Withdrawing PF money due to covid & How to Apply? Here are the Rules you need to know

Employees can now avail of advance based on their salary due to Covid related treatment. As more people become infected with the highly contagious Coronavirus, Covid cases are increasingly increasing across India. People are concerned about the cost of Covid care at this time.

But EPF members need not worry as Government has made loan and withdrawal facilities available for all its EPF members. The advance is non-refundable, and the employee is not required to deposit the funds into their EPF account. During the COVID-19 lockdown, the withdrawal will provide liquidity to employees. The application for the COVID-19 claim is allowed even if any other advance is pending.

Under the provision, a member of the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) can withdraw up to 75% of his/her provident fund balance or three months’ basic wages plus dearness allowance, whichever is lower.

You can fill EPF Form 31 both online or offline by furnishing your personal details. You’ll have to enter all your details manually while applying offline. In contrast, all your details will get automatically filled up while applying online via your UAN account. But in mind that you need to meet certain eligibility criteria while filling application for withdrawals with EPF Form 31.

EPF Withdrawal Rules

• If an employee, his or her parent, partner, or children become ill as a result of Covid, the member has the option to withdraw funds.
• No lock-in period or minimum service period is applicable.
• Employee can withdraw six times the monthly salary or employee’s share with interest (whichever amount is lesser) from the EPF for medical treatment including that of Covid.

Documents Required For EPF Withdrawal for Covid Treatment

• Employee’s bank account details must match with his or her EPF account.
• Employee needs to have Universal Account Number (UAN).
• Father’s name and employee’s date of birth should match clearly with the id proof that borrower decides to submit.
• Kindly Note: EPF withdrawal fund won’t be transferred to bank account of the third party.

Taxing times

Funds withdrawn from the EPF for reasons other than covid before the completion of five years of continuous service attract tax.

“If the PF outstanding balance is withdrawn before five years of completion of service, then it is taxable under the income tax law. If the withdrawal amount is more than ₹50,000, then tax is deducted at source (TDS) at the rate of 10% under Section 192A,” said Kapil Rana, founder and chairman, HostBooks Ltd, a cloud-based platform for accounting and compliance purposes.

“In case of absence of PAN, TDS will be deducted at the rate of 30%. Also, in case the withdrawal amount is less than ₹30,000, TDS deduction is not required,” he added.

Apart from this, the taxpayer will have to show the receipt in the income tax return (ITR). The deduction claimed against the emplo-yee’s contribution under Section 80C has to be reversed.

How to apply for EPF withdrawal due to Covid Treatment online?

Step 1: Login https://unifiedportal-mem.epfindia.gov.in/memberinterface/

Step 2: Login using EPF credentials

Step 3: Click on online services and select claim (Form -31, 19,10C, and 10D).

Step 4: On the new page, enter the bank account number and verify

Step 5: Click on ‘proceed for online claim’.

Step 6: Select ‘PF advance (Form 31)’

Step 7: From the drop-down menu, choose ‘pandemic (Covid-19)’ as the reason for your withdrawal.

Step 8: Fill in the required amount, upload a scanned copy of the cheque, and include your address.

Step 9: Enter OTP

The claim request will be submitted after the OTP has been successfully submitted. When the EPFO accepts your argument and the information you provided matches, the money will be credited to your bank account.

(With Inputs From Agencies)