On 13-10-2025, the Union Minister for Labour & Employment and Youth Affairs & Sports, Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya chaired the 238th meeting of the Central Board of Trustees (‘CBT’), Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (‘EPFO’). The meeting marked a significant milestone in EPFO’s journey toward simplification and liberalization, with a series of transformative decisions focused on enhancing member convenience, streamlining litigation processes, and accelerating digital transformation across the organization.
Key Highlights:
Simplification and liberalization of EPF:
-
One of the major decisions taken by the Board was the approval of simplified and liberalized provisions for EPF partial withdrawals.
-
A total of 13 complex rules were consolidated into three broad categories:
-
Essential Needs (illness, education, marriage),
-
Housing Needs,
-
Special Circumstances.
-
-
Members can now withdraw up to 100% of their eligible PF balance, including both employee and employer contributions.
-
The number of permissible withdrawals has been increased:
-
For education – 10 times
-
For marriage – 5 times.
-
-
The minimum service requirement is now uniformly set to 12 months for all types of withdrawals.
-
Under Special Circumstances, members are no longer required to specify reasons, reducing claim rejections.
-
A provision has also been introduced to maintain 25% of contributions as a minimum balance, to ensure continued interest accrual at 8.25% per annum.
-
These changes pave the way for 100% auto-settlement of claims with zero documentation, significantly improving ease of access.
-
Additionally, the premature final settlement window has been extended from 2 to 12 months, and the final pension withdrawal window from 2 to 36 months, offering greater flexibility to members.
Vishwas Scheme:
-
To address the growing burden of litigation over penal damages, the Board launched the ‘Vishwas Scheme’, a rationalized penalty framework.
-
As of May 2025, ₹2,406 crore in penal damages were pending across over 6,000 legal cases, with 21,000 potential cases in EPFO’s e-proceedings portal.
-
Previously, penal damage rates ranged from 5% to 37% annually depending on the period of default.
-
The new scheme introduces graded rates:
-
0.25% per month for defaults up to two months,
-
0.50% per month for defaults up to four months,
-
1% per month thereafter.
-
-
The scheme will operate for 6 months, extendable by an additional 6 months, and covers pending litigation under Section 14-B (Employees’ Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952), finalized but unpaid orders, and pre-adjudication cases.
-
All pending cases will be abated upon compliance, reducing legal costs and promoting timely remittances.
-
This initiative is expected to benefit both employers and members by lowering legal costs, simplifying compliance, and promoting trust in the EPF system.
EPFO—IPPB partnership:
-
The Board approved a partnership with India Post Payments Bank (‘IPPB’) to deliver Digital Life Certificate (‘DLC’) services to Employees’ Pension Scheme, 1995 pensioners at their doorstep.
-
Each certificate will cost ₹50, fully borne by EPFO.
-
This service will leverage IPPB’s vast postal network, especially benefiting pensioners in rural and remote areas.
-
It ensures timely pension continuity, faster family pension initiation, and improved accuracy under the Centralised Pension Payment System (‘CPPS’).
EPFO digital transformation framework:
-
The Board approved a comprehensive digital overhaul under the EPFO 3.0 initiative to modernize service delivery across the organization.
-
This transformation is built on a hybrid system that combines a Core Banking Solution with advanced cloud-native, API-first microservices.
-
It covers essential operational areas such as account management, enterprise resource planning (ERP), compliance tracking, and a unified platform for member interaction. The rollout will take place in phases, introducing automated claim processing, instant withdrawals, multilingual self-service options, and seamless integration with payroll systems.
-
These upgrades reaffirm EPFO’s commitment to delivering fast, transparent, and technology-driven services to over 30 crore members nationwide.
Four Portfolio Managers:
To ensure prudent management of EPFO’s debt portfolio, the Board approved the appointment of four Fund Managers for a 5-year term, following recommendations from the Selection and Investment Committees. This move marks a significant step toward diversification and enhanced returns for members.
Inaugurations during the meeting:
Union Minister Mandaviya inaugurated several key digital modules under the Centralised IT Enabled System project:
-
The re-engineered Return Filing Module streamlines employer compliance through a simplified four-step Electronic Challan-cum-Return (ECR) workflow with real-time validations.
-
The re-engineered User Management Module strengthens system security and enables the creation of new EPFO offices, enhancing service delivery.
-
The upgraded e-Office platform improves workflow automation and document tracking, allowing faster processing of member service requests.
-
The implementation of SPARROW (‘Smart Performance Appraisal Report Recording Online Window)’ introduces a paperless and transparent system for managing Annual Performance Appraisal Reports (‘APARs’) of EPFO staff.