PF Withdrawal Rules 2023 - How To Withdraw PF Amount Online? (2024)

Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) is the retirement tool for many employees. Here’s how you can withdraw money from it prematurely or at the time of retirement

The Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) is a compulsory savings and retirement fund for eligible employees.

The Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has fixed the interest rate at 8.15% for the financial year 2022-23. There was a hike in the EPF account interest rate by 0.05%. The interest rate for the EPF account was 8.10% for FY 2021-22.

Under EPF regulations, employees must contribute 12% of their basic salary to this fund each month. Employers contribute a matching amount to their employees’ PF accounts.

The funds deposited in the EPF accounts earn interest yearly.

After retiring, employees can withdraw the total amount accumulated in their EPF account. Under certain circ*mstances, employees can also make premature withdrawals from their EPF account. Let’s discuss them in detail.

Criteria for PF Withdrawal

Unemployment: If an individual has been unemployed for over a month, he/she can withdraw up to 75% of the total accumulated amount. If the unemployment period stretches over two months, the remaining 25% can also be withdrawn.

Education: PF account holders can withdraw up to 50% of their total contribution to the EPF to pay for their higher education or their children’s education costs after class 10. However, this withdrawal can be made only after contributing a minimum of seven years towards the EPF account.

Marriage: An account holder can withdraw up to 50% of the employee’s share to pay for necessary expenses for his/her marriage, or the marriage of the account holder’s son, daughter, brother, or sister. However, this provision is applicable only after completing seven years of PF contribution.

Specially-abled individuals: Specially-abled account holders can withdraw 6 months of basic wage along with a dearness allowance or employee share with interest (whichever is less) to pay for the equipment cost. This facility has been introduced to ease the financial burden of purchasing expensive equipment.

Medical emergencies: An EPF account holder can withdraw the balance to pay for urgent medical treatments for certain diseases for self or immediate family members. The withdrawal amount is limited to six months of basic wage and dearness allowance or the employee share along with interest, whichever is less.

Existing debts: Individuals can withdraw 36 months of basic wage + dearness allowance or the total of employee and employer share along with interest to pay their home loan EMIs. This facility is available only after a minimum of 10 years of contribution towards the EPF account.

Purchase residential property or land plots: The PF withdrawal rules allow the account holder to make a premature withdrawal to purchase empty land or prefabricated houses.

EPF Withdrawal Rules 2023

Here is the list of basic rules of EPF withdrawal:

• Under the new regulations, PF account holders can withdraw money equivalent to three months of their basic salary plus dearness allowance or 75% of the net balance in their EPF account, whichever is lower.
• Till the time you are employed, you cannot take out any money from your PF account, be it fully or partially.
• If you don’t have a job for at least a month, you can withdraw up to 75% of your funds. You can withdraw the remaining balance if you are unemployed for two months or longer.
• These withdrawal requests can be submitted online and will be processed within three working days. Offline claims, on the other hand, can take up to 20 days to process

How to Apply for EPF Withdrawal

The withdrawal of EPF balance can be made by submitting a physical or online application.

Physical Application

Download the new Composite Claim Form (Aadhaar)/Composite Claim Form (non-Aadhaar) to withdraw the EPF balance.

• Use the Composite Claim Form (Aadhaar) if you have linked your Aadhaar and bank details on the UAN portal and if your UAN is activated. Then you must submit the form to the respective jurisdictional EPFO office without the employer’s attestation.

• Use the (non-Aadhaar) Composite Claim Form if the Aadhaar and bank details are not linked on the UAN portal. Fill and submit the form with the employer’s attestation to the respective jurisdictional EPFO office.

Online Application

The EPFO has an online withdrawal facility which has made the process more comfortable and less time-consuming.

To apply for the withdrawal of EPF online through the EPF portal, some conditions must be met:

1. The Universal Account Number (UAN) is activated, and the mobile number used for activating the UAN is in working condition.
2. The UAN is linked with your KYC, i.e., Aadhaar, PAN, bank details, and the IFSC code.

Steps to Apply for EPF Withdrawal Online on UAN Portal

• Visit the UAN portal.
• Log in with your UAN and password. Enter the captcha and click on the ‘Sign In’ button.
• Click on the ‘Manage’ tab and select ‘KYC’ to check whether your KYC details, such as Aadhaar, PAN and bank details, are verified.
• Once the KYC details are verified, go to the ‘Online Services’ tab and select the option ‘Claim (Form-31, 19, 10C & 10D)’ from the drop-down menu.
• Enter your bank account number and click on ‘Verify’.
• Sign the certificate of the undertaking and then proceed.
• Click on ‘Proceed for Online Claim’.
• Select the claim you require, i.e., full EPF settlement, EPF part withdrawal (loan/advance) or pension withdrawal, under the tab ‘I Want To Apply For’.
• Select ‘PF Advance (Form 31)’ to withdraw your fund. Provide the purpose of such advance, the amount required, and the employee’s address.
• Submit your application and wait for the employer’s approval. The money will be credited to the bank account within 15–20 days.
• Note that if you meet the above conditions, there is no need for the previous employer to attest your withdrawal application.

Eligibility for EPF Withdrawal

The conditions that must be fulfilled by an employee to be eligible for EPF withdrawal are outlined below:

• Full withdrawal of EPF funds is allowed only after retirement. However, early retirement is considered by the EPFO only after the employee attains the age of 55.
• Partial withdrawal of EPF funds is permitted only for certain purposes such as medical emergencies, home acquisition or construction, or higher education.
• The EPFO allows 90% withdrawal of the entire amount one year before retirement.
• If an employee is laid off or loses their job due to retrenchment, they may withdraw their EPF corpus.
• As per the new regulations, only 75% of the corpus can be withdrawn after one month of unemployment. The remaining funds will be transferred to the new EPF account once the employee secures a new job.
• Employees do not require their employer’s permission to withdraw their EPF. They can obtain permission online by linking their UAN and Aadhaar to their EPF account.
• When making an online claim, employees must ensure that they possess:
  • PAN & Aadhaar details
  • An active UAN number
  • Bank details linked to their UAN

When Can I Withdraw from the EPF Account?

You can make either a partial or complete withdrawal from your EPF account.

You can fully withdraw your EPF balance under certain cases, such as:

1. When you have retired.

2. When you have been unemployed for more than two months. You have to get an attestation from a gazetted officer to make the withdrawal.

Steps to Enter Exit Date

The exit date refers to the date on which you have left your job or employment. It is mandatory to update your exit date on the UAN portal for smooth processing of your withdrawals.

Here are the steps that you can follow to update or enter your exit date.

Step 1: Visit the UAN member portal and Login with your UAN number and password.

Step 2: Click on the “Manage” tab and go to the “Mark Exit” option.

Step 3: Under the ‘Select Employment’ option, tick the company’s name for which you want to mark your exit.

Step 4: After this, it displays your basic details such as DOB, date of joining EPF and EPS. Here, you can update your exit date and select the reason for exit from the given options.

Step 5: Accept the declaration and click “Request OTP.”

EPF Partial Withdrawal

Partial withdrawal from the EPF account can be made under a few circ*mstances.

EPF Withdrawal Taxability

EPF corpus withdrawal is tax-free, but only if certain conditions are met. To qualify for tax exemption, an employee must contribute to the EPF account for five consecutive years. If there is a break in contributions for five years, the EPF amount becomes taxable for that financial year.

If an employee withdraws their EPF corpus prematurely, tax is deducted at source. However, no TDS is deducted, if the amount is less than Rs 50,000. For withdrawals more than that, it is compulsory to furnish a PAN card.

If the employee is not liable to pay taxes even after the additional withdrawal amount, they can give Form 15G/15H along with their PAN number, and TDS won’t be charged. However, if an employee falls in the tax bracket, they can’t give Form 15G/15H. Since PAN is necessary, 10% TDS will be charged.

If an employee doesn’t provide their PAN number to the EPFO and withdraws more than Rs. 50,000, a hefty 34% TDS will be deducted.

Documents Required for EPF Withdrawal

To withdraw from your PF account, the following documents are necessary:

• Universal Account Number (UAN)
• Accurate bank account information
• The bank account should be in the account holder’s name, as funds will not be transferred to a third party unless in case of the account holder’s death.
• The employer should provide the employee’s information to the EPFO and record the employee’s departure from the company, including accurate joining and leaving dates.
• The employee’s personal information, such as date of birth and father’s name, must match the identity proof.

EPF Withdrawal Claim Form

Different types of forms are required for different purposes under the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) scheme. The specific EPF form required would vary depending on the purpose.