Under the provision, non-refundable withdrawal to the extent of the basic wages and dearness allowances for three months or up to 75 per cent of the amount standing to member’s credit in the EPF account, whichever is less, will be provided.

Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) members can now avail second non-refundable Covid-19 advance in view of the ongoing health crisis, said the labour ministry in a statement.

The provision for special withdrawal has been announced with an aim to help members meet financial needs during the pandemic. The first provision for the special PF withdrawal was announced in March 2020 under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana (PMGKY).

HOW WILL IT HELP PF MEMBERS?

EPF members can withdraw second Covid-19 advance following the same process as the first Covid-19 advance, according to the ministry’s statement.

“Under this provision, non-refundable withdrawal to the extent of the basic wages and dearness allowances for three months or up to 75 per cent of the amount standing to member’s credit in the EPF account, whichever is less, is provided. Members can apply for lesser amount also,” the statement added.

The ministry noted that the Covid-19 advance has been a “great help” to the EPF members during the pandemic, especially for those having monthly wages lower than Rs 15,000. As of today, the EPFO has settled more than 76.31 lakh Covid-19 advance claims, disbursing a total of Rs 18,698.15 crore.

One reason why the ministry has allowed the special withdrawal is the growing number of mucormycosis or black fungus cases.

“In such trying times, EPFO endeavours to lend a helping hand to its members by meeting their financial needs. Members who have already availed the first Covid-19 advance can now opt for a second advance also. The provision and process for withdrawal of second COVID-19 advance is same as in the case of first advance,” the ministry said.

The ministry also said that Covid-19 PF claims will be prioritised due to the ongoing health crisis.

The EPFO will settle such claims within three days of the receipt. “For this, EPFO has deployed a system driven auto-claim settlement process in respect of all such members whose KYC requirements is complete in all respects,” said the statement.

It may be noted that the auto-mode of settlement enables EPFO to reduce the claim settlement cycle to just 3 days as against the statutory requirement to settle the claims within 20 days.