Overview
A provident fund is an investment established voluntarily by the employer and employees to act as long-term savings for an employee’s retirement. The employer can withhold a sum from the employee’s pay every month. Every establishment that employs 20 or more people must register for PF. Businesses can obtain a voluntary PF registration with fewer than 20 employees. All employers registered for PF are required to make monthly returns. If an establishment is registered for PF, the PF return filing needs to happen annually at or before the due date of April 30.
Key Provident Fund-related details:
Provident Fund Return
On the 25th of every month, all entities with PF registration must file a provident fund return. For the year that ended on March 31, the last PF return filing shall be done by the employer on April 25.Payment for Provident Funds (PF) is made on the fifteenth of every month. Every month, on or before this day, the employer must contribute 12 percent or 10 percent of the employee’s salary to PF.
UAN
To streamline and make provident fund administration easier for employers and employees, the Employee Provident Fund has established the Unified Portal. The newly assigned UAN holders can access the Unified Portal for various services.
Form 2
One can file Form 2 as a declaration and nomination under the Flagship scheme of the EPF and the EFPS. Employees who are joining the establishment are required to file Form 2 along with Form 5. Form 2 is divided into two parts– A and B.Part A includes details like Name, address, relationship with the subscriber, age, and the amount to the nominee. In case the nominee is a minor, you must also enter the guardian details. In Part B, the information on the members who qualify for the widow/children pension must be provided.
Form 5
Form 5 is filed as a monthly report. It should contain information on recently enrolled employees. Information required on Form 5 includes:
- Name of the Organization
- Organization’s address
- Organization’s code
- Employee account number
- Employee name
- Employee’s date of birth
- Date of hire
- Experience with the job.
This form is to be filled out and stamped by the employer.
Form 10
Form 10 is yet another monthly form that keeps track of employees that cease to be part of the scheme. The information required to be filled out on this form includes but is not limited to:
- Account Number
- Employee name
- Employee Father/Husband name
- Date of leaving the service
- Reason for leaving service.
Form 12 A
Form 12 A is a report that contains the details of the respective employee’s payment in a particular month. The yearly PF return filing must be done by April 30 of each year. To do so, the employer may use Form 3A and Form 6A.
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PKC Consulting has been in the business since 1988. We are a team of outstanding professionals that can handle all aspects of your finance operations, including strategic advice, cash flow optimization, investor relations, fundraising, financial process improvement, accounting, and tax compliance. Instead of focusing on obtaining quick victories for our teams, we gauge success by helping clients build long-term capacities to overcome obstacles and constantly improve. We are:-
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Frequently Asked Questions
After leaving a company, you cannot immediately request to have your EPF account amount withdrawn. However, if the applicant chooses to take money out of the PF account before the full five years have passed, you will be responsible for paying tax on the sum.
The member must have the PF transferred into the most recent EPF account if they have more than one EPF member ID or if their EPF funds have not been transferred to the most recent EPF account.
While some EPFO officers resolve the claim soon, some require a longer time. The time it takes for the PF money to arrive in a bank account once an employee applies for EPF is 5 to 30 days, depending upon how quickly the EPFO officer approves the claim.
Yes, only if the transfer is from one exempt establishment to another is it possible to transfer the PF offline. Otherwise, it can be done online.
The contribution is usually 12% of the basic salary of the employee, and it is withheld from their monthly payment and transferred to their EPF account.
