Worried About Not Disclosing a Previous Job? Seeking Advice on Potential Consequences

Hi Seniors, I have previously worked for an X software company and quit due to personal reasons. I took up another job after a few months in Y company (however, with a lower salary, as it was in the BPO industry) and worked there for 4-5 months. Recently, another software company, Z, offered me a job with a better salary similar to X. I did not disclose my employment at Y company to Z, my new employer.

My queries are as follows:

1. Will the new employer (Z) find out about my employment at Y company, which I did not disclose during the creation of my EPF account, as I provided only X company's UAN? (In fact, Y company also created a new UAN account for me, which is different from the one provided by the X company.)

2. Will the new employer (Z) check the TDS filings made by Y company during their monthly/quarterly TDS filings?

3. Will the finance department or HR department of the new employer (Z) come to know about my previous companies through EPF or TDS deposits linked to my PAN or AADHAAR?

I would really appreciate some clarity on these matters. I have been having sleepless nights due to these questions.

Thank you so much in advance. Cheers!

It is not clear why you have not disclosed information about Company Y to Company Z. It is always advisable to provide factual details about your previous employer to your new employer to avoid future embarrassments.

UAN Number and Employment History

Regarding the UAN number, the chances of Company Y allotting a new UAN number to you were very remote, as nowadays Aadhar and PAN are linked to UAN. Your new employer will not be able to generate a new UAN. Yes, your employer Z can view the employment histories of Companies X and Y if they try to generate a UAN and should receive an error message about the existing UAN number with employer details.

TDS and FORM 16

Concerning TDS, the same will reflect in your FORM 16. If you submit this to your new employer Z, it will help to combine both Y and Z incomes (which means if you joined in the middle of the financial year after serving with employer Y).

Now that what happened has happened, you have two options: either disclose to your employer Z about your employment with Company Y or leave it as it is. There are chances that it might be left unattended as well.

Learn from the above lesson and please do not repeat the same mistake in the future.

Thank you for your response. I will make sure not to repeat this mistake ever again.

One last query

My original UAN from X company is still active as per EPFO, and I now have a new UAN from the recent company Y, which has also created a new UAN. However, you mentioned that the new employer will try to create another UAN. Can I suggest to my new employer to use the original UAN number instead of creating a new one to avoid disclosing company Y and creating further confusion with the new employer? I don't want to disclose this with the new employer and want to move on with my life.

Thank you for all your inputs. Please clarify the above.

Dear Friend,

Your first UAN is the original one; afterwards, you can create numerous UANs, but your contributions will be credited to the original one, which is your first employment UAN. Therefore, it is advisable to avoid creating new UANs as it may cause issues during the withdrawal process.

Hi,

Use whichever UAN is active and transfer the past employer's PF.