Procedure To with Draw EPF balance online

Posted On August 4, 2020August 4, 2020

Employee provident fund is a saving scheme for employees, where the employee and employer pool in funds in the employee’s EPF account. The EPF account acts as a saving plan for retirement. The EPF account is contributed with 12% of the employee’s salary, out of which the 8.33% is paid towards the employee’s pension scheme. Though the contribution was 12%, the current financial crisis caused by Covid-19 has reduced the contribution to 10% for three months. The EPF account also provides an interest rate on the savings made; currently, the interest provided on EPF account is 8.50%, which is provided at the end of each financial year. The balance in the EPF account can be checked online on the EPFO portal.

Though the investment made in the EPF account is for retirement, yet there are some instances where EPF balance can be withdrawn. The EPF balance can be withdrawn when the employee retires and also when the employee changes his or her job or remains unemployed for more than two months. Apart withdrawals can be made in case of medical emergencies, marriage, purchase of land, construction of a house, education purpose, home loan renovation, or home loan repayment. If required, the EPF balance can be withdrawn online by following the below-mentioned steps:

• Visit the web portal of Employee Provident Funds Organisation. 
• Visit the ‘Login’ option, and log in to your EPF account using your UAN and EPFO password. 
• After logging in with the details mentioned above, click on the ‘manage’ tab and verify the KYC details like aadhar, PAN and the bank details. 
• After getting your KYC details verified, choose the ‘online services’ tab and choose the ‘claim’ option that appears in the drop-down menu. This brings the KYC details of the logged-in member on the screen.
• To verify your identity, enter the last four digits of the bank account and click on ‘Verify.’
• Choose the ‘yes’ option to sign in the certificate of undertaking that appears on the screen.
• Then click on the option ‘Proceed for online claim’ and submit the withdrawal forms that appear under the tab ‘I want to apply for’.
• Fill in the details of the form and the reason for PPF withdrawal, and click on the certification in order to submit the application.
• If the EPF withdrawal is submitted successfully, a request for approval is sent to the employer. When the employer approves the request, the amount is withdrawn from the employer’s EPFO account, and funds are deposited in his or her bank account.

Though withdrawing funds from the EPF balance is easy as per the above-mentioned steps, yet there is certain eligibility condition that one needs to fulfil. For instance, one can withdraw EPF balance online in case of physical disabilities, or when the employee plans to shift abroad. Also, if the employee dies during or after his employment period, then the funds from EPF can be withdrawn by his or her beneficiaries. Though, to withdraw funds in this case, one requires an eligible experience of ten years. To withdraw EPF funds, fulfilling the documentation requirements is also important such as the identity proof, address proof, bank statements, cancelled cheques and revenue stamps.