Navigating EPF Deductions: How Should Salary Components Be Handled?

John_K
Understanding EPF Deductions and Salary Components

My firm has recently crossed 20 employees in strength and has registered under EPF. I work in the accounts section and am responsible for preparing salary statements and deducting ESIC. With our EPF registration, my responsibilities now include deducting PF from employees' salaries.

Before undertaking this task, I want to clarify the concepts of PF. My main doubts are as follows:

1. Salary Components for EPF

What constitutes salary as per EPF? Our salary structure consists of basic salary plus commission on sales, paid to the sales staff based on monthly sales volume. Should PF be deducted only on the basic salary or on the basic salary plus commission amount? Currently, for deducting Staff ESIC Contribution, we consider the salary as basic salary plus commission amount. Please advise on the correct method for determining salary for ESIC and PF purposes.

2. EPF Deduction for New Employees

Since my employer is now registered under EPF, when a new employee joins (already an EPF member) with a salary above Rs.15,000, should my employer deduct PF? If a new employee (not an EPF member) joins with a salary above Rs.15,000, is it the employer's decision to grant PF if the new employee chooses to join?

3. Earned Leave Encashment and PF Calculation

Currently, my employer allows 2 earned leaves per month. Unutilized earned leave is added to the salary at month-end. Should the earned leave encashment amount be included in the PF salary calculation?

4. Conveyance Allowance and Travel Reimbursements

Some staff receive a conveyance allowance, and salespersons are reimbursed for actual travel expenses. Should either of these be considered in the PF salary calculation?

Best Regards,

John
Glidor
1) Basic salary + DA is used for EPF purposes (a ceiling of 15000 is maintained under EPF, and if it exceeds, VPF can be applied if both employer and employee agree to contribute).

2) The employer must offer the EPF option to every employee.

3) Paid earned leaves are included in the earned salary.

4) TA reimbursement is not considered a part of the salary.
John_K
Sir, thank you for the reply.

Regarding point no. 1, for ESI purposes, should we take the salary as Basic + DA only?

Regarding point no. 2, if the new employee has a salary greater than 15,000 and was a previous member of PF, is it compulsory to include him/her for PF?

Best Regards,
John
lkmaheshwary007
Regarding point no. 1, for ESI purposes, should we take the salary as Basic + DA only?

Answer: ESIC is always calculated on the gross salary, which is fixed per month.

Point no. 2, if the new employee has a salary greater than 15,000 and was a previous member of PF, is it compulsory to include him/her for PF?

Answer: Yes
John_K
Dear Mahesh Sir,

By gross salary, do you mean basic salary only in my case, as we do not have DA?
lkmaheshwary007
For ESI, we calculate based on Basic+ including all fixed allowances per month. When calculating the EPF amount, we only consider Basic or Basic + DA.
If you are knowledgeable about any fact, resource or experience related to this topic - please add your views. For articles and copyrighted material please only cite the original source link. Each contribution will make this page a resource useful for everyone. Join To Contribute