Employee Provident Fund

Employees Provident Fund is a scheme for the Indian Employees that is controlled by the Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act,1952. The Employee Provident Fund is regulated under the umbrella of Employees Provident Fund Organization popularly known as EPFO.

All establishments that have employed 20 or more than 20 employees can apply for PF registration in India. In some cases subject to the circumstances and the exemption establishments employing less than 20 are still eligible for PF registration. The Employee gets an amount that includes the self and employer’s contribution with interest on retirement or resignation.

Who is eligible to get EPF registration?

For Employer

PF Registration is mandatory for all the establishments-

• That has engaged 20 or more than 20 people.
• For any other establishment that has less than 20 people then the central government has to specify the same in the notification on the behalf.

For Employee

Employees drawing less than Rs.15000 per month need to mandatorily become members of the EPF. According to the guidelines, employees whose basic pay is more than Rs. 15000 a month at the time of joining are not required to make any PF contributions.

But an employee who is drawing pay of more than Rs.15,000 can still be a member and make contributions with the employer and the Assistant PF commissioner.

The amount for the contribution of PF

The employer has to obtain the PF registration within 1 month of attaining the strength, in case of failure to abide by applicable penalties. A registered establishment continues under the purview of the Act even in case the No of employees falls below the required limit.

The employer has to contribute 12% of the (Basic Salary + Dearness Allowance + Retaining Allowance). An equal amount of contribution is to be made by the employee. If the establishment has engaged less than 20 employees the EPFO rules state that the contribution rate for both the employees and the employer is limited to 10 %. In most cases the employees who are employed in the private sector it is on the basic salary on which the whole contribution is calculated.

The breakup of the PF contribution

• The 12 % contribution is divided into the following subdivision:
• 3.67% of the contribution towards the Employees Provident Fund
• 1.1% of the contribution towards the EPF administration Charges
• 0.5% of the contribution towards the employee's deposit linked insurance
• 0.01% contribution towards the EDLI administration charges
• 8.33% towards the Employees Pension Scheme.

What is the Employees Pension Scheme?

8.33% of the employer’s contribution is routed towards the Employees Pension Scheme that is calculated at Rs.15,000. The amount routed to the Employee Pension Scheme would be Rs.1250 in case the basic pay of the person is Rs.15,000. If the Basic Pay is less than Rs.15,000 then 8.33% of the amount will be routed and the balance will be retained in the EPF scheme. On superannuation, the employee would receive the full share with the employer's share reserved for credit in the EPF account.

Documents Required for Registration

The employer has to attach the following documents with the registration form:

• PAN of the Partner, Proprietor, or the Director
• Address proof (can be any utility bill but should not be older than 2 months)
• Aadhar card of Proprietor, Partner, or Director.
• Canceled Cheque Or Bank Statement
• Digital Signature of the Proprietor/ Partner or Director.
• Hired/ Rented or Leased Agreement If there is any.

EPF charges

• The contribution is rounded to the nearest rupee for each of the employees for the employee share, the contribution towards pension, and the EDLI contribution.
• The employer share is the difference between the employee Share and the pension contribution.
• The monthly payment amount towards the EPF administrative charges is rounded to the nearest rupee and a minimum of Rs.500 is payable.
• In case the establishment has no member in the month the minimum administrative charges applicable will be Rs.75.
• The monthly payment amount under the EDLI administrative charges is rounded to the nearest rupee and a minimum of Rs.200 is payable.
• In case the establishment has no member in the month, the payable minimum administrative charge is Rs.25
• Suppose the establishment is exempted from the PF scheme inspection charges of 0.18% ( Minimum Rs 5 ) is payable in place of the admin charges
• In case the establishment is exempted under the EDLI scheme. The inspection charges of minimum Rs.1 @0.005% are payable in place of the administrative charges.

Due date

Before paying the Salary to the employees the employer must deduct the employee's contribution from his wages. Later, the employee portion and the employer’s share will be payable to the EPFO within 15 days of the close of every month.

The EPF stands tall in terms of returns from a debt instrument. The money is sovereign backed and the interest earned is tax-free. The PF enjoys EEE ( exempt, exempt, exempt) status as contributions are deductible from the income. Hardly any debt instruments provide such high returns with safety and assurance. Hence, it is better to transfer the PF account at the time of switching jobs and also avoid the temptation to withdraw the money.