The Buyt Desk
To help people deal with hardship caused by COVID-19’s second wave Employee Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has allowed non-refundable advance. EPFO had allowed a similar withdrawal window last year as well when the first wave of COVID 19 had hit. Till now EPFO has settled 76.31 lakh COVID 19 advance claims and disbursed a total of Rs 18,698.15 crore. This provision of advance withdrawal was introduced in March 2020 under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojna.
The reason behind extending the provision of advance claim
The Labour Ministry said in a statement “During the second wave of Covid-19 pandemic, ‘mucormycosis’ or black fungus has been declared an epidemic recently. In such trying times, EPFO endeavours to lend a helping hand to its members by meeting their financial needs,”
How much can you Withdraw?
The EPFO member can withdraw basic salary plus the dearness allowance of 3 months or 75% of the accumulated amount in the account whichever is less. Members can apply for a lesser amount as well. This step will be of immense help to the salaried class. In times of health crisis and financial crunch, they will be saved from taking any additional loan to meet any unseen expenses.
The Advance Claim Settlement Process
Once the claim is made the EPFO will settle these advance claim within three days of the receipt. To ensure this EPFO will have a system driven auto-claim settlement process. The members should have fulfilled all the KYC procedure of their account.
EPFO allowed its subscriber to withdraw money on certain conditions like illness or for buying a house. Now EPFO subscriber can withdraw money for COVID-19 related stress as well. The Ministry of Labour has made an amendment to the Employees’ Provident Funds Scheme by inserting therein sub-para (3) under paragraph 68L, through a notification in the Official Gazette.
