Over the past few years, the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has been striving to make the PF transfer and claim process smoother. Recently, it took another step in that direction.
The EPFO has launched a new online feature wherein employees can update the date of exit for the previous organizations they have worked with. The date of exit needs to be updated on the EPFO portal for employees to transfer the funds online in case they are changing jobs or to make claims in case they are unemployed for more than two months. Earlier, only employers could update the date of exit on the EPFO platform.
“A lot of EPFO services were dependent on the employers. For example, in case an employee changed jobs, employers needed to do two things—the old employer needed to update the exit date on the EPFO portal and the new employer the date of joining. At times, employers don’t update the portal on time, causing problems for employees. The new feature is meant to empower employees,” said an EPFO official, on the condition of anonymity.
The EPFO is easing out the management of PF by subscribers by bringing everything online, said Jitendra P.S. Solanki, a Sebi-registered investment adviser. “Earlier, an employee was dependent on the employer for updating the exit date. At times, the employee doesn’t leave an organization on a happy note or may not have the contact number of the previous employer. In such cases, it becomes difficult for employees to get the exit date updated,” he said.
However, there are a few things you should keep in mind when using this feature. The date of exit can only be updated after two months of leaving a job. Also, the date of exit can be any date in the month in which the last contribution was made by the previous employer.
The new facility is based on Aadhaar-based one-time password (OTP). “It can only be utilized by those who have linked their EPF account with a verified Aadhaar number. The accounts should be linked to the Universal Account number (UAN). Also, the mobile number should be linked to the Aadhaar number on which the OTP will be sent for verification,” said the EPFO official.
How to update the exit date
Step 1: Go to the EPFO portal and login using your UAN and password.
Step 2: Go to “manage” and click “mark exit”.Under the “select employment” dropdown, select the previous PF account number linked to your UAN.
Step3: Enter the date and reason of exit.
Step 4: Then request for an OTP which will be sent to your Aadhaar-linked mobile number.
Step 5: After you enter the OTP, submit the request.
Remember that once updated, the exit date can’t be changed, so be careful about how you do it.
Source: livemint
