EPF Withdrawal Rules Relaxed Due To COVID-19 Pandemic
4 min readGovernment Relaxed EPF Withdrawal Rules To Support Liquidity Issues Amid Coronavirus Pandemic
Introduction
EPF withdrawal rules relaxed by Government to support liquidity issues due to COVID-19 pandemic. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has announced economic relief packages, which includes 2 major announcements relating to EPF contribution and EPF withdrawal. Let us know about it in detail.
EPF Withdrawal Rules Relaxed Due To COVID-19 Pandemic
Payment of EPF Contribution Borne by Government of India
- According to Employees Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952, Employees should contribute 12% of their salary to Employee Provident Fund and equal contribution is made by their employer in PF account of employees.
- Considering the economic distress caused due to COVID-19 Pandemic, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has announced that –
- Government of India will pay the EPF contribution of both employees (12% of the salary) and employers (12% of the salary) for next 3 months.
Who Can Avail Benefit of the EPF Announcement?
- Government has set 2 criteria for the payment of EPF contribution
- Number of employees in the Establishment shall be less than 100. AND
- 90% of employees of such establishment draw salary less than Rs. 15,000.
- If both the criteria are met, Government of India will bear the burden of EPF Contribution for next 3 months.
Withdrawal from EPF Account
- In the event of COVID-19 Pandemic, EPFO has amended its rules relating to withdrawal from PF account of the employee.
- As per the general provisions, premature withdrawals from PF account are permitted only under specific circumstances. However, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has announced that, all the employees can withdraw up to 75% of the EPF balance. However, this amount shall not exceed the Basic Salary + Dearness Allowance of the 3 months.
- It means, the maximum withdrawal by an employee from PF account is –
- 3 Months’ Basic Salary + Dearness Allowance OR
- 75% of PF Balance outstanding in PF Account of an employee
- Whichever is Lower
Example
| Particulars | Reference | Case I | Case II |
| Balance in EPF Account | A | Rs. 1,00,000 | Rs. 1,00,000 |
| Monthly Salary + DA | B | Rs. 30,000 | Rs. 20,000 |
| 75% of PF Balance | C = 75% x A | Rs. 75,000 | Rs. 75,000 |
| 3 Months’ (Salary + DA) | D = B x 3 | Rs. 90,000 | Rs. 60,000 |
| PF Withdrawal allowed | E = Lower of C & D | Rs. 75,000 | Rs. 60,000 |
How to Withdraw from your EPF Account?
- Visit Employee Provident Fund Website.
- Log in To your EPF Account by entering your UAN and Password
- Go to ‘Online Services’
- Go to ‘Claims’ Section
- Verify your Bank Account Details
- Upload a scanned copy of cancelled cheque on the portal
- Submit the reason for withdrawal – Select ‘Outbreak of Pandemic’
- Generate Aadhar Based OTP
- Check the status of your claim. Once your claim is accepted and processed, PF withdrawal amount shall be credited to your bank account.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
No. The premature withdrawal from EPF account is not taxable.
Any person who is having an EPF account and has UAN (Universal Account Number) is eligible for advance withdrawal from EPF.
Up to 3 Months of Basic Salary + Dearness Allowance OR
75% of PF Balance outstanding in EPF Account, whichever is Lower.
This provision of advance EPF withdrawal given by Government is mainly to address the short-term liquidity or cash-flows issues. So, it doesn’t require any supporting documents.
You can claim the withdrawal from your EPF account on by visiting Employee Provident Fund Website. It is an online process. The detailed procedure is explained in this article above.
Yes. UMANG is an official app (available on play store) availing various Government services. UMANG (Unified Mobile Application for New-age Governance) provides a single platform for all Indian Citizens to access pan India e-Gov services ranging from Central to Local Government bodies and other citizen centric services.