Struggling with PF Withdrawal Due to Missing Bank Statements? What Are My Options?

Hi all. I worked with a BPO for a year from November '05 to December '06. Since it has been a long time since I have not withdrawn my PF amount, I called up the company's HR. I was informed that apart from 'revenue stamps' and a 'cancelled cheque', I would need to submit my bank statements for the past 3 years. The bank statements are needed to show "as proof" to the EPF office that I was NOT in employment since quitting back in 2006! I'm not sure if such a submission is mandatory.

Another issue is, I had an ICICI salary account in 2005-2006, which I closed after leaving the company. After that, I opened a bank account with HDFC in December 2010. So even if I have to submit my bank statements, I have them for only about 2 years.

My PF account is with the Chennai PF office. The company is Chennai-based, and I worked with their Mumbai branch. Upon speaking to a person from my company in Chennai, he said the PF office would reject my withdrawal/settlement claim as I do not possess the last 3 years of bank statements. According to him, I could either apply for withdrawing/closing my PF in December 2013 or when I'll be 58, which frankly, I find ludicrous!

What are my options in this case?

Thanks,

Nirav.

It is not mandatory to give a 3-year statement. Also, do not worry if you've closed your salary account. Importantly, you need to provide a statement of any bank account where you are a SINGLE HOLDER. A statement with even the last 3 months' transactions is valid proof. If you are providing a bank statement, you do not necessarily need to submit a canceled check.

Hi Hiral, thanks for your help. While I was at it, I also spoke to another BPO where I had worked only for a month, by the way. The HR there was very cooperative; however, he mentioned that I would have to submit an affidavit on a Rs. 100 stamp paper explaining my delay in claiming my PF for more than 36 months/3 years! I'm really clueless. The EPF site and other resources I checked do not mention any such documentation. I wonder where the concerned HR individuals came up with these requirements.

PF Claim Processing Days

I also wanted to check if a company is allowed to arbitrarily decide on just one day of the week for processing PF claims. I was informed that PF work will be processed by HR only on Fridays, and that too between 4 pm to 6 pm. Is this legitimate?

Regards.

Yes, you have to submit an affidavit on a Rs. 100 stamp paper with details of the delay in claiming your PF by more than 36 months/3 years, and there is no need for any bank statement. Form 10C & Form 19, with 2 revenue stamps and 1 cancelled cheque. Then the process would be the same, and the amount will be credited to your bank account within 45 days.

Good luck.

Regards,
V V Reddy