EPF Passbook — Download, Read & Tax Rules

Visit the Unified Member Portal at unifiedportal-mem.epfindia.gov.in and click Activate UAN. Enter your UAN (given by your employer), your Aadhaar-linked or registered mobile number and date of birth. An OTP is sent to your mobile; enter it to activate, then set a password. Once activated you can log in to the passbook portal.

On the Unified Member Portal login page click Forgot Password, enter your UAN and the captcha, and an OTP is sent to your Aadhaar-linked or registered mobile. Enter the OTP and set a new password. If your mobile number has changed, update it through your current employer or at the regional EPFO office with Aadhaar for a biometric update.

Entries appear only after your new employer files the ECR (Electronic Challan cum Return) and your KYC is verified on the Unified Portal, which usually takes 6 to 8 weeks after a job change or transfer. If it is still blank after 8 weeks, raise a grievance at epfigms.gov.in under Passbook Not Updated with your UAN, Member ID and employer details.

Each row is one month. Employee Share is your 12% of basic plus DA (all into EPF); Employer Share is 3.67% of basic plus DA into EPF; the employer's 8.33% goes to the separate Employees' Pension Scheme (EPS) and is not in the EPF balance; Interest is credited once a year; and Closing Balance is the cumulative EPF only. TRN is the transaction reference and Wage Month is the salary month the contribution relates to.

The employer's 8.33% Employees' Pension Scheme contribution funds your monthly pension and sits in a separate EPS account, so it is deliberately excluded from the EPF closing balance. After 10 years of qualifying service you receive an EPS pension at retirement; if you exit earlier you can claim the EPS amount as a lump sum via Form 10C.

VPF (Voluntary Provident Fund) is extra contribution you choose to make above the mandatory 12% of basic. It earns the same rate as EPF (8.25% for FY 2025-26) and appears within your Employee Share in the passbook. VPF also qualifies for the Section 80C deduction under the old regime, within the overall Rs 1.5 lakh limit.

The EPF interest rate for FY 2025-26 is 8.25% per annum, ratified by EPFO's Central Board of Trustees at its 239th meeting and approved by the government. It is unchanged for the third consecutive year. Interest is calculated on the monthly running balance and credited once at the end of the financial year, usually reflecting in the passbook a few months later.

EPF interest is not credited monthly. It accrues on the monthly running balance through the year and is credited in a lump sum after the financial year ends, once EPFO processes it centrally, typically reflecting in the passbook a few months into the next year. Interest also stops accruing on accounts with no contribution for 36 months, except for retired members or those who have reached 58.

EPF is normally exempt, but since FY 2021-22, interest on the employee's own contribution above Rs 2.5 lakh a year is taxable as income from other sources under Section 10(11)/10(12). The threshold rises to Rs 5 lakh where the employer does not contribute (as in a GPF). EPFO keeps separate taxable and non-taxable sub-accounts and deducts TDS under Section 194A on the taxable interest.

Only the interest on the amount above Rs 2.5 lakh becomes taxable, not your entire balance or the interest below the limit. Your total contribution below Rs 2.5 lakh continues to earn tax-free interest. High earners using VPF for the 8.25% rate should compare the after-tax return above the threshold with other investments.

The employer's contribution is tax-free up to a combined cap. If the total employer contribution to EPF, NPS and a superannuation fund together exceeds Rs 7.5 lakh in a year, the excess is taxed as a perquisite in your hands and shown in Form 16. Annual accretion (interest and gains) on that excess is also treated as a taxable perquisite.

Yes. The employee's EPF contribution, and any VPF, is deductible under Section 80C within the overall Rs 1.5 lakh limit, but only if you file under the old tax regime. The new (default) regime does not allow the 80C deduction. The employer's EPF share is never part of your 80C.

It depends on your continuous service. Withdrawal after 5 years of continuous service (including periods with earlier employers if you transferred the PF) is fully exempt under Section 10(12). Withdrawal before 5 years is taxable, and EPFO deducts TDS under Section 192A at 10% (20% without PAN) if the amount is Rs 50,000 or more and Form 15G/15H is not submitted.

No. Transferring your EPF balance to your new employer on a job change is never taxable, and it keeps your continuous-service clock running towards the 5-year exemption. Always prefer a transfer over a withdrawal between jobs, because withdrawing can trigger tax and TDS and reset your service continuity.

Yes, if your total income for the year is below the taxable limit, you can submit Form 15G (or Form 15H for senior citizens) so EPFO does not deduct TDS under Section 192A on a pre-5-year withdrawal. If your income is above the limit the withdrawal remains taxable and you must report it in your ITR; Form 15G cannot be used to dodge a genuine tax liability.