EPF Fund Withdrawal: Step by step process to withdraw money amidst Coronavirus crisis?

Amidst the coronavirus crisis, Ministry of Labour and Employment, Government of India announced on March 26 that the amount from EPF can be withdrawn by the people to deal with the financial distress due to the lockdown. The Ministry in an official notification amended the rules regarding the withdrawal of funds from the Employees' Provident Fund (EPF) to provide relief to the people amidst the coronavirus chaos.

As per the official notification, EPF members can now withdraw an amount equal to three months of basic and Dearness Allowance (DA) or 75 per cent of the credit balance in their account, whichever is lower. The amount withdrawn from EPF account due to the COVID-19 pandemic is 'non-refundable' and the members aren't required to refund the withdrawn amount back to the EPF account. 

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For example: Assume that you receive INR 50,000 as your salary monthly in addition to the DA and your EPF balance is INR 5 lakhs, then you are eligible to withdraw: 
1- Salary for three months: INR 50,000 x 3 = INR 1,50,000. 
2- 75% of your EPF balance: (INR 5,00,000 x 75)/ 100 = INR 3,75,000

Thus, as mentioned earlier, you can withdraw the amount whichever is lower, therefore, you can withdraw INR 1,50,000 from your EPF account in this case. 

What is EPF? 

Employee Provident Fund or EPF is a scheme under the Employees’ Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952 that provides monetary benefits to all the salaried individuals after their retirement. This scheme is managed by the EPFO (Employees' Provident Fund Organisation). 

How to withdraw from EPF account?

A. Steps to withdraw money via the official website: 
1- Vist the official website of the Member e-Sewa i.e. unifiedportal-mem.epfindia.gov.in/memberinterface/
2- Enter credentials as asked i.e. Universal Account Number (UAN), password and captcha code. 
3- Click on the online services and select claim form. 
4- You will now be redirected to a new page where your details will appear. Now enter last 4 digits of your bank account and hit the verify button. 
5- After the verification of your bank account number, click on the button stating Proceed for Online Claim. 
6- Select the PF advance (Form 31) from the drop-down menu. 
7- State the purpose of withdrawal. 
8- Enter the amount to be withdrawn and upload a scanned copy of the cheque and enter your address. 
9- You will now receive an OTP on your registered mobile number. Enter the OTP. 
10- Once the OTP entered by you is verified your claim to withdraw the amount will be submitted. The money will be credited to your account after the verification of the details entered by you. 

B. Steps to withdraw money via Umang app:
1- Login to EPFO's Umang app.
2- Select EPFO and then Employee Centric Services. 
3- Hit on the Raise Claim button.
4- Enter credentials and select Get OTP.
5- You will now receive an OTP on your registered mobile number. Enter the OTP. 
6- Now enter last 4-digits of your bank account and from the drop-down menu select member ID. 
7- Now click on Proceed for claim button. 
8- Enter the address and click on Next.
9- Upload the soft copy of your cheque. 
10- The money will be credited to your account after the verification of the details entered by you. 

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What is the eligibility criteria for withdrawal from EPF account?

While applying for the claim online either via the website or by the app, the members must fulfil the below-mentioned conditions:
1- Universal Account Number (UAN) of the EPF member applying for the claim must be activated.
2- Aadhaar number must be linked with the Universal Account Number. 
3- Bank account number and IFSC Code of the EPF member must be seeded with UAN. 

How to check the status of your claim?

1- Visit the official website of the Member e-Sewa i.e. unifiedportal-mem.epfindia.gov.in/memberinterface/. 
2- Under the online services tab, click on the Track Claim Status button. 

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These were the steps to withdraw and check the status of your claim. However, only those workers will be benefited who are registered with the EPFO as per Ministry of Labour and Employment. Also, if your organization is exempted, then you will be required to contact your employer for the withdrawal from your EPF account as the organizations which are exempted have private institutions to manage the EPF accounts of their employees.