Due to the pandemic, last month the Union Labour and Employment Ministry had notified an amendment to the Employees' Provident Funds (EPF) Scheme to allow withdrawal of non-refundable advance by the members in the event of COVID-19 pandemic. The notification permitted withdrawal not exceeding the basic wages and dearness allowance for three months or up to 75 per cent of the amount standing to member's credit in the EPF account in the event of a pandemic.
The notification said, "COVID-19 has been declared a pandemic by appropriate authorities for the entire country and, therefore, employees working in establishments and factories across entire India, who are members of the EPF Scheme, 1952, are eligible for the benefits of non-refundable advance.”
The EPFO took several steps to ensure smoother settlement of claims as they anticipated a huge rush after the announcement. According to the official release a new software was utilised for online receipt of claims. The software was deployed within 24 hours of the announcement of the amendment on 29th March 2020. Apart from this, just a few days earlier the EPFO had also announced that Aadhaar card will be accepted as valid proof of date of birth. This was done to expedite online requests.