Employees Provident Fund Organization (EPFO) has announced to start auto-mode settlement system for advance claims related to medical, education, marriage and housing. For all these purposes, advances up to Rs 1 lakh will now be processed faster in auto mode. This automated system will process the claims without any human intervention, due to which the entire work will be done much faster. The system of advance settlement in auto mode for the treatment of disease has been in force since April 2020, but the limit of advance has now been increased from Rs 50 50,000 to Rs 1 lakh. In this regard, a statement issued by the Ministry of Labor and Employment said, “In order to further ease of living, Auto Claim Solution will now be included in all the claims made under Para 68K (Education and Marriage) and Para 68B (Housing). Has been implemented for claims. Along with this, its limit has also been increased from Rs 50 thousand to Rs 1 lakh. This move is expected to benefit lakhs of EPFO members.”
Processing of advance claims by EPFO (Employees Provident Fund Organisation) generally takes some time depending on the eligibility of the EPF member, documents submitted for claim processing, KYC status of EPF account valid bank account details etc. After that investigation is done. But with auto processing, EPF claim settlement will be faster.
In auto-settlement, the entire process is operated through an IT system, in which there is no need for human intervention.
In auto mode, the payment made under the claim is processed with the help of IT tools.
To avail of this facility, it is necessary to complete your KYC, eligibility and bank verification.
All the documents required under the rules of the section under which you want to take advance should also be submitted online.
If all these conditions are fulfilled then the claim settlement for advance claim in auto mode will be in 3-4 days instead of 10 days.
To claim advance from EPF under the auto mode, any member can submit an online application through the e-Sewa portal.
To claim advance from EPF, the member is required to fill out Form 31 online and submit it.
Advance claims up to Rs 1 lakh related to medical, education, marriage and housing will be processed in auto mode.
Claims which are not validated by the system are also not returned or rejected. Rather, they are put forward for second-level investigation and approval.
According to reports, since its implementation across India on May 6, 2024, more than 13 thousand claims have been approved by EPFO through claim settlement in auto mode and claims worth Rs 45.95 crore have been settled expeditiously. Reports added that during the financial year 2023-24, EPFO settled about 4.45 crore claims, of which more than 60 per cent (2.84 crore) claims were advance claims. Of the total advance claims settled during this period, about 89.52 lakh claims were settled through auto-mode. EPFO hopes that after the latest decision to extend the auto mode facility, now about 2.25 crore members will be able to avail of its benefit during the current year.
