EPFO to allot permanent a/c number by Oct 2014

The universal account number will facilitate subscribers in avoiding filing of PF transfer claims on changing jobs

Retirement fund body EPFO will provide permanent or universal account numbers (UAN) on the pattern of core banking services to its over 50 million active subscribers by October 15 this year.

Under core banking services, a customer can avail the bank services in any of its branch through his allotted unique account number.

The UAN will facilitate subscribers in avoiding filing of PF transfer claims on changing jobs.

"UAN will be allotted to the present active members by October 15, 2014 and thereafter the coverage of other members will be taken up," the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation's (EPFO) action plan for this fiscal stated.

After getting UAN, a subscriber would not be issued new PF account number on joining new firm. It is expected to provide great relief to those workers in organised sector who frequently change jobs, particularly, in construction sector.

The UAN would be one account number which would be allotted to a subscriber for various schemes run by the EPFO for his entire service period with different employers.

The EPFO has engaged C-DAC for preparing a roadmap for implementing the UAN programme for its subscribers. The Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) is the premier research and development organisation under the Ministry of Communications & Information Technology for carrying out R&D in IT, Electronics and associated areas.

According to EPFO officials, the UAN will help reduce the workload of the EPFO to a great extent as it receives over 1.2 million claims annually for transfer of PF account on changing of jobs by its subscribers.

EPFO has settled over 12.1 million PF claims including PF withdrawal and transfer this fiscal including around 1.2 million PF transfer claims.

The official said that a large number of subscribers prefers to close their PF and pension account with EPFO and seek withdrawal of their funds rather than applying for transfer of PF account on changing jobs as it has been a time consuming process.

However, the EPFO had started the facility of filing online transfer of PF account claims in October last year to make the transaction faster.