Mumbai, February 24: In a major relief for salaried employees, the government has decided to refund small unclaimed balances lying in inoperative accounts linked to the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation.

According to sources in the Labour Ministry, the move aims to return long unused savings directly to account holders without any paperwork or office visits. The decision covers inoperative EPFO accounts where INR 1,000 or less is lying unused. EPFO New Mobile App: Now Withdraw Your PF Balance Instantly via UPI Starting April 2026, Check Details.

Direct Transfer Without Application

Under the new plan, eligible account holders will not need to submit any application. The EPFO will directly transfer the amount to the linked bank accounts. For accounts seeded with Aadhaar, the transfer will take place immediately. In other cases, the refunds will be processed in phases. EPFO 3.0 Set for Rollout With UPI Withdrawals and User-Friendly PF Services.

An EPFO account is classified as inoperative if there has been no contribution or transaction for three consecutive years.

31 Lakh Inoperative Accounts Identified

Officials have identified around 31 lakh inoperative EPFO accounts across the country. Of these, nearly six lakh accounts have balances of INR 1,000 or less and will be covered under the current initiative.

Pilot Project for Wider Rollout

The scheme is being introduced as a pilot project. If implemented smoothly, the same process may be extended to the remaining 25 lakh inoperative accounts with higher balances.

The move is being seen as a step towards simplifying fund settlements, reducing paperwork and ensuring faster access to unused savings for workers. It also aligns with the government’s push for direct benefit transfers and digital financial services.

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(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 24, 2026 09:01 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).