How to Know Your PF Account Balance

EPF is a crucial part of your retirement financial planning. The provident fund, where both employers and employees contribute equally, is a mandatory facility to be provided by organizations with more than 20 employees. However, unlike a savings account, you cannot simply visit an ATM to perform an EPF balance check or withdrawal. Listed below are the steps you need to follow to check your PF balance through offline and online modes.

• Checking EPF Balance Online

The easiest and fastest method to check EPF balance is via the online portal. However, before you proceed, you must have the Universal Account Number or UAN along with your account password, ready. Both of these are assigned when you use the portal to register an EPF account. Here are the steps you need to follow for the online EPF Balance Check.

Step 1- Visit the official EPF India website. After the page loads, select ‘Our Services’ section at the top left-hand corner of the page.

Step 2- Under this tab, click on the ‘For Employees’ option.

Step 3- A new page opens where you can find 3 sections, namely ‘Services’, ‘Important Links’ and ‘Downloads.’ Under the Services section, select the ‘Member Passbook’ option.

Step 4- In the resulting page, type in your UAN and Password. Additionally, enter the captcha code displayed on the page and click on the ‘Login’ button.

Step 5- On the next page, a link appears under Select MEMBER ID to View Passbook. Clicking on this link displays a PDF version of your PF account balance. Besides the total balance, this document also reflects the exact contribution made by your employer. You can easily take a printout of the said document as well.

However, keep in mind that to perform a balance check online, you need to have an activated UAN and password in the EPFO portal.

• EPF balance check on the phone

On your phone, you can check your PF account balance, even when you lack internet connectivity. Utilize one of these two ways to perform such a check offline:

Miss call method- If you integrated your KYC with the UAN, you can easily find out your EPF balance by giving a missed call to 011-22901406. After the missed call, you will receive a message on your phone relaying the exact balance in your account.

SMS method- Individuals with activated UAN and mobile number integration with their EPF account can use the SMS facility to perform a balance check. Send an SMS to 7738299899 in the following format.

EPFOHO <Your UAN> ENG

The ENG part denotes the language of preference. You can choose other languages, such as Bengali, Marathi, Hindi, Punjabi, Gujarati, Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam and Kannada as well. If you send the SMS accurately, you should be notified of your EPF balance through an SMS alert. However, keep in mind that this SMS is not toll-free.

• Checking PF balance through mobile applications

While most individuals know how to withdraw PF, they are unaware of the existence of a mobile app that allows them to check their EPF balance conveniently.

‘m-Sewa’ is an Android app developed by the Government of India. This application allows you to keep a track of your EPF balance by just one touch. Keep in mind though that this app is only available for Android devices. Therefore, if you use a phone running on other operating systems, m-Sewa will be incompatible.

Another app designed to deliver similar convenience is the Umang app. Through this application, you can not only track the account balance but also file claims. After filing a claim, you can easily see the progress of the claim via the app. One time registration is necessary to use the Umang app, designed by the Indian Government as well.  

Performing an EPF balance check is vital to properly plan your post-retirement finances. The lump-sum PF amount you receive after turning 60 is a considerable amount. Therefore, most retirees prefer to invest the funds in risk-free high-return investment tools such as fixed deposits.

Most NBFCs today offer high-interest rates on fixed deposits, especially for senior citizens. However, you must understand the pros and cons of fixed deposits before investing. Financers like Bajaj Finance offer an additional 0.35% for such septuagenarian account holders.

PF is an essential benefit that can greatly affect the quality of your life. Post-retirement, when you are beyond income generation, the PF can provide you the necessary financial security and leverage. Even if you decide to invest the sum, you can avail a loan against your fixed deposit as well.