Big news for govt employees. Now Aadhaar OTP is mandetory for PF accounts. The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has made Aadhaar-based OTP verification mandatory for PF accounts. This step has been taken to provide better and easier services to the employees as well as to ensure the benefits of government schemes.
The Ministry of Labour and Employment has directed all employers to verify the Universal Account Number (UAN) of their employees with Aadhaar by November 30, 2024. This process will not only facilitate PF services, but will also help in availing employment-related schemes in the future.
Why is PF verification important?
This new step will not only ease administrative functioning but will also provide several benefits to the employees:
Easy use of online services
Employees can now easily view their PF account information, download passbooks, and make claims online.
Claims tracking
The need to visit the EPFO office to know the status of your PF claims will be eliminated.
Security with biometric technology
In the future, biometric features like facial recognition will be implemented, which will increase security and accuracy.
Updating data will be easy
Updating personal and banking details will now be faster and simpler.
Procedure to activate UAN
Visit the EPFO portal (https://www.epfindia.gov.in/).
Click on the Active UAN link.
Enter the UAN, Aadhaar number, name, date of birth and Aadhaar-linked mobile number.
Consent to the OTP and enter the OTP received on your mobile.
After successful activation, the login password will be sent to your mobile.
ELI Scheme: A big change in employment
The Employment Promotion Scheme (ELI), announced in the Union Budget 2024-25, focuses on providing financial assistance to employers and employees:
For first-time job seekers
Employees who get new jobs will get Rs 15,000 in three installments.
Boost to Manufacturing Sector
For four years, employers will get financial assistance from employees’ contribution. The government will reimburse employers up to Rs 3,000 per month per employee for two years.
How will these changes change?
Aadhaar OTP verification will strengthen the digitization of PF services. This will provide fast, secure and transparent services to the employees. Also, the ELI scheme is set to bring a new revolution in employment generation.
