Provident Fund (PF) Withdrawal Rules 2019

The main objective behind the employees' provident fund (EPF) account is to cultivate savings habit among the salaried-class people. Last month, Labour Minister Santosh Gangwar said that the Labour Ministry would soon notify rate of interest of 8.65 per cent on Employees' Provident Fund (EPF) for 2018-19.

As per EPFO, there is a facility of premature withdrawal with which a definitive proportion from provident fund balance can be withdrawn before the completion of maturity.

However, specific provisions have been made to meet the urgent requirements of people under which a person is allowed for premature withdrawals from the EPF account.

Provident Fund (PF) Withdrawal Rules 2019

• Retirement: After reaching 54 years of age and within one year of retirement/superannuation (whichever is earlier), a person is authorised to withdraw up to 90 per cent of the PF balance.

• Unemployment: As per the latest EPF rules, a person is allowed to withdraw up to 75 per cent of the total EPF balance on being unemployed for one month after leaving a job. If the person remains unemployed for more than two months, the remaining 25 per cent of the EPF balance can be withdrawn.

• Education/ Marriage of children: In case of monetary requirement for marriages or post matriculation education of children, you are entitled to withdraw up to 50 per cent of the employee share with interest-only after completion of 7 years.

• Handicapped: In case of disabled people, the EPFO allows partial withdrawal from the EPF balance for buying equipment for the handicap. Here a person can withdraw six month's basic wages and dearness allowance (DA) or employee share with interest or cost of equipment, whichever is the least.

• Illness: A person can partially withdraw from the EPF balance for the treatment of disease in a few cases. For self-usage or the treatment of family members, EPFO enables a person to withdraw six month's basic wages and DA or employee share with interest, whichever is the least.

• Loan repayment: For the repayment of home loan EMIs, an individual can withdraw 36 month's basic wages and DA or total of employee and employer share with interest or total outstanding principal and interest, whichever is lesser, but he/she need to complete 10-years as a member of EPFO.

• Purchase of land/house: A person is allowed for premature partial withdrawal from the EPF account while purchasing land or house only after completion of five years as membership period. An individual is entitled to withdraw the total of employee and employer share with interest or total cost or 24 month's basic wages and DA (for purchase of site)/36 month's basic wages and DA (for purchase of house/flat/construction), whichever is least.

• House renovation: Interestingly, EPFO also has a provision of partial premature withdrawal for renewal in the house owned by member/spouse/jointly with a spouse. Under this, a person can withdraw 12 month's basic wages and DA or employee share with interest or cost, whichever is the least. This facility can be availed two times, first time, after five years of completion of the house and, for the second time, after ten years from withdrawing the balance for the first time.