EPFO Revised Deadline to Submit Joint Declaration for Higher Pension Option
Now, the EPFO has announced a renewed deadline of May 3 for employees who retired before September 1, 2014, and had exercised joint options with employers, but whose options were not considered earlier.
EPFO Revised Deadline to Submit Joint Declaration for Higher Pension Option
The Employees’ Provident Fund Organization (EPFO) the world’s largest social security organization, has been taking various measures to improve its members’ experiences, like the pension benefits they receive.
A new system for online submission of digital life certificates has been introduced by the EPFO and is expected to make the process more convenient for pensioners. The EPFO has also initiated measures that ensure pensioners receive their pension on time, and has been urging them to update their personal details to avoid any delays.
Now, the EPFO has announced a renewed deadline of May 3 for employees who retired before September 1, 2014, and had exercised joint options with employers, but whose options were not considered earlier.
This EPFO’s move comes ten days after the application window for a higher pension closed for these employees, bringing the deadline to apply for a higher pension to parity with the other set of employees who were in service prior to and after September 1, 2014.
The EPFO had earlier given a one-time option to the affected employees to switch over to the higher pension scheme. But many employees had not been able to use this option for different reasons. The EPFO then extended the deadline for such employees to March 31, 2021, and again to March 31, 2022.
In a press release on March 13, 2023, the Ministry of Labour and Employment stated that, “The Supreme Court has held that the employees who have retired before September 1, 2014, and had exercised their option under paragraph 11(3) prior to their retirement shall be eligible for pensions on higher wages. Field offices received instructions in this regard via circulars dated 29.12.2022 and 05.01.2023.”
The press release further stated that an online facility for submitting applications for validation of joint options to the employees who retired before 01.09.2014 and had exercised joint options before their retirement had been provided on the EPFO website until 05.03.2023.
Which is why, “Now, on demand of the employees’ and employers’ associations, the Chairman, Central Board of Trustees, has extended the time for submitting applications for validation of joint options from such employees till May 3, 2023,” confirms the same press release.
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