You don’t have to get your PF fund transferred – EPFO decision

EPFO decision

After the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing, or C-DAC, developed the systems, an employee’s PF account number will remain the same if they move employment, and they will not have to worry about account transfers.

Field functionalities will be transitioned into a central database, allowing for smoother operations and better service delivery. The technology will make it easier to de-duplicate and consolidate all of a member’s PF accounts.

The decision was made at the EPFo’s primary decision-making body, the Central Board of Trustees (CBT), which was chaired by Union labour minister Bhupender Yadav for the 229th time.

The retirement fund manager has also decided to give its Finance Investment and Audit Committee (FIAC) the authority to decide whether or not to invest in new asset classes.

“At the moment, we’ve opted to invest primarily in government securities that have just been added to the market” (bonds and InvITs). There is no such thing as a percentage for it. “FIAC will rule on a case-by-case basis,” Yadav said following the meeting.

Public sector infrastructure investment trusts have been created by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and the Power Grid Corporation of India (PGCIL) (InvITs). Only public sector bonds and InvITs would be considered by the EPFO.

According to an official release, the board voted to empower FIAC to decide on investment choices on a case-by-case basis for all asset classes contained in the Pattern of Investment as notified by the Union Ministry of Finance for provident and pension funds in India.

“If we want to provide a high rate of interest, we have to follow the criteria of the finance ministry,” Sunil Barthwal, the union labour secretary, told reporters. We were unable to invest in some instruments (required by regulations) due to a variety of factors. We’d be able to put money into those instruments now.”

The government has updated the Pattern of Investment for pension funds to include new products such as InvITs.

“As trustees of the employees’ provident fund, we shall invest in those InvITs or bonds that will provide us with financial security.” We’ll concentrate on maximising returns while simultaneously ensuring the safety of funds,” he said.

The EPFO has also decided to form four sub-committees, which will include members of the board from both the employee and employer sides, as well as government representatives.

The minister of state for labour and employment will chair the committees on establishment issues and the future implementation of the Social Security Code. The remaining two, on digital capacity building and pension-related concerns, will be led by the Union’s labour and employment secretary.

The meeting also approved the draught 68th annual report on the EPFO’s operations for the fiscal year 2020-21, with the recommendation that it be presented to Parliament.