[REVISION HISTORY]

India EPF rules and 2026 scheme updates

17 recorded revisions of this situation.

What changed

2026-10-15 06:23 UTC → 2026-10-17 06:15 UTC · added ~~removed~~

In July 2026, Employees' Provident Fund (EPF) rules were clarified: withdrawals after five years of continuous service are tax-exempt, while earlier withdrawals trigger TDS only on amounts of ₹50,000 or more if a PAN is on file. EPF balances continue to earn interest after a job change until the member turns 58, or for three years after retirement at age 55 or older. On 8 August 2026, the Employees’ Provident Funds Scheme, 2026, was announced to replace the 1952 framework. This new scheme mandates a minimum withdrawal of INR 1,000 and requires that at least 25% of total contributions remain in the account. In August 2026, the EPFO clarified that an account becomes ‘inoperative’ when it stops earning interest; for those retiring at age 55 or older, this occurs three years after retirement. To improve management, a new ‘Service History’ feature was launched on the e-service portal, allowing members to track employer records and member IDs via their Universal Account Number (UAN). Additionally, the ‘Employees’ Enrolment Campaign, 2026’ was launched, running until 31 October 2026, to allow establishments to regularize records for eligible workers not covered between April 2009 and March 2026. This campaign offers administrative relief, such as waiving the employee’s share of contributions for active workers. On 17 September 2026, the government raised the mandatory wage ceiling for EPFO coverage from ₹15,000 to ₹25,000 per month. This ninth adjustment since 1952 ~~is expected to bring over 51 lakh additional employees into the social security framework, increasing the maximum monthly contribution at~~ expands coverage for the ~~standard 12% rate from ₹1,800 to ₹3,000.~~ EPF, Employees' Pension Scheme (EPS), and Employees' Deposit Linked Insurance (EDLI) schemes. The Ministry of Labour and Employment issued an advisory stating that employers cannot reduce employees' take-home pay to offset these costs. To ensure compliance, the Union Labour Secretary has directed all Central Government ministries, departments, and Central Public Sector Enterprises to enforce the new ceiling, including for contract and outsourced workers. Regarding withdrawals, the EPFO updated regulations on 9 September 2026 to allow members to withdraw up to 75 percent of their total EPF deposit after 12 months of membership. Under the ‘EPFO 3.0’ initiative, the organization plans to introduce UPI and UPI-enabled ATM-based withdrawals by late December 2026. Furthermore, the limit for automatic claim settlements for KYC-verified accounts is being increased from ₹1 lakh to ₹5 lakh to allow for faster processing without human intervention.

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