New Delhi: There’s good news for members of the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO). According to sources, EPFO members will be able to withdraw their PF money through the UPI payment gateway from April 1, 2026, and the amount will be directly credited to the member’s bank account.
News agency PTI, citing sources, reported that the Ministry of Labour is working on a project where a fixed portion of the EPF will be frozen, and a larger portion will be available for withdrawal from the member’s bank account using UPI. They said that members will be able to see the eligible EPF balance available for transfer to their EPFO-linked bank account. Members will be able to use their UPI PIN for the transaction to ensure secure transfer of funds to their bank account.
Eight Crore Members to Benefit
Sources said that after the PF money is transferred to the bank account, members can use the money as they wish, such as making online payments or withdrawing money from a bank ATM using a debit card. Sources said that EPFO is working on resolving software issues to implement this system, which will benefit approximately eight crore members.
Currently, EPFO members have to apply for a withdrawal claim to withdraw their EPF money. This process can sometimes take two to three weeks, after which the money is credited to the member’s bank account. However, in the auto-settlement mode, the withdrawal claim application is settled within three days. The limit for this has now been increased from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 5 lakh. EPFO first introduced online auto-settlement of advance claims during the COVID-19 pandemic to provide immediate relief to members. Members are required to file a claim for this.
No More Need to File Claims
With the introduction of the UPI payment gateway facility, members will no longer need to file claims. This will save time and is also expected to reduce the burden on EPFO. Under the current system, EPFO settles more than 5 crore provident fund claims every year.
Sources said that EPFO cannot allow its members to withdraw money directly from their EPF accounts because the organization does not have a banking license. However, the government wants to improve EPFO’s services to be on par with those offered by banks.
In October 2025, the Central Board of Trustees (CBT) of EPFO approved simplifying the EPF partial withdrawal provisions.
