Provident Fund: For what purpose can you withdraw PF money, know what is the whole process?

Employees Provident Fund Organization (EPFO) is a scheme to improve the economic future of private sector employees. In this retirement plan, both the company and the employee contribute an equal amount to the PF (Provident Fund). At the same time, it gives annual interest on the deposited amount.

Since this amount is for retirement, it can be withdrawn only after retirement. But, sometimes PF money is needed in emergencies. There are some rules for withdrawing money from PF, only by following which you can withdraw money from your account. Let us know about those rules in detail.

When can you withdraw PF money?
Employees Provident Fund Organization allows the withdrawal of money from a PF account before retirement only under certain circumstances. Such as medical emergencies, marriage, or buying land. If someone loses his job, he can withdraw the entire PF amount after two months.

There is a rule to withdraw money from PF even for the marriage of a particular family member or for the education of children. However, for this, you must have been working for at least seven years. After this, you can withdraw up to 50 percent of your contribution.

How many times can I withdraw money?
You can withdraw money from a PF account many times before retirement. But, every time you will have to give the reason. Money cannot be withdrawn more than three times for marriage. The same is the condition for studies after the 10th.

Money can be withdrawn only once to buy a house or land. However, there is no such restriction in a medical emergency. For this, you can withdraw money any number of times before retirement.

How much tax is charged on the withdrawal of funds?
If you withdraw EPF before 5 years of continuous service, TDS will be deducted at the rate of 10 percent. If you do not provide a PAN card while withdrawing the amount, then the TDS rate will be 30 percent. But, no tax has to be paid after 5 years of continuous service. Even if an employee transfers his EPF amount to the National Pension Scheme, no tax is levied.

How to withdraw PF money online?
To withdraw money from EPF online, your UAN should be active and linked to KYC (Aadhaar, PAN, and bank account). Then you have to follow the steps given below.

-Log in to the UAN Member Portal with your UAN and password.

-Click on the ‘Online Services’ tab from the top menu bar. Select ‘Claim (Form-31, 19 & 10C)’ from the drop-down menu.

-Your details will appear on the screen. Enter the last 4 digits of your bank account and click on ‘Verify’.

-Click on ‘Yes’ to sign the Undertaking Certificate and proceed.

-Click on the ‘Proceed for Online Claim’ option.

-Select ‘PF Advance (Form 31)’ to withdraw your funds online.

-A new section of the form will open. In this you will have to select ‘Purpose for which advance is required’, the required amount, and the address of the employee. The work for which employees cannot withdraw money will be mentioned in red color.

-Tick verification and submit your application

-Depending on the work for which you have filled the form, you may have to submit scanned documents.

-Money will be withdrawn from your EPF account only when your company accepts your withdrawal request.

Then the amount will be deposited in your bank account mentioned in the withdrawal form.

An SMS will come to your phone number registered with EPFO. After the claim is processed, the amount will be transferred to your bank account. EPFO has not set any deadline for this, but usually, the money is deposited within 15-20 days.

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