Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has launched a new feature for its members as employees can now change personal details like their name and date of birth online without any verification from their employer or approval from the EPFO, reported the news agency PTI on Saturday, January 18.
The EPFO members who have e-KYC accounts can file their EPF transfer claims online with Aadhaar OTP without the need for any intervention from the employer, as per the report.
According to the Union Minister for Labour and Employment, Mansukh Mandaviya, 27 per cent of of grievances filed by members are related to member profile/KYC issues, which are expected to drop due to this new facility.
The Union Minister also said that the retirement fund body has simplified the process of joint declaration on the EPFO portal. This allows employees to correct most errors related to personal details like name, date of birth, gender, nationality, father/ mother’s name, marital status, spouse name, date of joining and date of leaving, without any intervention, as per the report.
To date, before the implementation of this new facility mistakes were committed by employers in recording father/spouse name, marital status, nationality and service details during the registration process had to be corrected via a request made online with supporting documents.
The request would have to be verified by the employer and then forwarded to EPFO for approval, as per the report.
Eligibility Criteria
This new facility on the EPFO website will be available for members whose UAN (Universal Account Number) was issued after October 1, 2017.
According to the Union Minister, no supporting document is needed in that case, reported the news agency.
In case the UAN was issued before October 1, 2017, the employer can correct details without the EPFO’s approval. The requirement of supporting documents has also been simplified for such cases.
In case the UAN is not linked with Aadhaar, any correction would have to be submitted physically to the employer and, after verification, forwarded to EPFO for approval and cited by the agency.
Delays in approval
Out of the 8 lakh requests in the financial year 2024-25, only 40 per cent were sent within 5 days. 47 per cent were sent after 10 days and the average time taken by employer was 28 days, according to the agency report.
This new facility aims to simplify the process of providing relief to the employees through immediate correction through Aadhaar OTP verification and, in other cases, through the employer itself.
According to the agency report, nearly 3.9 lakh cases are pending with employers as of January 18.
The Union Minister also said that multiple initiatives are being taken to improve the delivery of services by the EPFO to make it at par with the banking system in the country, reported the news agency.