Online EPF withdrawal, pension fixation to be a reality

Under the pilot, the EPFO has already connected its around 50 field offices with the central server. Graphics: The Telegraph Calcutta

NEW DELHI: Retirement fund body EPFO is expected to launch an online facility for the settlement of claims, including provident fund withdrawal and pension fixation, by May to put an end to the tedious paper work by its members.  At present, the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) receives close to 1 crore applications manually for the settlement of an EPF withdrawal claim, pension fixation or getting group insurance benefit by deceased persons. “The process of connecting all field offices with a central server is going on. We may introduce the facility for online submission of all types of applications and claims like EPF withdrawal and pension settlement by May this year,” EPFO’s central provident fund commissioner V.P. Joy said.

He said that all EPFO offices would be connected to a central server in a couple of months following which the facility of online submission of all sort of applications can be introduced. The EPFO has an ambitious plan to settle the claims within few hours after filing of application. For instance, it has plans to settle the EPF withdrawal claim within three hours of filing of online application.

According to the scheme, the EPFO is required to settle all claims within 20 days from filing of the application for the settlement of pension or EPF withdrawal.

Under the pilot, the EPFO has already connected its around 50 field offices with the central server. In a recent review meeting on digitisation in the EPFO, the field formations and information Services wing has been asked to link all 123 offices with the central server so that subscribers can be provided services online. The EPFO has made it mandatory for all subscribers as well as pensioners to submit their Aadhaar number. This will help linking EPF account, pension account, bank account and Aadhaar number which would eventually facilitate providing a host of online facilities to subscribers like online withdrawal and fixation of pension. The body recently extended the deadline for submitting Aadhaar for its subscribers and pensioners till March 31, 2017.