Provident fund (EPF, EPS and EDLI)

At a glance

Item	Position from 17 September 2026
Law	Code on Social Security, 2020 (Chapter III), with the EPF, EPS and EDLI Schemes, 2026
Wage ceiling	₹25,000 a month (was ₹15,000). S.O. 5109(E), 17 September 2026
Employee share	12% of PF wages
Employer share	12% of PF wages: 8.33% to the pension scheme (EPS) on wages up to the ceiling — at most ₹2,083 a month — and the rest to the PF account
EDLI (insurance)	0.5% of PF wages up to the ceiling, paid by the employer — ₹125 a month at the ceiling
Administration charges	0.5% of PF wages up to the ceiling, paid by the employer
Deposit and ECR	By the 15th of the following month, through the EPFO employer portal

Who has to contribute

An establishment with 20 or more employees is covered, and stays covered even if its headcount later falls. Smaller establishments can join voluntarily.

Every employee whose PF wages are up to ₹25,000 a month must be a member. Employees earning more are "excluded employees" and may stay out, but anyone who was already a member stays one, whatever they earn later.

From 17 September 2026, employees earning ₹15,001–₹25,000 who had been excluded became members on that date, and must be enrolled.

What counts as PF wages

Under the Code on Social Security, PF is worked out on "wages" as the Codes define them: basic pay, dearness allowance and retaining allowance. Most allowances are excluded, but if the excluded parts add up to more than half of total pay, the excess is added back into wages.

In practice this "50% rule" means a salary structure with a small basic and large allowances now attracts PF on more than the basic. See the Code on Wages for how the calculation works.

Worked example

An employee with PF wages of ₹30,000, where the employer contributes only up to the statutory ceiling:

Component	Calculation	Amount (₹)
Employee PF (12%)	12% × 25,000	3,000
Employer to EPS (8.33%)	8.33% × 25,000	2,083
Employer to EPF (balance of 12%)	3,000 − 2,083	917
EDLI (0.5%)	0.5% × 25,000	125
Administration (0.5%)	0.5% × 25,000	125

Note

Employers may contribute on the full wage above the ceiling where the employee and employer both agree; the pension share still stays on the ceiling. Check the scheme provisions before changing an existing practice.

September 2026: the month the ceiling changed

The new ceiling took effect in the middle of a wage month. Published EPFO FAQs, as reported by compliance advisers, work September out in two parts — ₹15,000 for 1–16 September and ₹25,000 for 17–30 September — in a single ECR due by 15 October 2026, and allow the newly due employee share to be recovered in the October payroll.

At least one adviser read the notification as allowing the ₹25,000 ceiling for all of September. Follow the method in EPFO’s own circular or FAQ for your establishment, and keep a note of which one you applied.

Watch out

If your payroll system still uses a ₹15,000 ceiling, change it before running September or October 2026 payroll.

What the EPF Scheme, 2026 changed

The EPF, EPS and EDLI Schemes, 2026 (G.S.R. 525(E), 29 June 2026) replaced the 1952, 1995 and 1976 schemes from 1 July 2026. Rates and coverage did not change; the way you report did.

Form V: a consolidated return of all employees — UAN, Aadhaar, PAN, bank account, gross and PF wages — within 15 days of the scheme applying to the establishment.
Joining and exit of each employee are reported electronically, alongside the monthly ECR.
Contractors: the principal employer deposits PF for an unregistered contractor’s workers, and is liable if a registered contractor defaults.
Voluntary PF (VPF) can be started, raised, lowered or stopped at any time in the year.
Withdrawals are grouped into three categories (essential needs, housing, special circumstances), and 25% of the balance must stay in the account while the member is in service.

What HR does each month

On joining: collect the UAN (or have one generated), link Aadhaar, PAN and the bank account, and record nomination.
Each payroll: work out PF wages, deduct the employee share, and add the employer shares.
By the 15th: upload the ECR and pay the challan on the EPFO portal.
On exit: mark the date of exit on the portal so the member can withdraw or transfer.
Keep records electronically; inspections under the 2026 Scheme ask for them in that form.

In WebHR

WebHR works out PF wages, the employee and employer shares, the EPS and EDLI split and administration charges for each payroll, and exports the ECR text file you upload to the EPFO portal. Challans are recorded and can be marked paid, and the compliance calendar lists each month’s ECR due on the 15th for HR to mark filed. The wage ceiling is set under Statutory → PF Policy, and new policies still default to ₹15,000: change it to ₹25,000.

Forms and returns

Form	What it is for	Who files	Download
ECR (Electronic Challan cum Return)	Monthly contributions and wages of every member	Employer	Official page
Form V (EPF Scheme 2026)	Initial consolidated return of all employees	Employer	Official page
Nomination (e-nomination)	Member’s nominees for PF, pension and EDLI	Employee, approved by employer	Official page
Claims (withdrawal, pension, transfer)	Final settlement, advances, pension and transfer of accumulations	Employee	Official page

Downloads open the issuing authority’s own page, so you always get the current version. All forms

Due dates

What	When	How often
PF contributions and ECR	15th of the following month	Monthly
EPF Form V (on first coverage)	Within 15 days of the scheme applying to the establishment	Event-based

If a due date falls on a holiday, the authority’s own rule for the next working day applies. Full compliance calendar

References

Plain-language guidance for HR teams, not legal advice. Checked against the sources above on 29 September 2026; the notification or your authority’s portal is final. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.