EDLI Claim

Form 2

Declaration and nomination for EPF & EPS

Form 10C

Claiming Withdrawal/Benefits of EPS

Form 10D

Claiming monthly pension

Form 11

EPF Account Transfer

Form 14

Buying LIC 

Form 15G

Avoiding TDS on EPF Interest

Form 19

Final EPF settlement

Form 20

EPF final settlement in case of death

 

What is an EPF Account?

An EPF account is the place where all your EPF money is transferred with the interest. This means that this account will have a dedicated passbook. You can also check the EPF balance in your account through various ways. It can be through your mobile number or through SMS or through the online EPFO e-Sewa portal.

EPF Passbook

An EPF Passbook allows you to see the details of all the contributions made by the employer and employee. It also shows the total amount of money in the account. EPF passbook also includes details like member ID, Office name, establishment ID, etc.

EPF Balance Check

EPF Balance check is a very simple process. There are many ways to check the balance of your account in EPF India. Below mentioned are the 4 ways:

EPF Balance Check Using Umang App

UMANG app or Unified Mobile Application for New-age Governance is one of the easiest ways to check your EPF balance. It was launched by the government to give you easy access to multiple government-related services. It is like an umbrella, where you can come to check out all the accounts that you have set up with the government. The step by step to process to complete your EPF balance check on the UMANG app is:

  1. Download the UMANG app and open the EPFO option. Once the option opens, visit the “employee centric” service option.

  2. On this page, click on the “View passbook” option and enter your Unique Account Number (UAN). After that, an OTP will be triggered which you will be required to fill in.

  3. You will then be redirected to the “View passbook” option and then you’ll be able to see all your EPF account details.

EPF Balance Check Using EPFO Portal

EPFO portal is one of the easiest ways to check your EPF balance. For this you will need your UAN in hand.Once your UAN is activated the following steps are:

  1. Open the EPFO website. When the home screen appears, click on the “Our Services” option.

  2. From the drop down list that appears, click on the “For Employees” option.

  3. A new screen appears and you will see an option called “Services”. Under that option click on the “Member Passbook” option.

  4. Once you click, a login page opens up. Enter your personal details – UAN and password.

  5. After that, you will have full access to your EPF account. You can check your balance and perform other activities after that.

EPF Balance Check On Mobile Number

EPF balance check can be done using your registered mobile number too. You should note that you can do this only if your UAN is integrated with your KYC details. Once the integration is done, the steps are:

  1. Give a missed call on the number 011-22901406 from your registered mobile number.

  2. After you give the missed call, you will get an SMS providing you with your EPF details.

EPF Balance Check SMS

EPF balance check can be done using your registered mobile number by sending an SMS. Even in this case, you should note that you can do this only if your UAN is integrated with your KYC details.

Also, since this is an SMS, you are allowed to set a particular language in which you will receive the details back. As of now you can pick from 10 languages including Hindi, English, Punjabi, Gujarati, Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Marathi and Bengalo=i. The steps to get an EPF balance check SMS are:

  1. Type the message as “EPFOHO UAN ENG”. The ENG here stands for the language ENGLISH. You can write “EPFOHO UAN MAL” for Malayalam and for all other languages.

  2. You need to send an SMS to the authorized mobile number which is 7738299899.

EPF Claim Status

Employees who have an EPF account are allowed to withdraw their EPF money partially or fully. For managing the process of EPF withdrawal, they need to check the EPF claim status. That way, they are prepared for any obstacles and delays in their way to make the EPF withdrawal. You can check your EPF claim status through various ways. The most popular ones are:

Checking EPF Claim Status through EPFO Portal – Online

Checking your EPF claim status through the EPFO portal is easy. It’s a 4 steps process:

  1. Open the EPFO website. When the home screen appears, click on the “Our Services” option. From the drop down list that appears, click on the “For Employees” option.

  2. A new screen appears and you will see an option called “Services”. Under that option click on the “Know your Claim Status” option.

  3. Once you click, enter your personal details – UAN and captcha.After that click on the “search” option.

  4. Select the “Member ID” and after that click on the “View your claim” option to check your EPF claim status.

Checking EPF Claim Status through EPFO Member e-Sewa Portal – Online

You can also use the EPFO e-Sewa to check your EPFO claim status. The 3 steps are:

  1. Log in to your Member e-SEWA Portal by entering your UAN and password.

  2. Click on option ‘Online Services’. After that, click on ‘Track Claim Status’.

  3. All the details of your EPF claim status would appear on the screen.

Checking EPF Claim status through UMANG App – Online

You can also check your EPF claim status using the UMANG app online. You need a UAN to go through the UMANG EPF claim status process. The steps are:

  1. Download the UMANG app and open the EPFO option. Once the option opens, visit the “employee centric” service option.

  2. On this page, click on the “Track Claim” option and enter your Unique Account Number (UAN). After that, an OTP will be triggered which you will be required to fill in.

  3. You will then be redirected to a page and then you’ll be able to see all your Tracking ID, type of claim and other details.

Checking EPF Claim status through SMS – Offline

EPF Claim Status check can be done using your registered mobile number by sending an SMS. like the EPF balance check, it is to be noted that you can do this only if your UAN is integrated with your KYC details.

Also, since this is an SMS, you are allowed to set a particular language in which you will receive the details back. As of now you can pick from 10 languages including Hindi, English, Punjabi, Gujarati, Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Marathi and Bengalo. The steps to get an EPF balance check SMS are:

  1. Type the message as “EPFOHO UAN ENG”. The ENG here stands for the language ENGLISH. You can write “EPFOHO UAN MAL” for Malayalam and for all other languages.

  2. You need to send an SMS to the authorised mobile number which is 7738299899.

Checking EPF Claim status through Missed Call – Offline

EPF Claim Status can be done using your registered mobile number too. You should note that you can do this only if your UAN is integrated with your KYC details. Once the integration is done, the steps are:

  1. Give a missed call on the number 011-22901406 from your registered mobile number.

  2. After you give the missed call, you will get an SMS providing you with your EPF Claim Status details.

EPF Withdrawal or PF Withdrawal

EPF withdrawal or PF Withdrawal can be done partially or completely under certain circumstances. Considering EPF is a retirement oriented scheme, it’s advised to not withdraw it for minor issues. That being said, it is also important to be able to distinguish between major and minor reasons. Some of the main reasons you can cite while filing for a partial/complete EPF withdrawal are:

  1. Wedding commitment
  2. Higher education
  3. Building a house
  4. Medical emergency
  5. Unemployment (for over two months)
  6. Retirement of the employee
  7. Permanent relocation to another country
  8. Complete physical or mental retirement
  9. Death of the employee

EPF withdrawal online

The process to do the EPF withdrawal online is simple. It is advised to not withdraw the PF amount partially or fully before 5 years of the start of the EPF account. The reasons for this, we will discuss in the section below. Coming to the main point, here’s how you can complete the process of EPF withdrawal online:

  1. Open the EPFO website. When the home screen appears, click on the “Our Services” option. From the drop down list that appears, click on the “For Employees” option.

  2. A new screen appears and you will see an option called “Services”. Under that option click on the “Member UAN/Online Service” option.|

  3. This will redirect you to the Member e-SEWA portal. Here, you can login using your UAN, password and captcha.

  4. On the screen that opens, check the top tab. Click on the “Manage” option and check on the “KYC” option.

  5. Scroll down to the bottom of the new webpage that opened and find the “Digitally Approved KYC” section. Check that all your KYC details are correct.

  6. Once you are sure that all your KYC details are accurate and you can click on the “Online Service” option on the top tab.

  7. From the drop down that appears, click on the “Form 31,19&10C” option. The new page will have an automatic generated form. You will then have to fill in the last 4 digits of your registered bank account number. Click on “Verify” after that.

  8. Once the bank verification is done, a “Certificate of Undertaking” will show up. Press “Yes” to proceed. After that, click on the “Proceed for Online Claim” option.

  9. A new screen will open which will have sections like “date of joining”, “I want to apply for”, “Purpose for which advance is required”, “Amount of Advance required in Rs”. 

  10. Check the “PF ADVANCE Form-31” option in the “I want to apply for” tab. Also, you need to fill in the reason for your withdrawal in the “Purpose for which advance is required” tab. 

  11. Fill in the amount of advance required and the address. After you fill in all these details, you can click on the submit your application.

  12. After this, you will have to submit a few documents. The type of documents asked will depend on the nature/purpose of your EPF withdrawal. 

  13. After all the processes are done and the employer approves of your EPF claim, the withdrawal amount will be deposited in your registered  bank account. 

  14. In the end, you will receive an SMS notification on your registered mobile number. This is the final step of the process.

Is EPF Taxable?

In most cases, EPF is non-taxable. As stated in one of the sections above, EPF India accounts are under Exempt, Exempt, Exempt or EEE category. They are hence exempted from tax deductions. But, in some cases it also depends on the tax slab. This is in case if you wish to withdraw after completing at least 5 years of the EPF account establishment.

What happens when you withdraw your EPF amount before 5 years?

In case you decide to withdraw your EPF amount before 5 years, you will receive no tax benefits. Your EPF account income will be a part of your taxable income. You don’t have to pay the tax if the amount is below Rs. 50,00 but if the amount you withdraw is greater than Rs.50,000 then that amount is eligible for a tax deduction of 10%.

But, you can avoid paying this amount if you submit the form 15G or 15H while filing your Income Tax returns.

Also, you will not be able to avail the tax benefits that Section 80C of the Income Tax Act offers in this case. The interest earned will get taxed as much as the interest earned from any other source.

The only tax exemption that you can get in this case is, if you make the EPF withdrawal owing to a medical emergency. You will not paying tax then. 

EPF customer care number

The EPF customer care number is 1800118005. This is completely toll free. 

Their address is – 14 Bhavishya Nidhi bhawan, Bhikaji Cama Place, RK (Rama Krishna) Puram, New Delhi, Delhi 110066

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.