EPFO Update : Big news for EPFO members. The EPFO announced on Thursday that individuals looking to withdraw money online from their Provident Fund (PF) accounts will no longer need to upload a photo of a canceled cheque or have their bank account verified by their employers. This change aims to streamline the claims process for approximately 80 million subscribers and make it easier for employers to manage.
Previously, EPFO members had to submit a verified photocopy of a canceled cheque or a bank passbook linked to their Universal Account Number (UAN) when applying for online fund withdrawals. Additionally, employers were required to confirm the applicant’s bank account information.
According to a statement from the Labour Ministry, the EPFO has completely removed the requirement to upload a cheque photo or verified bank passbook when filing online claims. This decision is intended to enhance the ‘ease of living’ for EPF members and improve the ‘ease of doing business’ for employers. The ministry noted that these changes would significantly expedite the claims settlement process and decrease the number of complaints regarding claim rejections.
These requirements were initially relaxed on a trial basis for certain members with updated KYC. Since the trial began on May 28, 2024, it has already benefited 17 million EPF members. Following successful testing, the EPFO has now made this relaxation available to all members, as stated by the ministry.
In other good news, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced on Thursday that there will be no fee for changing or designating a nominee for Public Provident Fund (PPF) accounts. The government has issued a notification to eliminate the previous Rs 50 fee for canceling or altering nominations in government-run small savings schemes.
The Finance Minister shared on the social media platform ‘X’ that there have been reports of financial institutions imposing fees for updating or changing the ‘nominee’ details in PPF accounts. He emphasized that the ‘nominee’ holds a legal claim to the funds of the original account holder.
He announced that amendments have been made to the Government Savings Promotion General Rules, 2018, as per the gazette notification dated April 2, 2025, to eliminate any fees associated with changes to ‘nominee’ information for PPF accounts.
A maximum of four individuals can be designated as ‘nominees’
She also mentioned that the recently approved Banking Amendment Bill 2025 permits up to four individuals to be named as ‘nominees’ for the disbursement of depositors’ funds, items stored in safe custody, and safety lockers. Additionally, the bill includes a revision of the definition of ‘substantial tax’ for individuals in banking.
The proposal aims to raise the limit from the current Rs 5 lakh to Rs 2 crore, a figure that has remained unchanged for nearly sixty years. Furthermore, the law addresses extending the tenure of directors (excluding the chairman and whole-time director) in cooperative banks from eight years to ten years, aligning it with the Constitution (97th Amendment) Act 2011.