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Don't delay EPF withdrawal

If your account is idle for over five years, there could be issues with acquiring EPF details

Neha Pandey Deoras | Bangalore

July 28, 2013 Last Updated at 22:47 IST

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In 1999, Bangalore resident Meenakshi Harish (name

changed on request) left her job at a leading software
firm to get married and settle in the US. Meenakshi
returned to India in October 2010. Now that she was in
India and had parents / in-laws to support her, she
decided to start working. She partnered a friend to start a
technology firm.

Given that Meenakshi had not been working for nine

ALSO READ years, she had very little savings. In addition, she did not
PFW enters equity partnership want to take her husband's help beyond his second
with Sin City 2
property that she used as office space. This was the
FinMin may allow 5 pvt funds to time Meenakshi remembered her employee provident
manage pensions of govt staff
fund (EPF) corpus that was untouched. All these years,
EPFO to start online service for
she had forgotten about it like anyone else.
transfer claims by Aug 15
Pfizer Q1 net down 85% to Rs
47.63 cr
Corporates urged to question The question was how to withdraw that corpus. A banker
EPFO on exit hurdles
friend scared her by saying that claiming from the
Employee Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) can take
an entire life. As luck would have it, it came true.

Meenakshi learnt she needed her provident fund (PF)

account number. She contacted her last employer.
Though the human resource department of any firm
should be able to hand over the PF account number with
the help of the employee code/number, Meenakshi was
left helpless because it had been around 11 years since
she had left the organisation and her details had to be
searched for.

She then approached the regional EPFO office. The officials denied any help without the PF
number. It took two months before she could fill the withdrawal form with her former employer.
"By the time the employer processed the form and submitted it to the EPFO, it was February
2011. In November 2011, EPFO misplaced my application/records. I had to go through the entire
process again. Since January 2012, my file is stuck with them," she says.

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Typically, it should take 30-60 days to get the claim processed but many quote a longer timeline.
This does not mean everyone has a hard time. According to certified financial planner Pankaj
Mathpal, claiming unclaimed PF amount gets difficult only in certain situations.

According to certified financial planner Malhar Majumder, "One can face endless problems when
applying for unclaimed EPF. Hence, it is common advice to hire consultants for this job." So,
what are the things you need to do here?

Requirement of documents
When you make an application to withdraw your EPF corpus, among other documents you also
need to give a copy of the resignation acceptance letter from the last employer. "Some EPF
offices may accept the relieving letter while some may not. There is no uniformity about which
documents need to be submitted. It all depends on how each office interprets the requirement,'
says Majumder. According to an human resource (HR) expert, sometimes EPFO executives
won't trust your original documents and might ask you to furnish a separate letter from the last
employer, stating the same things as in the experience letter (see box).

Exempted EPF
Under the exempted provident fund scheme, an organisation forms its own PF trust for its
employees. The employer executes the trust deed, prepares the PF rules and nominates the
trustees from among its employees for managing the trust. "Apart from the fact that claiming any
unclaimed money is difficult, with a trust system the problem is they have their own set of rules
and you have no alternative to check the status of your application. With unexempted PF, a
status check is possible," says the HR expert.

Address change:
If your past employer is not in the same city as yours, then you can face problems. Your claim
application will be processed in the city your employer is in. Therefore, getting to know if the
claim application has reached the EPFO office and following up thereafter, becomes an issue.

Employment term & time since resignation

Like in Meenakshi's case, if you quit many years earlier, finding your details can be an issue.
Many times, your former employer may not cooperate. Your employer could also refuse to
cooperate if you served for a very short term with it.

May have to file multiple applications

Another HR expert says many times, EPFO does not give the entire amount accrued. This is
specially problematic for those withdrawing soon after quitting or retiring. "Say one retired in
December 2012; he may be paid the money accrued till March 2012. It is said the EPFO keeps
some amount, say last six months or one years' contribution and interest in an escrow or
intermediary account. In that case, a second application needs to be filed to get the remaining
money. For this, one needs to know how much corpus had accrued in the account, which most
don't know," he says.

That's why he advises people to wait for a year before claiming the corpus because then, there
is no need to apply twice and the account earns interest for 36 months even without contribution.

Relationship with employer at the time quitting

A Haryana-based college professor says his last employer refused to cooperate with his EPF
withdrawal because he left the institute over uncordial terms. It took the professor almost two
years to get his money. Or, when one does not serve notice period and does not pay for the
same, employers could not release the EPF, says Mathpal.

Approaching PF Commissioner
Experts unanimously opine that a PF commissioner can be of help in such cases. However,
getting to him/her can sometimes be more difficult than getting the claim. Meenakshi recalls
having caught the commissioner only once till now but did not get enough time to explain her
issue.

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Therefore, it is advised that you transfer your EPF corpus each time you switch jobs because if
you need to claim from multiple employers, then you might need five-six years. Transferring the
corpus can be equally tedious.

HOW TO CLAIM EPF

You can claim EPF after 60 days of your resignation, provided you have not been
employed in the period
Next, apply for claim on Form 19 for EPF and Form 10C for employee pension scheme;
forms are available on EPFO site
Be careful while filling bank details as EPF is submitted in your bank account
Send forms with a cancelled blank cheque & copy of your resignation/ relieving letter
To be safe, remember your employee code
Send forms to previous employer, who will process it and send it to EPFO
Companies with PF trusts may ask you to apply to the EPFO directly

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