New Delhi Amid various financial steps taken by the government to ease off the pressure on the public due to the lockdown situation, the Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has given orders to field officials for faster disposal of online requests. In fact, the retirement fund body EPFO will start to accept Aadhaar card as a valid proof for amendments in their date of birth and ensure that the account is KYC compliant.

In a statement by the Labour and Employment Ministry, PF subscribers can avail non-refundable advance with field offices being instructed to help fund members make corrections in their date of birth in EPFO records to ensure that "their universal account number (UAN) is KYC compliant".

A subscriber can easily submit an online  form for correction for date of birth.

However, the date of birth as per Aadhaar will work as a valid proof for the purpose of rectification, only if the difference in the two dates is less than three years, according to the ministry statement.

This move has been proposed to support subscribers by expanding the availability and reach of online services due to the Covid-19 outbreak. By doing so, EPFO will be able to validate the date of birth of members online with UIDAI instantaneously, thus authenticating and reducing the processing time of change requests, it said.

The current instruction comes in the wake of the notification by the ministry in March allowing subscribers to take out three months' basic pay and dearness allowance as non-refundable advance or up to 75 per cent of the amount standing to member's credit in the EPF account.

"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 notification said.

This notification GSR 225(E) has made an amendment to the EPF Scheme 1952 to initiate the withdrawal of non-refundable advance by EPF members because of the Covid 19 outbreak.

Remember, you can use the online withdrawal claim facility given your Aadhaar is linked with your UAN. In order to avail online claims your UAN should be activated, Aadhaar should be linked with UAN and bank account with IFSC code should be seeded with UAN.

 (With inputs from agencies)