There is news of great relief for lakhs of EPFO members. The Ministry of Labor and Employment is preparing to settle 7.11 lakh closed (inoperative) EPF accounts. In accounts where the balance is Rs 1,000 or less, that amount will now be sent directly to the bank account of the account holders without any application.
According to the report, about Rs 30.52 crore is lying unclaimed in such small and closed accounts for a long time. This amount will be automatically transferred to the bank accounts linked to Aadhaar. For this, neither will you have to fill any form nor will you have to visit the EPFO office.
What is the new decision?
The Labor Ministry has decided that settlement of 7.11 lakh closed accounts with balance of Rs 1,000 or less will be done. If the account holder has died, this amount will be given to his nominee or legal heir.
What is inoperative EPF account?
When no contribution from the employer comes to an employee’s account for 36 months, that account is considered inoperative. Often such accounts with small balance remain lying due to change of job, retirement or lack of information.
Preparation for large-scale reform
Not only small accounts, but about Rs 10,903 crore is lying in a total of 31.86 lakh closed accounts. At present the campaign is starting with small accounts, but the rest of the accounts will also be reviewed in a phased manner.
What will change with EPFO 3.0?
There are preparations to implement EPFO 3.0 from the next financial year. Under this, services will be made completely digital and fast through Core Banking System (CBS). It is claimed that in future the claim settlement time may reduce from 20 days to less than 3 days. The aim of the government is clear: less paperwork, more transparency and easy facilities to the members.