There’s significant relief for employees. Now, there’s no need to fill out any forms or wait long for an Employee Provident Fund (EPF) transfer upon changing jobs. The Employees’ Provident Fund Organization (EPFO) has announced the implementation of an automatic transfer system, which will be fully effective from 2025. With this new system, your PF balance will automatically be transferred to your new employer’s account.
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Transfer will now be completed within 5 days
Previously, employees had to fill out Form 13 upon changing jobs. This form had to be verified by both the old and new employers. This entire process took one to two months. Claims were often rejected due to technical issues or resulted in a loss of interest. According to EPFO data, millions of claims remained pending each year. Now, with the implementation of the new automated system, all these problems will be eliminated, and transfers will be completed in just three to five days.
How the new system will work
When an employee joins a new job, the new employer will link their UAN (Universal Account Number). The EPFO portal will automatically verify their Aadhaar and KYC information. The old PF balance will then be transferred directly to the new account. No paperwork or form-filling will be required. However, the employee’s UAN must be active and linked to Aadhaar.
5 major benefits for employees
This system will provide several benefits to employees. The biggest benefit is time savings. While previously, PF transfers took months, they will now be completed in a matter of days. There will be no need to upload documents, interest continuity will be maintained, and the entire fund will be available in one place at the time of retirement. Furthermore, changing jobs will also be easier, especially for private sector employees.
A major step towards Digital India
A senior EPFO official stated that this change will benefit more than 100 million employees. Automatic PF transfers will not only enable a paperless process but also reduce the likelihood of fraud. Linking UAN with Aadhaar will automatically verify the employee’s identity, curbing fraud. The official stated that this system will be fully implemented by the first quarter of 2025 and urged employees to activate their UANs soon.
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PF withdrawals will also be automated in the future
EPFO aims to make the entire system digital and user-friendly. There are plans to automate the PF withdrawal process in 2025. If your UAN is old, it is necessary to update it through the EPFO website or app. Before joining a new job, also check whether your old PF account has been closed to ensure your retirement funds are safe.