EPFO likely to credit interest for 2020-21 in accounts of over six crore subscribers; rate still at 8.5%

The Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) is expected to credit the interest declared for the financial year 2020-21 in the accounts of six crore subscribers around Diwali, according to media reports. The move is set to bring some festive cheer to the salaried class, as the EPFO had kept the interest rate unchanged on the provident fund deposits at 8.5 percent for 2020-21. The move has been awaiting the nod of the finance ministry for over six months. According to The Economic Times, a source from the labour ministry said that the finance ministry would soon give its seal of approval. EPF members can use the following methods to check  their provident fund balance: 1. Check PF balance through SMS service EPFO members with a Universal Account Number (UAN) can use their registered mobile number to “EPFOHO UAN ENG” to 7738299899. The user will get a message with the needed information about their EPF account, including their PF balance, once the SMS is sent. 2. Check PF balance through missed call EPFO members who have integrated their UAN with their KYC details can check their EPF balance by giving a missed call to the authorised phone number through their registered mobile number. The move to agree to the EPFO interest rate is said to have been taken on account of the COVID-19 pandemic, which had led to lower contributions by members to the fund as well as more withdrawals. The EPFO had also allowed its members to withdraw money from the fund as a non-refundable balance due to the pandemic. The central government had allowed a special provision last year for EPF members to withdraw three months of basic pay and dearness allowance (DA) or 75 percent of their PF, whichever was lower, as advance. In her Budget 2021 speech, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has declared that interest on employee contributions to the PF amounting to over Rs 2.5 lakh per annum would be taxed from 1 April to “rationalise tax exemption for the income earned by high-income employees”. The EPFO had estimated an income of about Rs 70,300 crore in the last fiscal, which included Rs 65,000 crore from debt as well as Rs 4,000 crore from the sale of its equity investments.