EPFO Establishment Login Process: Registration, Login & More

EPFO or Employees Provident Fund Organisation is a scheme under the Employees Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Act of 1952. Employees Provident Fund Organisation regulates the scheme. This is the world’s largest social security organisation in terms of the number of members and also the sheer volume of financial transactions undertaken. It came into existence with the Employees’ Provident Fund Declaration Ordinance in 1951. 

The basic objective is to provide retirement savings to employees working in factories and other establishments. Organisations with more than 20 employees must contribute to the EPFO. Organisations with less than 20 employees can also contribute to the EPF voluntarily. The corpus in this fund is made up of employer and employee contributions of 12% each annually if the number of employees is greater than 20 members. If the number of employees is less than 20, in such a case, the employer’s contribution can be less than 10%.

Key Takeaways

• EPFO aims to provide social security in the retirement years for the workforce of the country.
• It is the world’s largest social security organisation
• It seeks to provide retirement savings and ensures retirement planning for the employees.
• The accretions in the Provident Fund along with the interest credited on it are made available to the employees of various establishments upon retirement or leaving the job as a lump sum plus the accrued interest thereon.
• Partial early withdrawal of Provident Fund is also permitted for marriage, home loan repayment, house construction, medical treatment, house alterations and lockout in the factory.

EPFO Establishment Login 

The EPFO unified, digitalised portal permits both the employer and the employee to log in and check out their account status and account balances.

The EPF Scheme covers three types of schemes:-

1. The Employees Provident Fund Scheme of 1952
2. The Employees’ Pension Scheme of 1995
3. The Employees Deposit Insurance-Linked Scheme of 1976.

The above three schemes are administered by a board consisting of a Central Board of Trustees, representatives from the Central Government and representatives from the employers and employees groups.

Registration on the EPFO site.

To access the EPFO site, the first step is to register. This applies to both employees and employers. The website address is as below:-

https://unifiedportal-emp.epfindia.gov.in/epfo/

1. Go to the above member portal and press the “Activate your UAN” button.
2. Enter the various details on the site such as the UAN number, date of birth, mobile number, Aadhaar number, Name and captcha code
3. Once the correct details have been updated, a one-time password will be sent to your mobile number. Enter the OTP on the site and your UAN is activated.
4. For Employers, under the services section, there is an option for online registration of establishments. Read the instruction manual and go through the various steps to register your employees and your establishment.

Employers’ EPFO Establishment Registration

For the employer’s EPFO registration process the following details must be provided:

1)      Establishment details:

• These include the name of the establishment, Date of incorporation, Pan and type of establishment.
• In case of a factory, the following additional details must be provided; factory licence number, Date of Licence and place of issue of licence.
• If an MSME, the following details are to be provided: MSME registration details
• If a Start-up, then start-up registration details should also be provided  

2)      The details of the main contact person for SPFO should also be given. This may be a manager in your establishment. Details provided should include name, date of birth, gender, Pan, designation, address and joining date.

 3)      Identifying details like the details of the licence of the establishment should also be provided.

 4)      Employment Details include: employee strength, gender of the employees, type of activities, wages above the limit and the total wages.

 5)      Branch details such as name/premises of the establishment, LIN (labour Identification number) and address.

 6)      Activities: Under this sub-head, details provided should include National Industrial Classification, the nature of business and activities should be selected from the drop down lists available on the site.

Employers’ EPFO Establishment Registration – The actual process

1)      Visit the EPFO website and select the “Establishment Registration” option. 

2)      This will open the United Shram Suvidha Portal sign up page. Select the sign up button.

3)      As the employer, you have to enter the name , mobile number, email address and the verification code and click sign up to create the account.

4)      After creating the Login, the employer has to login to the United Shram Suvidha Portal and select the button “Registration for EPFO- ESIC”. This option is placed on the left hand side of the screen. After this, select the “Apply for New registration” button on the right hand side of the screen.

5)      Two options will appear before this, the Employees State Insurance Act, 1948 and Employees Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 1952. Select the second option.

6)      Click the submit form and you will see the Registration Form for EPF open. Here as employer, you will enter Establishment details, e-contacts, contact persons, contact persons, identifiers, Branch/Division and Activities. 

7)      After filling in all the above details, you will have to upload your digital signature and attach it to the form. This is to complete the formalities of the Establishment registration of the EPFO. After all the above formalities are completed, as the employer, you will receive a message from the United Shram Suvidha Portal that you have completed all the formalities connected with the online registration of the Establishment in EPFO. 

Online registration of  establishment in EPFO

The series of images below show various screens that will be available when you as an employer go through the formalities of online registration of Establishment in EPFO.

Documents for Establishment registration of EPFO:

1. Identify proof of the Director/Owner/Proprietor like Pan Card
2. Address Proof like Electricity /water/telephone bill not older than 3 months
3. Aadhaar card of the Director/Owner/Proprietor
4. Shop/Establishment certificate/GST certificate /Government-issued licence certificate
5. Digital signature of Director/Owner/Proprietor
6. Bank statement or Cancelled cheque
7. Lease agreement entered into for hired premises.
8. A licence issued by the Licensing Authority

EPFO Establishment Login

There are separate EPFO Establishment login options for employees and employers.

For Employees EPFO Establishment Login

1. Go to the EPFO portal. 
2. Select the Services option and click on “For employees”.
3. Directly go to the member/UAN online services section. You can also go to the EPFO member portal or the E-sewa portal.
4. If you have an already activated UAN number login using the same. Otherwise activate your UAN number using the above-outlined steps.
5. Once you are on the site, you can check various details like Provident Fund balance, and the status of claims/partial withdrawals of PF in the preceding years.

For Employers Establishment EPFO Login

1. Go to the EPFO portal and select the “ For Employers option”
2. Select Online “ECR/Challan submission/OTCP” under the services. You can also directly access EPFO Unified access for Employers. Make sure you select the Employers login.
3. After that, you can log in using your username after you have successfully established your establishment.

Word to remember: Retirement Planning 

Contributing to EPF facilitates retirement planning for factory workers and other employees who would not otherwise plan financial savings for their retirement.

It provides an added prerequisite in their total emoluments package through the employer’s contribution of 12%. This is like a deferred portion of the salary.  

Did You Know?

That claim amounts under the EPF scheme can go up to 35 times the employees’ monthly salary in the last 12 months up to a maximum of Rs. 7 Lakhs.

Benefits of EPF schemes

For Employees: 

Tax benefits: EPFO contributions are deductible under Section 80(c ) and as an employee, you can earn interest on your contributions annually at a rate declared by the government. For the Financial year 2022, the interest rate has been fixed at 8.1% p.a.

Insurance Benefits: Under the provisions of the Employee Deposit Insurance-linked Scheme, the employee receives insurance coverage and receives the benefit of insurance coverage in the case of an unforeseen adverse event. The lump-sum amount payable is subject to a minimum of Rs 2.45 lakhs and a maximum benefit of Rs. 6 Lakhs.

Lifetime pension: As an employee, if you contribute 10 years to the EPF schemes, you are eligible for a lifetime pension.

Premature withdrawal facility: the EPFO schemes also allow the benefit of partial withdrawal for pressing financial needs like medical treatment, house construction or repair, marriage etc.

Average payment: Average payments could be up to 20 times the payment of deposits/wages into the fund. As the age ceiling increases to Rs. 15,000, the benefits paid will also proportionally increase.

Conclusion:

EPFO schemes are important from both the employer’s and employees’ perspectives due to the benefits they derive from the scheme. The employer’s contribution to the EPF reduces his requirement to pay gratuity to the employees. The employees receive various benefits enumerated above. In addition, it is their step towards retirement planning and creating a steady stream of earnings during their retirement years. The employer earns the loyalty of his employees through the creation of this welfare and social security measure. The importance of EPF schemes cannot be understated.

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