PF Act

ECR stands for Electronic Challan Cum Return. Employers must upload this monthly return through a unified portal. The return must have the basic details of employees, their wages and contributions for new and existing members. The challan generation will be followed by the approval of uploaded ECR. Hereafter, the employer has to remit the dues in the particular designated branch of SBI.

The month of ECR relieves the employers from manual return filing both annually and monthly. There is no need of filing forms 5/10/12A, 3A, and 6A.

ECR upload with remitted challans in EPFO application will result in updating the member balances monthly.

Smart Tip: Smart HRs automate the ECR challan sheet generation with ConfluxHR. You can fetch the ECR file right away when you upload the ECR Challan sheet to the EPFO unified portal.

Universal account Number is abbreviated as UAN. It acts as an umbrella for the multiple numbers generated by different establishments for an individual. It helps in linking multiple numbers for a single individual. This helps the members to view all the details linked to the account.

Initially, the member has to activate the UAN on the member portal where you need the credenntals for the activation.

UAN serves the following purposes:

• Download updated member’s password anytime
• Download UAN Card
• List all member IDs to UAN
• Make transfer claims
• Update KYC

It is for the employers to show the particulars of all the branches and department owners or other people who have the control over the establishment’s internal and external affairs. It is a mandatory return online.

Every employee is entitled to PF benefits must submit particulars for himself and the nominee and present it to the employer at the earliest possible.

Nomination clauses for the family:

• A male member can keep his wife, children, dependent parents, and his deceased son’s widow & children.
• A female member can keep her husband, children, dependent parents, husband’s dependent parents and her deceased son’s widow and children.
• Wife for a male member’s pension fund
• Husband for a female member’s pension fund
• Children (legally adopted ones) for pension fund.

Employee must claim a transfer from old PF balance to the new account. A member needs to do this when he or she changes the establishment and joins to whole another EPF scheme.

One registered member can only view the details of one account from one establishment. Hence, one must transfer the details and funds of the old account to the new account.

EPFO has brough a new system for online submission of transfer claims with an objective to make the transfer claims way more clear, easy and transparent. Hence, a member has the option to claim it through the present employers or the previous one.

For the transfer claim, employee fills in the Form 13 and the employers verifies the details, approves it and submits the requests through Employer Claims.

This form must be submitted by the member in case of withdrawal from the Provident fund dues upon service, retirement, or termination. In the case of submission of application, for settlement, it has to be submitted after a couple of months of leaving service. However, the act would only be applicable if the member continues to remain unemployed.

If an event causes the death of a member, the nominee or the family members can claim for the provident fund dues by submitting form 20.

For the final settle, the form must be used by-

• The nominee or the legal heir of nominee
• Lunatic member or guardian

Form 10 D must be submitted in two copies for the withdrawal of pension every month.