Now, EPF members can get money faster; here's when you can withdraw

'EPF is a long-term investment and ideally should not be touched until retirement,' says Arnav Pandya, a certified financial planner

A client of financial planner Arvind Rao quit her job last year to join a start-up, which did not offer employee provident fund benefit. A few months later she approached Rao to help her withdraw the provident fund and invest it in her retirement corpus. As she didn’t have a Universal Account Number (UAN), it’s been a few months since she’s been waiting to get her final settlement payout.

Rao’s client may finally get her money soon. On Tuesday, the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) changed the withdrawal norms that can help such individuals and also those who face a