Consider these 9 things before investing in mutual funds!
What is the right way to invest in mutual funds? How do mutual funds work? What kind of risk is involved? Which fund is right for whom? What things should be kept in mind before investing? Watch this video to know-
The central government backed Provident Fund (PF) scheme follows a compulsory deduction for salaried employees in India. The PF contribution deducted from one’s monthly salary is maintained by the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO). The pandemic driven boost for digitalisation has now been adopted by EPFO as well. As a part of Centre’s Digital Indian campaign, EPFO recently launched the facility for online nomination for family members of the employees vis-a-vis their linked PF accounts.
Importance of nomination
Before making any investment, we usually think only about the return and often tend to miss out on adding a nominee. Many people procrastinate this task thinking of it as another formality. Nomination enables the asset holder to nominate (propose or formally enter as a candidate) an individual to claim the proceeds upon his/her death. Its the right conferred upon the holder of a bank account to appoint one or more people who will eventually be entitled to receive money upon the death of the account holder.
A nominee can be anyone from your family members, including parents, spouse or siblings in certain cases. In the case of death of an account or investment holder, the financial institution can release the account proceeds or contents to the nominee without insisting upon a succession certificate, letter of administration or court order. The whole effort of saving a part of your salary as PF to secure one’s financial future would be pointless if the family members or dependents are not able to avail of the benefits eventually. Hence nomination is as crucial as saving itself.
E-nomination for PF account
In the case of PF account, the employees need to update and link their KYC (Aadhar, PAN and bank account numbers) on the UAN portal. A 12-digit unique number assigned to every employee contributing to the EPF is required for this task. Notably, the member’s photograph must also be available on the online profile of EPF portal.
However, the process of filing the online nomination for PF accounts may appear to be a tough task for technically challenged individuals. Hence, let’s take a step-by-step look at how you can file an E-nomination for your PF accounts.
Process to file E-nomination
– The employee should visit https://unifiedportal-mem.epfindia.gov.in/memberinterface/. Login to your EPF account using the UAN number and password. Now, to file an e-nomination, select the ‘e-nomination’ option from the ‘Manage’ tab.
– It will redirect you to a fresh page where if you select ‘Yes’ to the family option, you’ll have to fill up the details about your family as a follow-up.
– Meanwhile, if you select ‘No’, you’ll have to specify the exact amount of contribution to be granted to the nominee along with the above specifics.
– Aadhaar details and photos of family members are compulsory to complete the process. So you have to select the ‘Save Family Details’ option to proceed further.
– The EPF nomination details will be automatically saved once you click on the ‘Save EPF Nomination’ option.
EPF is also valid for EPS (Employee Pension Scheme) for other members of the family. Similar details will be required for nomination there too. You’ll be required to simply e-sign the nomination to complete the process.
After this, you need to enter Aadhar details and verify them. Subsequently, an OTP will be sent to your Aadhar-linked mobile number. Once you enter the OTP, the specifics of your nominee will be saved in the database of EPFO. Note that employees can render different EPF and EPS nominations.