Steps and Rules for Withdrawing PF (Provident Fund)

Employees Provident Fund (EPF) is a lifetime investment that comes in useful at critical life stages. It is made up of 12% of an employee's monthly basic pay, which is deposited with the Employees Provident Fund Organization (EPFO). The employer also contributes to this fund, which grows into a sizable corpus over time.
Employees can readily withdraw their PF online. This is possible through EPFO's member e-SEW site.

When the employees retire, they can withdraw their entire PF funds. They can, however, take a portion of their savings before retirement provided they fulfill specific conditions.

Important Considerations When Withdrawing Provident Funds

To deposit money into a PF account, one must link their Aadhar card to their universal account number (UAN). This may be done online on the EPFO website or using the UMANG mobile app.

Before withdrawing PF, it also needs to complete the "Know Your Customer" or KYC requirement.

PAN Card is required for KYC, and EPFO marks the PF account as "confirmed" once the process is completed.

Important Procedures for Withdrawing Provident Funds

Go to https://unifiedportal-mem.epfindia.gov.in/memberinterface/ to access the UAN portal.

Log in using your UAN and password, and then input the captcha to verify your identity.

Now, navigate to the 'Online Services' tab and pick 'Claim (Form-31, 19 & 10C)' from the drop-down menu.

Enter your bank account number and click 'Verify' on the following screen.

Now, click 'Yes' to continue.

Then, select 'Proceed for Online Claim'.

Select the claim you want to apply for under the 'I Want To Apply For' tab in the claim form.

To withdraw your funds, choose 'PF Advance (Form 31).' Then provide the purpose of the advance, the amount necessary, and the employee's address.

Now, click on the certificate to submit your application.

You may be required to submit scanned documents for the reason for which you filled out the form.

You will get money in your bank account if your employer accepts the withdrawal request. It normally takes 15-20 days for the money to be credited to the bank account.