Six smart things to know about EPF withdrawals

Here are six smart things to know about withdrawal of EPF balances

1. The government has announced a roll-back of the restrictions proposed in February 2016 on withdrawal of balances in the EPF account.

2. The proposal restricted access to a part of the funds, allowing the withdrawal of the employer contribution only after attaining the age of 58 years.

3. Advances can be taken against EPF for reasons specified under the EPF Scheme, 1952. The amount drawn can be a combination of employee/employer contribution and interest.

4. Employees access EPF balances primarily to fund purchase of property and for funding medical emergencies.

5. Anyone over 54 years of age, and within one year of attaining superannuation, can withdraw up to 90% of the accumulated balance with interest.

6. The rollback is yet to be notified by the EPFO, and is expected to restore the accessibility of the EPF balances for various needs of the contributors.

(Content is courtesy Centre for Investment Education and Learning (CIEL). Contributions by Girija Gadre, Arti Bhargava and Labdhi Mehta.)