Confused About EPF and EFPS Eligibility? Need Clarification on Service Length and Dates

Clarification on EPF and EFPS Eligibility

I request all of you to please clarify one thing for me. As we know, if an employee is covered under EPF for 10 years, then he/she will be eligible for EFPS. However, my concern is that I have been informed by a senior individual that if an employee is covered under EPF for more than 9 years and 6 months, then he/she will also be eligible for EFPS.

Furthermore, if the length of service includes the period prior to November 1995, what will be the scenario?

Please provide guidance on the same.

If the total service is more than 9 years and 6 months, then it is to be rounded off to 10 years, and hence the employee is eligible for a pension.

Employees' Pension Scheme-95 Overview

The Employees' Pension Scheme-95 came into effect on 16.11.95. It has been conceived as a benefit-defined social insurance scheme formulated following actuarial principles to ensure long-term financial sustenance. The new Employees' Pension Scheme-95 repealed and replaced the erstwhile Family Pension Scheme, 1971. The assets and liabilities of the former Pension Fund were transferred and merged with the new Pension Fund. The benefits and entitlements to the members under the old scheme remain protected and continue under the new Employees' Pension Scheme-95.

Therefore, the pension scheme, which came into force only in 1995, does not debar a person from claiming pension benefits under the Employees' Pension Scheme if they joined the establishment before 1995.

I worked in a company from 1996 to 2008. In such a case, am I also eligible for a pension? Please guide me on how to claim.

Regards,
S Rajesh

Thank you very much for this valuable information. The point is quite clear to me now. However, there is still one problem with the case.

Employee Service and Withdrawal Issue

There was an employee in our company who left the services in 2008, a time when I was not here. His service tenure was 9 years and 11 months at that time. The individual responsible for handling these matters had filed Form 10C and 19 for that employee, and both the provident fund and pension fund were withdrawn. The employee himself confirmed that he received both amounts in his account.

Current Issue: Eligibility for EPS

The current issue is that although he withdrew all his EPF Fund, he has now sent me Form 10D for EPF Pension and requested me to send it with the necessary attestation.

Therefore, considering he withdrew all of his fund amount, the question arises - is he still eligible for EPS or not?

Thank you for your assistance.

Sincerely

As your service tenure is 12 years, you are eligible for the Employee Pension Scheme.

Eligibility for Employee Pension Scheme

Firstly, when you left the company, did you withdraw your EPF Fund and do you have the scheme certificate?

Steps to Claim Pension

To claim the Pension, you need to apply in EPF Form - 10D.

1. With this form, you will be required to attach the bank account proof (copy of passbook/canceled cheque). You must have an account in the bank designated by EPFO for the pension facility. For details of such a bank, you can visit your nearby EPFO.

2. Four photographs of your family, including you, your spouse, and children below the age of 25 years. Previously, EPFO asked for three photographs, but now they are taking four photographs.

3. Age proof of the member and family, as in the photograph.

4. Any scheme certificate issued earlier by any EPFO.

All the above documents and the form should be attested by your employer or any gazetted officer.

The form should be submitted in duplicate for the home state and triplicate for out-of-state.

Hope the information will be helpful to you in this regard.

[QUOTE=bcarya;1922929]
Dear Mehrunisa Basima Sir,
Thank you very much for this precious information. The point is quite clear to me now. There is still one problem with the case. In 2008, an employee left our company with a service tenure of 9 years and 11 months. The person handling these matters filed Form 10C & 19 for that employee, and both the provident fund and pension fund were withdrawn. The employee confirmed receiving both amounts in his account.

The issue arises now as he has withdrawn all his EPF Fund but has sent me Form 10D for EPF Pension, requesting due attestation. The question is, even after withdrawing all his fund amount, is he still eligible for EPS?

Regards,
Bhuwan C. Crya

Sorry for the delay in replying. Yes, he is eligible for a pension. It is immaterial whether he has withdrawn the EPF fund or not if he has more than 9 years and 6 months of service since he has pensionable service. Suppose he has withdrawn the PF fund amount after serving less than 9 years and 6 months; then, he is not eligible for a pension because upon withdrawal, he ceases to be a member of EPF and would have to start fresh, treated as a new member (see para 69 (5) of The Employees' Provident Fund Scheme, 1952).

Regards

Dear Bhuwan C. Crya,

Sorry for the delay in replying. Yes, he is eligible for a pension. It is immaterial whether he has withdrawn the EPF fund or not if he has more than 9 years and 6 months of service since he has pensionable service. Suppose he has withdrawn the PF fund amount after serving less than 9 years and 6 months, then he is not eligible for a pension because while withdrawing the amount, he ceased to be a member of EPF and has to start afresh by treating him as a fresh member thereafter (see para 69(5) of The Employees' Provident Fund Scheme, 1952).

There is no need to say sorry; your taking time out for me is more meritorious. But, as I mentioned, he had also withdrawn his pension fund. Is he still eligible for a pension?

One more thing I want to add is that after 2008, he is not in service.

Regards,

As per section 2(ix) of the Employee's Pension Fund Scheme 1995, a member is defined as:

Definition of Member

2(ix) "Member" means an employee who becomes a member of the Employees' Pension Fund in accordance with the provisions of this Scheme.

[EXPLANATION - An employee shall cease to be a member of the Pension Fund from the date of attaining 58 years of age or from the date of vesting admissible benefits under the Scheme, whichever is earlier.]

Benefits on Leaving Service Before Eligibility for Monthly Pension

Section 14 outlines the benefits for those leaving service before being eligible for a monthly member's pension. If a member has not rendered the eligible service (10 years) prescribed in paragraph 27(9) on the date of exit, or on attaining 58 years of age, whichever is earlier, he/she shall be entitled to a withdrawal benefit as laid down in Table 'D' or may opt to receive the scheme certificate provided on the date he/she has not attained 58 years of age.

So, as per section 14, those who have not attained 10 years of PF service are not entitled to a pension, and those persons can withdraw the pension fund. This means that those who have attained 10 years of service cannot withdraw the pension fund. However, the said employee has already withdrawn the pension fund.

Moreover, as per section 2(ix), an employee who has received admissible benefits under the scheme ceases to be a member of the fund.

Therefore, since the said employee has withdrawn the pension fund, he is not liable to receive a pension.

Dear Erudite Scholars,

Namaste! I am now 66 years old and I worked for a Government of India undertaking from June 1973 to November 1994, totaling just over 21 years of service. I have been contributing to the EPF. I took voluntary retirement at the end of 1994 and have been paid my EPF in full. I attained the age of 60 on 09.03.2008 (my date of birth is 09.03.1948). Could you please tell me if I am eligible for the EPF pension scheme? Can I ask the corporation to issue me a "Scheme Certificate"? From the above answers, I learned that I require a bank account, etc. I do have every conceivable ID document like Aadhar, voter ID, credit card statements, PAN card, driving license, etc.

What I want to know is whether I am eligible for the EPF pension scheme from the date of attaining the age of 58, which fell on 09.03.2006.

When I was in that service, there was talk about this pension scheme among administration people. Since the people of this department, in those days, tended to be secretive, we engineers were not in a position to learn about these matters. To be honest, I had never heard the term HR in those days.

Only last month, I came to know about it from a former colleague and friend who is also placed in a similar circumstance and does not know what to do.

I would be very grateful if you could kindly enlighten me on this.

Regards,

C. Krishnan

I need to know about the PF PENSION. If an employee has passed away in less than six months, are they eligible for a pension?

Regards,
M. Raja

I have been working in a private firm for 10 years now, and I am planning to leave next month. My PF deductions started exactly one year after my date of joining. I would like to know if I am eligible to receive a pension if I were to leave my job at this time. Could you please confirm this for me?

Hi Friends,

I have one question: what if I worked in different companies for 10 years (e.g., Company A for 3 years and Company B for 7 years)? In this case, am I eligible for the pension scheme? Please clarify this for me.

Thank you.

Hi Sir, I am an ex-employee of ACC (The Associated Cement Companies Ltd), retired in 2005 after approximately 31 years of service at various plants of the company. During the initial days of the Family Pension scheme, there used to be an option to join the scheme. In fact, I opted out (chose not to) of the scheme due to the very low salaries. Joining the scheme required agreeing to further deductions from already low salaries, which were only in the hundreds.

Subsequently, the scheme became compulsory for all employees to join the Family Pension scheme. Given that the scheme was made mandatory for all, do I fall into the category of eligible candidates for pension payments?

I would appreciate it if you could take the time to address my query.

Regards,

Dear akahelleya ji, as you have mentioned, you opted out of the family pension earlier. However, to my knowledge, when the family pension became mandatory in 1995, there was an option to pay Rs. 1 for each past completed year, which I believe was paid by the employer. The experts handling statutory compliance since then may be able to clarify this.

Family pension eligibility

Family pension was made compulsory on 16th November 1995. Considering that you retired in 2005, your total service may exceed 9 years and 6 months after 1995, making you eligible for the family pension. Your earlier services will also be calculated as past services, entitling you to benefits for the same.

In my opinion, you should reach out to your former company's HR department to initiate the processing of your documents.