EPFO relaxes norms to allow corrections online

On March 26, the Government announced a relief package mentioning that it would contribute both the employee’s and the employer’s share of the PF for the next three months, for organisations having less than 100 employees, where 90 per cent of them earn less than Rs. 15,000 per month.

However, subscribers have been facing difficulty in producing valid papers to withdraw money under the new norms, as many of them have discrepancies in their age-proof documents. To resolve this issue, the EPFO has allowed members to correct discrepancies online to help its 60 million subscribers avail the benefits of the relief package.

The relief to EPFO subscribers is a part of the welfare package announced by the finance minister last month, under the Pradhan Mantri Gareeb Kalyan Yojana (PMGKY).

In many instances, poor workers have not been able to withdraw their money post retirement because of age-related discrepancies. The age mentioned in their official records does not match with what is mentioned in their claim forms. EPFO has relaxed the norms to facilitate money withdrawal as per need. As of now, change in age will be accepted, up to plus-minus three years from the date mentioned in the Aadhaar cards of the individuals.

Subscribers will be able to submit their correction requests online and an EPFO official will respond to the request in real time.

The EPFO has further instructed all field offices to ensure that correction requests are dealt with quickly so that workers facing financial stress can access their money in these challenging times. As of now, birth certificates, education-related certificates, service records of government organisations, medical certificate by civil medical professionals, Aadhaar or any document issued by a government department can be submitted as proof of age.