How to Withdraw PF Amount: A Step-by-Step Guide

Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) is a popular government-backed investment option that builds a safety net for working individuals in India. Popularly referred to as the PF, it plays a key role in accumulating a retirement corpus. 

Every month, employees of an eligible organisation must contribute 12% of their basic salary towards the provident fund. Also, the employer contributes an equal share monthly, and together these contributions attract an annual interest rate of 8.25% year after year.

While the EPF funds are meant for retirement, you may still access a part of this investment if some emergency situation arrives, depending on the rules. This blog is all about how to withdraw PF amount prematurely under different circumstances. To know in detail, keep reading. 

How to Withdraw PF Amount Online?

In this section, individuals can learn how to claim their PF amount online and enjoy the convenience right away. 

However, employees must make sure that their phone number linked to the active Universal Account Number (UAN) is operational. Also, for a valid withdrawal request, the applicant should link their bank account through the IFSC code and complete the KYC verification procedure. 

To carry out the PF withdrawal online process, keep in mind that there are two ways to achieve this task. Here’s a breakdown of the same:

1. Submission of a Virtual Application Form
2. PF Withdrawal Through App

Method 1: Submission of an Online Application

The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has recently allowed its beneficiaries to opt for online withdrawals, making the entire process hassle-free. Nonetheless, if you are interested in prematurely redeeming your investments via the EPF portal, you must meet the following conditions.

• Your UAN must be activated and the contact number provided during UAN activation should be in the right working condition.
• Next, the UAN has to be linked with the member’s KYC, including their Aadhaar number, PAN and IFSC code of any particular bank. 

If the above conditions are met, you must execute the steps mentioned here to withdraw your PF amount.

Step 1: Visit the official website of the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation.

Step 2: Enter the UAN and password to complete the login process. You have to fill out a CAPTCHA before you can access your account. 

Step 3: Navigate to the ‘Manage’ tab to see the different options.

Step 4: Click on ‘KYC’ to cross-verify whether the personal details fetched through the KYC documents are accurate.

Step 5: Go to the ‘Online Services’ section.

Step 6: Choose ‘Claim (Form 31, 19 & 10C)’.

Step 7: Verify the data shown on the current window. Here you can see KYC information plus additional service details.

Step 8: Now enter the last 4 digits of your registered bank account. Then to proceed to the next click on ‘Verify’.

Step 9: Click on ‘Yes’ to issue a certificate of undertaking that will state that the fund will be transferred to the mentioned account. 

Step 10: Click on ‘Proceed for Online Claim’.

Step 11: Now you get three options: Full EPF Settlement, EPF Part Withdrawal and Pension Withdrawal under the ‘I Want to Apply For’ head. Select the appropriate option. 

Step 12: Select a reason for your withdrawal against the ‘Purpose for which advance is required’ field.

Step 13: Mention the amount you wish to withdraw.

Step 14: Provide the required scanned documents. Next, your employer must validate the request so that you can proceed further.

Step 15: The EPF amount should be transferred to your bank account in not more than 15-20 days from the application date.

Method 2: PF Withdrawal Through App

While gathering information about how to withdraw PF amount online, you must also be aware of the second option. To make PF account management totally hassle-free via smartphones, the new Government has brought the Unified Mobile or UMANG app. 

Here are the steps to claim your PF amount via the UMANG app:

Step 1: Log in to the UMANG app using the valid password and UAN. 

Step 2: Search ‘EPFO’.

Step 3: Navigate to the ‘Employee Centric’ tab. 

Step 4: Select the ‘Raise Claim’ option.

Step 5: Enter your UAN. 

Step 6: Verify the OTP sent to the registered phone number.

Step 7: Specify the withdrawal category and submit your application.

Step 8: You will get an acknowledgement number against your request.

Step 9: You may track your application using the acknowledgement number. Usually, the amount gets credited within 15-20 days. 

EPF withdrawals via UMANG are not the only advantage. Additionally, you can access many other helpful services through this app. Specifically, you can request surplus funds to aid particular needs which are acknowledged by the EPFO. 

How to Execute PF Withdrawal Without UAN?

Suppose someone has lost their UAN and cannot contact their previous employer, but they urgently need to access their EPF funds due to an emergency. In such cases, the concerned person can follow these steps:

Step 1: First, the person must download and fill out the PF withdrawal form. Either one can opt for a Non-Aadhaar Composite Claim Form or an Aadhaar-linked Composite Claim Form. 

Step 2: Before submitting, the applicant must ensure that all the information is updated and accurate. 

Step 3: Once the withdrawal form is duly filled, now it needs to be submitted to the Regional Provident Fund Office. It is easy to locate the jurisdiction of one’s PF office by searching using one’s alphanumeric EPF account number. Salary slips usually have this number. 

Step 4: A bank manager, gazetted officer or magistrate is required to attest your identity for a successful withdrawal. This is a crucial attestation that verifies your identity.

Step 5: After submitting the application, you have to wait until the amount gets credited fully or partially to your registered bank account. 

Documents Required for PF Withdrawal

To take out accumulated funds from your PF account, you must produce the following documents:

• Bank account information of the subscriber (in this case your bank account details)
• Universal Account Number (UAN)
• Address proof documents like telephone or gas bills
• Identity proof documents like Aadhaar card
• Cancelled cheque of the beneficiary’s bank account along with his/her account number

EPF Withdrawal Eligibility Criteria

Whether you are looking to fully settle your EPF account or make a partial withdrawal, you need to meet certain criteria. The table given below mentions some valid conditions for withdrawals and also specifies the appropriate forms for such facilities. 

Final Word

As you can see, one can make premature withdrawals from the EPF account after meeting certain conditions. While EPF is an ideal scheme for securing your retirement, it may not be the best choice for short or mid-term financial goals. In such cases, you need an investment option that offers the same level of safety as EPF but also comes with the added advantage of flexible liquidity. This is exactly what fixed deposits bring to the table. 

You can consider opening a safe and reliable FD account with Stable Money. We are India’s leading RBI-backed digital platform offering partner banks and NBFCs that provide fixed deposit returns of up to 9.50% per year.

With FDs, you can generate a steady cash flow through flexible tenures and options for monthly or quarterly interest payouts. Moreover, they allow for premature withdrawals in emergencies without any penalty on your principal amount if you are investing via Stable Money.

So now that you know how to withdraw PF amount, you can proceed seamlessly and carefully weigh the available options to find the best investment opportunity to reach your financial goals.

Frequently Asked Questions