PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE/Dehradun
The Central government has increased the salary limit for Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) eligibility from Rs 15,000 to Rs 25,000 per month on the eve of Vishwakarma Diwas, September 17, a move expected to bring about 51 lakh new subscribers under the EPFO net, regional provident fund commissioner-I, regional office Dehradun, V VB Singh said on Tuesday.
Addressing the media, he said the move by the Government of India will benefit employees by saving for long-term retirement through regular PF contributions. Eligible employees earning up to Rs 25,000 per month will have the opportunity to receive social security benefits under the Employees’ Pension Scheme (EPS). In many States, the minimum wage exceeding the PF limit has previously prevented many employees from becoming members of the Provident Fund. However, now a large segment of employees earning up to Rs 25,000 will be covered under the mandatory social security system.
He further said regular provident fund contributions will help employees achieve a solid financial foundation in the future. He appealed to all employers to ensure that all their eligible members are enrolled under the EPF as per the new salary limit of Rs 25,000 per month and to deposit contributions as per rules so that employees can receive expected benefits as announced by the government.
Singh said EPFO Regional Office, Dehradun is taking steps to strengthen social security coverage, promote employment generation, improve compliance and enhance ease of doing business for employers and establishments.
He informed that key initiatives highlighted include Prime Minister Viksit Bharat Rozgar Yojana (PMVBRY) which focuses on supporting job creation and encouraging formalisation of employment and provides incentives to employers for creating additional jobs and integrating eligible workers into organised workforce and social security system.
The other initiative is Employee Enrolment Campaign-2026 (EEC, 2026) launched by Government of India to bring under the social security framework those eligible employees who have been left out of EPF coverage till now. This campaign provides employers opportunity to retrospectively enrol such employees with compliance benefits such as relief from employees’ past unsourced contributions and concessional damages of only Rs 100.
He also informed that Vishwas Scheme has been introduced by EPFO as an alternative dispute redressal mechanism for settlement of pending cases under Section 14B of the EPF & MP Act, 1952 (Section 128 of CoSS) due to delayed payment of EPF dues. He appealed to all employers to comply with the latest provisions.
