Confused About Form 5 IF for EDLI Exempted Firms: Do We Really Need to Fill It Out?

Exemption from PF EDLI Scheme and LIC Policy

Our firm has been exempted from the PF EDLI scheme and has instead taken a policy from LIC in lieu of PF EDLI. Accordingly, we have not been remitting EDLI contributions in account no. 21 on the monthly challan from the month of our exemption. Recently, one of our company employees passed away due to prolonged illness. Now, we need to submit Form No. 20 to claim the member's accumulated PF amount. At this point, there is full clarity.

Confusion Regarding Form 5 IF

However, I am confused about filling out Form 5 IF. My consultant advised me that it is mandatory to fill out Form 5 IF, regardless of EDLI exemption. I disagree with this advice as we have received exemption from the PF authorities for EDLI and have obtained a policy from LIC. We need to claim the EDLI amount from LIC and not from the PF Organization. Therefore, I believe there is no need to fill out Form 5 IF, which is conjoined with Form 20. It should be kept blank with remarks of "Not Applicable." Is this correct, or should we fill out Form 5 IF even if the firm has received exemption? Please clarify.

Query on EDLI Admin Charges

Another query is, since we have received exemption for EDLI and have stopped remitting to A/c no. 21 for some time, do we need to continue contributing to EDLI admin charges at 0.001% under A/c no. 22? Or should we cease the remittances? If yes, should it be based on INR 6500/- or the actual basic salary?

Please share your views on the above topic. Your early reply would be appreciated and respected.

With regards,

Boppudi Venu

For exempted cases in lieu of EDLI, an inspection charge of 0.005% has to be remitted to EPF instead of the admin charge of 0.01%. For this, the salary will be restricted to Rs. 6500.

Regards,
Abbas P.S

Clarification on Form 5IF Submission for EDLI Exempted Establishments

Apparently, the query posed by Boppudi Venu regarding the submission of Form 5IF by establishments availing EDLI exemption has not been responded to, or perhaps I have missed it. Let me add a couple of more points and summarize as follows:

In the event an establishment is availing exemption under the EDLI scheme:

• Such establishments are supposed to file Form No. 5IF (along with Form 19) or not.

• What is the purpose of the certificate to be issued by the exempted establishment (page 3 of Form 5IF)?

• In case Form 5IF is attested by an establishment (PF & Pension: un-exempted, EDLI: exempted) along with Form 19, and EPFO disburses the EDLI claim, who is responsible for overpayment and what are the repercussions?

EPFO is supposed to exercise due diligence before settling the EDLI claim, or will they simply treat this as a wrong attestation of claims and initiate recovery proceedings against the establishment? Even if the responsibility lies with the establishment and overpayment has occurred due to wrong attestation of the claim by the establishment, is EPFO supposed to explore all possibilities of recovering overpayment from the nominee of the deceased employee before initiating recovery proceedings against the establishment?

Is there any source to access case laws regarding overpayment by EPFO? May I request seniors to guide us?

With best regards,
Deepak Marathe