Rules to Withdraw EPF

Almost all salaried people contribute a certain percentage of their salary

towards their Employee Provident Fund (EPF) account every month. While most
of us know that EPF is an effective tool that helps generate a corpus for life
post retirement, many of us are unaware that you can make a withdrawal from
your EPF account for urgent cash requirements.
However, an EPF account cannot be treated like any other saving bank account
implying that there are certain specified criteria under which withdrawal is
permitted from an EPF account. An individual needs to furnish all relevant
documents and satisfy the necessary requirements in order to be eligible for
premature withdrawal of EPF.
Here are the categories and other details with respect to premature withdrawal
from EPF.

Reason

Education
or
marriage

Reasons for Premature EPF Withdrawal

Requirement
Amount
No. of times
allowed to
permitted
be
withdrawn
1. The employee should
50% of the
Permitted
have completed at least total corpus
thrice only
7 years of employment or amount till
during a
service.
date
persons total
2. Withdrawal allowed for
service
self, sibling(s) or
tenure
childrens marriage.
3. Withdrawal permitted for
self or childrens
education only.
4. Proof of the education or
wedding required to be
submitted, such as a
valid copy or a bonafide
certificate of the payable
fees or the wedding
invitation
5. In case of education, the
individual needs to apply in
Form 31 through his/her
employer.

Medical
treatment

Purchase
of a plot

Constructi
on or
purchase
of a flat,
house or
plot

1. Withdrawal permitted for

medical treatment of self,
spouse, parents and
children.
2. There is no restriction
regarding the number of
years of service.
3. The proof of
hospitalization for a
month or more along
with an approved leave
certificate from the
employer for the
corresponding period
needs to be produced.
4. The member needs to
obtain and deposit a
certificate from the
employer or ESI stating
that ESI facility is not
accessible or available to
him/her.
5. A certified proof or
document of the disease
should be submitted in
Form 31 while applying for
withdrawal.
1. Should have completed
at least 5 years of
service.
2. The plot or property
should be registered in
the persons or his/her
spouses name or should
be owned jointly.
3. The plot should not be
entangled in any legal
issues and the agreement
registered under the Indian
Registration Act with the
Flat Promoter needs to be
submitted along with the
application form.
1. Should have completed
at least 5 years of
service.
2. The house should be
registered in the persons
or his/her spouses name
or should be owned jointly.

6 times the
monthly
salary of an
individual or
the total
corpus
amount,
whichever is
lesser

Anytime

Up to 24
times the
salary of the
individual

Once during
entire service
tenure

36 times the
monthly
salary of the
individual

Once during
entire service
tenure

Repayment
of Home
Loan

1. Should have completed

at least 10 years of
employment.
2. The house should be
registered in the persons
or his/her spouses name
or should be owned jointly.
Alteration
1. Should have completed
or
at least 5 years of
Renovation
service.
of house
2. The house should be
registered in the persons
or his/her spouses name
or should be owned jointly.
Pre1. The individual must be at
retirement
least 54 years old.

36 times the
monthly
salary of the
individual

Once during
entire service
tenure

Up to 12
times the
individuals
monthly
salary

Once during
entire service
tenure

90% of the
total corpus
amount

Once during
entire service
tenure

Withdrawal from EPF after leaving an Organization

On switching jobs, an employee can apply for transfer of money from the EPF
account through a form which is filled by the employee and attested by the
designated authority at the employer.
Withdrawal of money from the account in between two jobs is illegal and is
permissible only under the following two circumstances:
When a member is in between two jobs
If the member has been unable to find another job for over two months
Grievance related to withdrawal from EPF
There is a mechanism to address grievances of EPF members which comes
under the Consumer Protection Act. To report a grievance, a member needs to:
Log on to the website www.epfigms.gov.in
Click Register Grievance
Enter the details and information in the specified field.
All grievances related to the following subjects can be addressed to the
grievance cell:

 Withdrawal or final settlement of EPF

Scheme certificate
Transfer of accumulated PF amount
Issuance of PF balance or slip
Return or misplacement of cheque
Payment of insurance benefit
EPF is the corpus that helps build financial stability post retirement. It is,
therefore, advisable to leave the amount undisturbed during employment
tenure unless the circumstances are unavoidable