Transferring PF Account: Do I Need My Previous Employer's Signature on Form 13?

Hi, this is Pushpa. I am transferring my PF account to the present company. I came to know that PF can be transferred easily by filling out Form 13. However, is it compulsory for Form 13 to also have my previous employer's signature and seal on it? Please help.

Yes, Pushpa, it is mandatory that your previous employer affix its stamp on it.

Unless the company is closed, every company is liable to sign the PF withdrawal or transfer form of all employees. It is the duty of the employer under the Act & Scheme to help the Employees' Provident Fund organization settle the Provident Fund dues of their employees. The employer has to complete the prescribed application within 5 days of receipt [para 72(5)] forms and hand it over to the member when they leave the service. When a member finds it difficult to get the form attested by the employer, they can get the attestation of any of the following officers and send it to the Provident Fund office:

- Manager of a bank.
- Any gazetted officer.
- Member of the Central Board of Trustees/committee/Regional Committee (Employees' Provident Fund Organization).
- Magistrate/Post/Sub Post Master/President of Village Panchayat/Notary Public.

However, only when the previous employer is not signing the form can you proceed with the above attestation.

I think we are giving wrong information about the transfer of PF to Pushpa. In the case of transferring funds, you only need to submit Form 13 along with Form 5 from the present employer and Form 5 & Form 10 from the previous employer. Form 5 from the previous employer indicates your joining in that organization, and Form 10 indicates your leaving.

Form 5 is required from the present employer to indicate your joining with information such as your Account Number, etc. Therefore, in this case, you do not need to go to your previous employer to get Form 13 signed. You only need to ask your previous employer to send your Form 5 & 10.

Regards,
Shailesh Srivastava

Yes, I agree with Shailesh Srivastava. It is the correct one; there is no need to have the previous employer sign.

Previous Employer's Signature Requirement

The previous employer's signature is a must on the following forms:

• Form 3A
• Breaks

Form 13R and the above two forms must be submitted to the PF regional/sub-regional office.

Regards,
G. ANANDA RAJU
RAMOJI GROUP

EPFO Procedure for Transferring PF Account

As per EPFO's procedure for transferring a PF account, FORM 13 of the PF member should be sealed and signed by the present employer only after verification of the input data. The FORM 13 is then forwarded by the present employer to the concerned PF office for necessary processing. The previous employer's signature and seal on FORM 13 are not required or compulsory.

Regards

I have some questions pertaining to the transfer of PF.

Forms Required for PF Transfer

a) What are the forms (numbers) to be filled along with Form #13?

b) What forms are needed from the previous and current organizations while filling PF Form #13?

c) To whom should the form be submitted after filling - the current employer, the previous employer, or directly to the PF office by the employee?

Clarification on PF Transfer Process

Regarding the PF transfer, do not be confused at all. There is no need for a signature from the previous employer. Anyone who has any confusion may kindly go through the P.F. Act and rules. Do not be confused.

Regards,
RKP

I have applied for PF transfer online and submitted the documents downloaded from the EPF website to the present organization, duly self-attesting the hard copies. Subsequently, my present organization has digitally signed and forwarded them to EPF. However, the website is showing "Previous employer authentication pending."

Could you please confirm whether previous employer authentication is compulsory, or is the present employer's authentication enough to transfer the account from the previous employer to the present employer?

Regards, Anil