Blog

EPFO has introduced certain dos and don’ts to Minimise the PF Claims Rejection. To ensure a smoother experience for all employees, we are sharing important points to help employee and employers.

ADVISORY NOTE

(For Employees/HR Officials of Establishments)

Please keep a checklist of following main reasons of claim rejection while filling /applying /submitting/ authorizing the claim forms so as to ensure no/minimal rejections, at least because of these reasons.

REASONS OF REJECTION (HIGH REJECTION RATIO) - IN CLAIM FORMS IN NORMAL CASES

1. Member already taken the benefit (Claim already settled) but still filed the claim form for the same benefit- Form-13 (Annexure-K) / Form 19 / Form 10-C cases
2. Member not eligible for the benefit but still filed the claim form for that benefit-

• Form 10-C – Eligible service is less than 6 months / more than 9 years and 6 months
• Form 10-D – Eligible service is less than 9 years and 6 months /Member Age is less than 50 years.
• Form 19 – Date of Exit not shown/Absence of cooling period of 2 months after date of exit/ PF Balance showing zero.
• Form 13 – Form 19/Form 13 already settled for that service period.
• Form 31 – Date of Exit shown/ Insufficient Service for selected advance or Insufficient Balance in member PF Account under employee and/or employer head/Already availed the selected advance for permissible times.
• Form 20/Form 5 IF/ Form 10-D (Death case) - Date of exit not shown/ reason of exit is not shown as “death”/ date of exit in system and date of death differs/ Non availability/ submission of on-roll death certificate.

3. Bank Account related problems- Passbook without proper printing of Account number/without sign & stamp of bank official/Bank details without IFSC Code/Branch name not mentioned/Cheque without printed name of account holder/Joint Account (only valid with spouse)/ Bank Account number linked with more than one UAN/ illegible copy of Bank passbook/Cheque uploaded in online claims.

GENERAL REASONS OF CLAIM REJECTION

1. KYC mismatch – Member name, Father Name, Surname, Date of birth differ (For pension in Form 10-C and Form 10-D)
2. Non submission of Form 15G/15H/PAN
3. Service Overlapping
4. Date of joining and/or Date of leaving differ, Non-contributory period (NCP) is not given.
5. Claim is applied for more duration than actual contribution received / actual contribution received for the period after date of exit.
6. Member re-joining on same PF Account Number rather than allotment of new PF Account Number.

REASONS OF REJECTION OF CLAIM FORMS (IN DEATH CASES)

1. Not eligible for the benefit but still filed the claim form for that benefit- Form 20/Form 5 IF/ Form 10-D (Death case) –

Date of exit not shown/ reason of exit is not shown as “death”/ date of exit in system and date of death differs/ Non availability or non-submission of in service (on-roll) death certificate.

Form-10D/ Death claim:

1. Date of birth certificate for settlement of Pension under claim form 10-D.
2. Family age proof – Birth certificate or any other age proof for 10-D.
3. Date of birth differs (For pension in form 10-D).
4. Details of non-contributory period during the service.

Form 20/ Death claim:

1. No signature by authorized signatory of the establishment /Signature differs.
2. Nominee/ legal heir should apply in form-20/Form 10D/Form 5IF only.
3. Death certificate of the member.
4. Certificate of the employer stating whether the death was while in service of the member or not.

From 5-IF/ EDLI:

1. Copy of Muster Roll for settlement of Insurance claim.
2. No signature of establishment, Signature differs.
3. Ensure that member died while in service/on-roll death certificate.

After a new update by the EPFO in the EPF member portal, many EPF members are facing the issue that their UAN is disabled.EPF Members are not able to access their EPF accounts showing them as Locked/Disabled.

However, there is no official notification issued by the EPFO on the reason for these issues and what is the remedy to solve them.

There can be two basic reasons, firstly due to Aadhar No. which is linked to different employee mobile numbers. Secondly, it may also be due to UAN no. getting linked to a different/wrong mobile number.

It is advised that the member should update his/her Aadhar linked mobile number with UAN by selecting FORGET option. If any further problem /error persists they can mail to the EPFO Department technical team at employeefeedback@epfindia.gov.in or rc.ndc@epfindia.gov.in for more assistance.

With the coming into force of Section 142 of the Code on Social Security, 2020, has been notified vide Gazette Notification No. 1730(E) dated 30.04.2021 the monthly ECR shall be allowed to be filed only for those members, whose Aadhar numbers are seeded and verified with the UANs w.e.f 01.06.2021.

1. The employer has been given the responsibility to make your account Aadhar verified. If they fail to do so can lead to the stoppage of employer contribution credited to your account. Therefore, it is important that you link your PF account with Aadhar in time.
2. UAN should also be Aadhar verified. If UAN is not Aadhar verified, then its ECR- electronic challan cum return will not be filed.
3. If the accounts of the holders are not Aadhar verified, they will not be able to use the services of EPFO.

So, the EPF account holders are suggested to ask their employers about the EPFO guidelines and do the needful if the employers have not done Aadhar verification of one’s EPF account and UAN.

How to do EPF Aadhar linking online

An EPFO subscriber can do the EPF Aadhar linking through online

1. Log in at the direct link of EPFO — iwu.epfindia.gov.in/e KYC
2. Click on “Linkhttps://iwu.epfindia.gov.in/Ekyc UAN Aadhar”
3. Enter UAN and registered mobile number
4. Click at ‘Generate OTP’ option;
5. Enter OTP and select gender;
6. Enter your Aadhar card number and select the ‘Aadhar Verification’ method;
7. Select ‘Use Mobile or E-mail based verification’ option;
8. Another OTP will come to your mobile number;
9. Enter that OTP; and
10. Complete your EPF, UAN Aadhar seeding process.

1.  The screen given below will appear after visiting “https://unifiedportal-mem.epfindia.gov.in/memberinterface/ “ to opt for activation of their UAN No as well as login to this Portal.

2.  Once member click on “Activate UAN” following screen will appear. Member has to feed his/her UAN No. or Member ID or Aadhaar No. or PAN No., Name, Date of Birth, Mobile No., Email Id, Captcha. After feeding the characters shown there on the screen, member has to press the button “Get Authorization Pin”. Within 5 minutes, pin will come on his/her mobile no.

3.  Using that pin, he/she has to Click on “I Agree” checkbox and has to Enter OTP in respective textbox. After that he/she has to press “Validate OTP and Activate UAN” button.

4.  After pressing “Validate OTP and Activate UAN” button following screen will come and message will go to the member’s phone for disseminating his/her password to access UAN Member E-Seva portal. Member must record this username and password to use it further.

5.  Once member has activated his/her UAN number, he/she can any time login to the portal
“https://unifiedportal-mem.epfindia.gov.in/memberinterface/“ by using his/her username (i.e. UAN No.) and
password created by himself/herself.

6.  Sign in with correct username and password will enable the user to switch to next screen which will appear
as below:-

7.  By pressing “View” button member can download Service History, UAN Card and Passbook.

8.  When member select an option “Passbook” following screen will appear showing the link from where he/she can download the Passbook. Below is the link to download the EPF Passbook
https://passbook.epfindia.gov.in/MemberPassBook/Login.jsp

9.  By Clicking the link https://passbook.epfindia.gov.in/MemberPassBook/Login.jsp below screen will appear. Login details are same which he/she use at Step 5.

10.  After login on Passbook link on EPFO portal below screen will appear. On LHS of screen Member ID will display which are map with UAN number. To download the EPF passbook he/she has to click at respective EPF account number.

11.  The pdf of passbook will appear as below:-

12.   Member can update his/her KYC from this portal only. He/she will have to select an option “KYC” from the Manage Menu. Then he/she has to select “Document Type” as shown below in the screen, feed the Document No., Name As Per Document etc. If member is sure about his/her details, then he/she has to click on Save Button after that it will be forwarded to employer for approval with Digital Signature Certificate. It will remain pending till the time employer does not approve it.

EPFO vide notification no. G.S.R. 299 E has amended The Employees’ Deposit-Linked Insurance Scheme, 1976. As per the amendment, the maximum assurance benefit under the Employees’ Deposit Linked Insurance (EDLI) scheme has now been increased to seven lakh (Maximum Benefit) from the existing cover of six lakhs. Please refer to the enclosed notification for more details.

• Features of EDLI

1. The family members, legal heirs, or nominees of the member can be availed of the insurance benefits
2. Members of EPFO are automatically enrolled for EDLI.
3. An EPFO member is only covered by the EDLI scheme as long as he/she is an active member of the EPF. His family/heirs/nominees cannot claim it after he/she leaves service with an EPF covered company.
4. No minimum service period for availing EDLI benefits required.
5. The employer has to make a contribution to EDLI.
6. The claim amount under ELDI is 35 times the average monthly salary in the past 12 months subject to a maximum of 7 lakh.
7. The average monthly salary is calculated as the Basic + Dearness Allowance + Other EPF wages of the employee
8. A bonus of 1.75 Lakhs is also applicable under this scheme
9. The employer can opt-out of the scheme in case he takes a higher paying life insurance scheme for employees under Section 17 (2A)

• EDLI Calculation

The maximum average monthly salary of an employee is capped at Rs. 15,000. So, 30 times the salary comes to be around to be 35 x ? 15,000 = Rs. 5, 25,000 A bonus amount of up to Rs. 1, 75,000 is also paid to the claimant under this scheme. Thus, the total amount payable under this scheme to the beneficiary is Rs. 7, 00,000.

• EDLI Form 5 IF

EDLI Form 5 IF is filled by the nominees, heirs, or family members of the member after his death to claim the insurance amount under the EDLI Scheme. The form has to be filled separately by each claimant. In the case of a minor claimant, the guardian has to fill the form on his behalf. In the case of more than one minor where the guardian is the same, a single form has to be filled by the guardian.

The form has to be filled offline and the employer has to furnish the certificate mentioning the date of death of the member. The mode of fund transfer has to be mentioned as well.

The form has to be submitted to the regional EPF Commissioner’s office along with the required document proofs. The claim has to be settled in 30 days and if the EPF commissioner is not able to settle the claim within 30 days, he will be liable to pay an interest of 12% per annum from the deadline date to the date of actual disbursal.

• How to Claim EDLI Benefits

1. Form 5 has to be filled to get the insurance benefits after the death of the member
2. The member should have been (at the time of his death), an active contributor to the EPF scheme
3. The benefits can be claimed by the nominee of the member
4. In case no nominee is declared, the surviving family members will be eligible for claiming the benefits. Family under EPS is defined as spouse, male children (up to 25 years), unmarried daughters.
5. If there are no surviving family members, the insurance benefits can be claimed by the legal heir of the deceased member
6. The claim form has to be signed and certified by the employer
7. Form 5 IF can be filled along with Form 20 (EPF withdrawal claim in case of the deceased member) and Form 10C/Form10D to claim benefits of all three schemes (EPF, EPS, and EDLI) in one go.

• Eligibility Criteria for EDLI

Following persons are eligible to apply for claiming insurance benefits under the EDLI Scheme:

1. Members of the family (Nominees) nominated under EPF Scheme.
2. In case of no nomination, all members of the family (except major sons, married daughters with major sons, and married granddaughters).
3. In case of no family, and no nomination, legal heir.
4. Guardian of a minor nominee/family member/legal heir.

• Documents Required for EDLI

The claimant has to submit the following documents along with the Form 5 IF to get the amount disbursed under the EDLI scheme:

1. Death Certificate of the member
2. Guardianship certificate if the claim on behalf of a minor family member/nominee/legal heir is by other than the natural guardian.
3. Succession certificate in case of a claim by the legal heir.
4. Copy of a canceled cheque of the bank account in which payment has opted.
5. In case the member was last employed under an establishment exempted under the EPF Scheme 1952, the employer of such establishment should furnish the PF details of the last 12 months under the Certificate part and also send an attested copy of the Member’s Nomination Form.