EPFO: For employed people, the money from Provident Fund i.e. PF is no less than a lifesaver. Be it daughter’s marriage, house repair or any sudden medical emergency, the capital deposited in PF serves as the biggest support. But it is often seen that to withdraw their hard-earned money, employees have to wait for long processes and settlement of online claims. If you too are troubled by this problem, then there is a very reassuring news for you. Employees’ Provident Fund Organization (EPFO) is going to make its system so high-tech that in the coming days, withdrawing PF will be as easy as sending money to a friend through mobile.
Now money will come to your account in a jiffy
EPFO is preparing to completely transform its digital infrastructure, which has been named ‘EPFO 3.0’. Under this, the biggest change is going to happen regarding withdrawal of money. According to media reports and departmental information, within the next two to three months, EPFO is going to start the facility of claim settlement through Unified Payments Interface i.e. UPI.
For this, EPFO has joined hands with National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI). The plan is that initially this facility will be provided on ‘BHIM App’. That is, you just have to go to the app, submit your claim request and after verification, the money will come directly into your bank account. This will be a technology far ahead of the current system.
The long wait of three days will end
If we look at the current system, if you make an online advance claim for illness or other important matters, the system takes at least three working days to process it even in ‘auto-mode’. If the amount is more than Rs 5 lakh or the matter is a bit complicated, then manual investigation takes even more time. The new UPI system will eliminate this waiting period.
As soon as a member asks for money under permitted categories like children’s education, marriage or illness, EPFO’s system will immediately check his eligibility on the backend. If everything is correct, the money will be instantly transferred to your linked bank account through the gateway of State Bank of India (SBI).
Cash will also be withdrawn from ATM
Not only UPI, EPFO is moving towards taking another revolutionary step. There is a plan to give a ‘special card’ to the employees by the year 2026. This card will work exactly like your debit card. The government and the organization believe that when the money belongs to the account holder, there should be no hindrance in accessing it in times of trouble.
After the launch of this facility, you will be able to withdraw cash from your PF account by going to any ATM machine. For this, EPFO has almost prepared the technical blueprint in collaboration with banks and Reserve Bank of India (RBI). However, for security reasons and to prevent misuse of money, initially a limit of withdrawal can be fixed, which will be subject to RBI rules. At present, it is yet to be decided what is the maximum amount that can be withdrawn in a day or at one go.