The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation has made changes to the joint option for higher pension under the Employees’ Pension Scheme by adding a new facility under which members can delete and re-file the application.
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The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation has made changes to the joint option for higher pension under the Employees’ Pension Scheme by adding a new facility under which members can delete and re-file the application. It has also simplified the joint option form and is now seeking lesser details and requires uploading proof such as passbook pages.
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The changes follow a recent ruling by the Kerala High Court earlier this month wherein it had directed the EPFO to make provisions in their online system to allow employees and pensioners to opt for a higher contribution without furnishing proof of prior consent for the same
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However, with just a week left till the May 3 deadline for filing the joint option for higher pension, the move is likely to give relief to many members and pensioners.
Requests are now also coming to the retirement fund manager to extend the deadline. Recently, the Standing Conference of Public Sector Enterprises (SCOPE) also wrote to the EPFO to consider extending the deadline due to various challenges faced in filing the application.
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“Further, it is requested that since a large number of members/pensioners are not able to exercise joint option due to various issues, we have been approached by various member PSEs to approach EPFO to extend the last day of submission of online joint option form, at least by a month,” said Atul Sobti, director general, SCOPE and member, Central Board of Trustees of the EPFO in a recent letter to Central PF Commissioner Neelam Shami Rao.
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Sobti, in his letter, also highlighted the various challenges being faced in filling the joint application such as old PF and pay slips not available, Pension Payment Order not showing in the form as well as lack of guidelines for filing joint option forms for deceased employees. He also pointed out that in cases where the organisation has closed down, the employees’ previous organisation service verification and obtaining wage details is a challenge.
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Following the Supreme Court ruling in November last year, the EPFO had issued the procedure for applying for higher pension under the Employees’ Pension Scheme under the joint option. It had also extended the due date for applying from March 3 to May 3.
