The Employees’ Provident Fund Organization (EPFO), under the Ministry of Labour and Employment, Government of India, has announced a significant change regarding the mandatory uploading of cheque leaf images for claim processing.
1. Purpose of the Change: The primary objective behind this alteration is to enhance the efficiency of online claim processing within EPFO. By eliminating the requirement for uploading cheque leaf images, the organization intends to expedite the settlement process and minimize claim rejections caused by missing documentation.
2. Alternative Validation Methods: EPFO has introduced several alternative validation methods to replace the mandatory uploading of cheque leaf images. These methods include online verification of bank KYC by the concerned bank/NPCI, verification of bank KYC by the employer using DSC, and validation of seeded Aadhaar numbers verified by UIDAI, among others. These validations ensure the authenticity and accuracy of the claim details without relying solely on cheque leaf images.
3. Implementation and Communication: The relaxation of uploading cheque leaf images for eligible cases was officially implemented on May 9, 2024. EPFO communicated this change to all Zones through email notifications on May 13, 2024. Additionally, the claims eligible for this relaxation will soon be color-coded for easy identification by the handling personnel, minimizing the risk of inadvertent returns due to non-uploaded cheque leaf images.
4. Impact on Claim Processing: This new relaxation is expected to have a significant impact on claim processing efficiency. By removing the mandatory requirement for cheque leaf uploads, EPFO aims to expedite the processing of eligible claims, resulting in faster disbursements to beneficiaries. Moreover, the reduction in claim rejections due to missing documentation will enhance overall customer satisfaction and trust in EPFO’s services.
*****
EMPLOYEES’ PROVIDENT FUND ORGANISATION
MINISTRY OF L-k130CR & EMPLOYMENT. GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
Head Office
Bhavishya Nidhi Bhawan, 14, Bhikaji Canna Place. New Delhi-noo66
Website: www.epfindia.gov.in www.epfindia.nic.in
No: WSU/E- 49885/1333
Date: 28/May/2024
To,
All ACC (HQ)/ACC (Zones)
All RPFC-I/RPFC-II/APFC OICs
Subject: Removal of mandatory uploading of the image of cheque leaf/ attested bank passbook for certain eligible cases-reg.
Madam/Sir,
With a view to facilitate the speedy settlement of claims filed online and to reduce the rejection of claims due to the reason of non-uploading of the image of cheque leaf/ attested bank passbook while filing claims online, it has been decided with the approval of the CPFC to relax the requirement of mandatory uploading of the image of cheque leaf/ attested bank passbook for certain eligible cases based on certain validations which include Online Verification of the Bank KYC by concerned Bank/NPCI, Verification of Bank KYC by the employer using DSC, Seeded Aadhaar Number verified by UIDAI among others.
In all such cases, the following message is displayed in the last part of the PDF of the claim.
“The bank KYC has been online verified by bank and has been digitally signed by the employer for this case among other validations and therefore, mandatory uploading of the image of cheque leaf/attested bank passbook is not required”
This new relaxation has been deployed in the Field Office application on 09/05/2024 and an email notification on this had also been sent to all ZOs on 13/May/2024.
The claims being eligible for this relaxation would be soon color coded for ease of identification of such claims by the Dealing Hands to prevent any inadvertent returning of such claims due to the reason of NON uploading of the image of the cheque leaf/bank passbook, alone.
Till such time, all the DAs in Accounts Section are required to watch for the above message in the claim PDF so as to avoid any such inadvertent returns.
Yours sincerely,
RPFC-I (WSU)
