
In a surprising revelation, it has come to light that the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has rejected every third claim it received, according to a report by the Indian Express. Numerous subscribers have expressed their grievances regarding the delay in claim settlement on the official EPFO handle, which is the world’s largest social security organization, with over 277 million accounts and a corpus of nearly ₹20 lakh crore.

In response to a query, the pension body stated that it normally takes 20 days to settle a claim and release the PF amount if the submitted documents are complete. Out of the 73.87 lakh claims received for final PF settlement in the financial year 2022-23, 33.8% (24.93 lakh) were rejected. Meanwhile, 46.66 lakh claims were settled, and 2.18 lakh remained as the closing balance, as per official data.
It is worth noting that the rate of claim rejection has significantly increased compared to previous years. In 2017-18 and 2018-19, the rejection rate stood at nearly 13% and 18.2%, respectively. The percentage of rejected claims out of total applications further rose to 24.1% in 2019-20 and 30.8% in 2020-21 for final settlement claims.
In the financial year 2021-22, the rate of rejection for final settlement claims reached 35.2%, which means more than one-third of the total claims were rejected by the pension body. Officials from the EPFO expressed their concern about being under “extreme pressure” due to the recent reversion to manual annual account updates. Delays in claim settlements beyond the stipulated 20-day timeframe have put additional strain on the organization. The outdated IT system of the EPFO, deemed obsolete by the staff, was identified as the chief cause of these issues.
In related news, the Central Board Trustees of the EPFO recommended an annual interest rate of 8.25% to be credited to EPF accumulations in members’ accounts for the financial year 2023-24. Furthermore, they proposed a distribution of income amounting to ₹1,07,000 crores to EPF members’ accounts, based on a total principal of around ₹13 lakh crores. This recommended distribution of income was the highest so far.
In conclusion, the EPFO has rejected one-third of the claims it received, raising concerns among subscribers. The rejection rate has been increasing over the years, with more than one-third of claims being rejected in the financial year 2021-22. The organization is facing pressure due to manual account updates and delays in claim settlements. The Central Board Trustees have recommended an annual interest rate and a distribution of income for EPF members’ accounts.
The outdated systems of EPFO is no concern to depositors. Rejection rate is too high and reasons are not acceptable. A depositor cannot see his payment if hard-earned money is declined when he wants it more. The responsible people should be crucified and salaries stopped.