Confused About PF to Pension Conversion and Delays? Let's Discuss Your Options

PF/Pension and PF Trust/RPFC Queries

I have a few important questions regarding PF/Pension and PF Trust/RPFC. Here is the timeline for my questions:

I started working in 2003 for:

- Company A in May 2003
- Company B in October 2004
- Company C in March 2007
- Company D in March 2012

I transferred my PF from Company A & Company B to Company C. In March 2012, upon leaving Company C, I wished to withdraw all my PF.

Company C had a PF trust and notified via email that they would seal all PF accounts for withdrawal and transfer from March 20th, 2012, to September 30th, 2012, as they were transitioning all PF from the Trust to RPFC.

- Company C preponed this transition from March 20th to March 12th (my last working day) without prior notice.
- In October, they communicated that the transition's end date was delayed to the end of December 2012.
- On January 2nd, 2013, they further delayed the end date to the end of March 2013.
- Uncertain about any additional delays.

Please note: In late April, my PF account will reach 10 years, prompting the following queries.

1. Does PF get blocked after 10 years, even if in continuation, and transfer to Pension, which cannot be withdrawn for a specific period? (I learned that PF automatically converts to Pension after 10 years in continuation and cannot be withdrawn as normal PF.)

2. What are my options for PF withdrawal given the above situation?

Thanks and Regards

Clarification on EPF and EPS Schemes

EPF does not get blocked after 10 years. It is also not transferred to Pension. Both EPF and EPS are different schemes with distinct contributions. You need not worry in this context.

From your post, it transpires that Company C, which earlier received an exemption from the RPFC to manage its own PF Trust, has now decided to surrender the exemption and come under the EPF maintained by the RPFC. The process is perhaps still ongoing. You can wait and, after about a month, directly ask the RPFC concerned whether the process is over or not, just to cross-check Company C's statement.

After the migration process is complete, you can transfer the amount from Account C to Account D. Hopefully, you have an account with the Company.

Regards

It may be appropriate if the position is cross-checked directly from the Office of the concerned RPFC instead of guessing. You may even use the RTI route to obtain authentic information. Thereafter, you can decide what follow-up action would be necessary.

Regards,
Kumar S.