Dear All,
After all this tussle for the last four months, the EPFO has rightfully interpreted the Judgment and accepted to give the benefit of higher pension to eligible members as per the Judgment of The Honourable Supreme Court delivered on November 4, 2022, concerning THE EMPLOYEES PROVIDENT FUND ORGANISATION & ANR. ETC. SUNIL KUMAR B. & ORS. ETC(Arising out of the Special Leave Petition (C) Nos. 8658-8659 of 2019). I am attaching herewith the Circular issued by the Office of EPFO vide serial no. Pension/ 2022/ 56259/16541, dated February 20, 2023, directing that all members of EPS 95 who had not opted for higher pension in 2014 can now opt for higher pension. As per Para 5 of the attached Circular, the following conditions shall be met.
- Employees must have contributed to Provident Fund on higher wages under para 26(6) of the EPF Scheme, which means that the contribution to the Provident Fund is not limited to Wages of INR 5,000/- or INR 6,500/- as applicable from time to time AND
- Were members of EPS 1995 before September 1, 2014, and continued to be the member on or after September 1, 2014
Para 6 of the attached Circular states how such employees would apply to the concerned regional office. In totality, the Joint declaration to be submitted to OPT for higher pension shall have disclaimers, declarations, and explicit consent of the employees, along with the undertaking from the Trustees if the member is a member of an UNEXEMPTED Trust along with the PROOF OF REMITTANCE OF EMPLOYERS SHARE IN PROVIDENT FUND ON HIGHER WAGES AND PROOF OF JOINT OPTION UNDER PARA 26 (6) OF THE EPF SCHEME DULY VERIFIED BY THE EMPLOYER.
As per Para 6, the Commissioner will notify the form and manner for exercising the OPTION for a higher pension.
As per the Judgment of The Honourable Supreme Court delivered on November 4, 2022, concerning THE EMPLOYEES PROVIDENT FUND ORGANISATION & ANR. ETC. SUNIL KUMAR B. & ORS. ETC(Arising out of the Special Leave Petition (C) Nos. 8658-8659 of 2019), the EPFO has to give the benefit of a higher pension to the members, but by all means, the EPFO is making it tougher and tougher for the members to claim that benefit
We cannot comment on documents required to be submitted to the EPFO to avail of the benefit of a higher pension until the Commissioner issues the forms. However, we would recommend the following immediate steps in the Interest of time
- A request to opt for higher pension must be submitted to the Office of EPFO through the employer.
- The request can be submitted through a registered speed post, and the information for submission of the request must also be shared through a registered email id with the EPFO with their office.
- The employees opting for a higher pension must start collating details of their Employer’s Provident Fund Contributions since the inception of their Provident Fund in an excel sheet on a month-on-month basis, essentially capturing their Provident Fund number and the details of the employer.
We will reach out as soon as the Commissioner issues the forms and the manner in which the submission needs to be done.
If you need further details and information, please feel free to contact us.
Thanks
Anupam
Team SGC
Thanks.
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Supreme Court Judgment – All Employees can opt for Pension Scheme.pdf
