There are several issues which may crop up while trying to handle your PF account. Although it may seem difficult, there is a solution to counter every issue. This article is a compilation of all PF rejection reasons along with solutions to correct them. Find below a list of all PF rejection reasons and their solutions:
Table of Contents
1. Name not printed/different in cheque
Nowadays it is mandatory to upload a copy of your cheque or passbook during the PF withdrawal. This is done to match your KYC details with your bank details and avoid bank frauds. Now you can either get a chequebook with your name printed on it or one without. If you upload the cheque without your name then that results in PF rejection since your name is not verifiable here. Hence for this PF rejection reason, either upload a cheque with your name on it or upload the front page of your passbook. But ensure that the passbook page has the same name and bank details as given in your KYC.
2. Member name as per KYC bank details is different from that in the office records
One of the PF rejection reasons occurs when the names given in your Aadhaar and bank account do not match. There might be slight spelling differences in both. Thus, ensure that the bank details you upload have the same name as the name given in your PF account. If you want, you can also update your bank account to a new one. Just go to the PF member portal and update your bank KYC details. Then ask your employer to approve it. Your next PF claim will have your latest bank details and your name will be matched.
3. 11 digit account number system not accepting
In India, banks generally have account numbers varying from 12 to 16 digits. But SBI is an exception here with 11 digits on the bank passbook which translates to 17 digits on the online portal. Since the PF department portal does not accept 11 digits bank account number, it is advisable to upload the entire 17 digit SBI bank account number. Get it approved again on the PF member portal by the employer. Thus, the PF rejection reason will be solved.
4. Bank details are incorrect
Sometimes, even after inputting the correct bank account number, IFSC code and all details there shows an error. In this case, most probably, you have used a joint account. If the joint account is along with your spouse then PF department accepts it. But in any other case, the account details are rejected. It is even possible that your bank’s IFSC code has been revised due to the ongoing mergers of the banks. In any of these cases, redo your bank KYC on the PF member portal and get it reapproved by your employer.
5. Settled but return
In some cases of PF rejection reasons, the PF department processes a refund amount. But when this reaches the bank then they reject it on grounds that the bank account number or IFSC code does not match with them. Thus, your case appears as “Settled but returned”. To correct this issue, you can input your correct KYC details on the PF member portal and reapply for PF claim. Along with uploading your bank passbook’s copy, upload another attachment as an application. This application will state that you have corrected your bank KYC, and request for reauthorization. For an offline option, you can fill out the reauthorization form and submit it along with your passbook copy and Aadhaar copy to your nearest PF office.
6. Certificate not signed/enclosed (A/B/C/D/E)
This is one of the most common PF rejection reasons. There are always two reasons mentioned on a PF rejection notice. This is because the PF department clerk has to input two reasons from the drop-down list given for rejection cause. Sometimes the clerk may select “Others” as the first reason and input the reason manually below it. And for the second reason, they may just select the first option from the drop-down list which is usually “Certificate not signed/enclosed (A/B/C/D/E)”. This is confusing for the PF members to decipher what are certificates A/B/C/D/E. Hence, in most cases, if the first reason is stated elaborately then you may ignore this second reason for certificate not signed/enclosed.
But generally in advance PF claim cases, this PF rejection reason may be valid. Thus, if you have given the reason for natural calamity, strike, factory log down, etc, then you need to attach these certificates A/B/C/D/E as well. These are small 2-3 line forms which you need to fill and submit to your PF office along with your passbook. Thus, it is advisable that you do not select these reasons altogether.
7. PDF not opened, resubmit
Sometimes the PDFs uploaded on the PF portal are corrupted and do not open when the PF officials try to view it. Hence, the solution to this is to upload a proper PDF document. We recommend using the CamScanner app, which makes it super easy to convert your files into PDF and download it in varying file sizes.
8. Wages less than 15000, Eligible for pension membership but estt not remitted pension contribution
The EPFO had released a GSR 609(E) on 1st September 2014. This circular stated that if any new employee with a salary of over Rs 15,000 joined PF then his pension contribution would be nil. Hence, in this PF rejection reasons case, maybe the employer did not give the employee’s pension contribution due to this reason. But there is still a lack of awareness regarding this circular. Thus, if this PF rejection reason appears then the employee needs to submit an application along with his passbook when claiming PF next.
9. Member DOJ after 1/9/2014 wages more than 15000, please confirm if previous service any
In this situation, the employee needs to submit a revised Form 3A. This form states all the places where an employee’s contribution has to go. So, if you need to submit your contribution towards a pension or need to refrain from pension contribution. This Form 3A will mention all PF and pension contributions under your PF member account. It will need to be submitted to the PF department. Although it is to be noted that GSR 609(E) was struck down by the Supreme Court of India in 2019, any further update on this is yet to be seen. Know all 2019 PF updates in All EPF, ESI & Labour Law Updates 2019.
10. Date of leaving wrong, Contribution coming after leaving date
Here, maybe the employee has marked your date of leaving the company earlier and then made your contribution. Or it could even be a technical error. It is important that there is some contribution being made to your account every week, even if it is nil. If there is no contribution for any particular month, then it is not possible to file PF claim. To correct this error, the employee and employer will together fill a joint declaration form. State your correct date of exit in this form and submit it to the EPFO along with any documented proof which is required. Learn the process to fill out a joint declaration form in Joint Declaration Form for EPF Name, DOB, DOE Correction | Offline Application.
11. DOJ/DOE does not match the company records
Similar to the above PF rejection reasons, the employee and employer must submit a joint declaration form. The form needs to state the correct date of joining/date of exit of the employee. Submit the form to the EPFO along with any other documents required. This will resolve the PF rejection reason.
12. Insufficient Service
A minimum of 6 months of employment is mandatory to be able to apply for pension withdrawal. Before completion of 6 months, you can apply for Form 19 but not for Form 10C. You can learn more about pension withdrawal process in EPFO Pension Withdrawal & Calculation Formula.
13. Submit form 19 and 10C both
This one of the PF rejection reasons states that if someone has just submitted the Form 19 then EPFO is rejecting their PF claim. Although there is no logical reason behind this, we recommend that if you wish to withdraw your full PF and pension amount, then from the drop-down list you should select Form 19 and Form 10C both. Just to be on the safe side. If you want to withdraw only PF amount then submit Form 19. And if you want to withdraw only pension amount then submit Form 10C. But looking at the rejection cases, it seems that the PF department may disapprove your case if you only fill up Form 19. Learn the uses of different PF forms in PF Form | Types And Importance.
14. Multiple PF numbers (Claim already settled)
This can happen if you have multiple PF numbers wherein you withdrew an amount from your latest PF account, but some amount from your older PF account got transferred to your new PF account later. Thus, your latest PF account again has some pending amount to be withdrawn. Thus, if you try to reclaim this new amount then you may get the PF rejection reasons for claim already settled. This happens because when the EPFO staff tries to settle your claim, they get an alert saying that the claim was already settled.
Now unless the staff concerned is diligent enough to look into the case and check the employee’s passbook to see if their account has some pending amount, it is most probably going to be rejected. To overcome this situation, the employee has to upload their passbook’s copy along with an application, both showing that your PF account still has some money pending in it to be claimed.
15. As per March, June, etc etc, contribution not received
This one of the PF rejection reasons states that the employer has not submitted the contribution amount. Hence, the EPFO cannot approve your claim. There is not much one can do about this issue. Except to keep a regular check on their PF passbook. Whenever there is a discrepancy of over 2-3 months, then inform your employer of the same. This is the only way to avoid this PF rejection reason later on.
16. Name different in our portal and KYC
There may be cases where the names are different on Aadhaar and on the PF portal. This may happen due to various unforeseen reasons. You can easily solve this by submitting a joint declaration form along with an application. Ensure to write the reason behind your name difference in detail on this application. Additionally, request for your name to be corrected on the PF portal.
17. Father’s name different
This is one of the latest PF rejection reasons coming up, since the addition of the PF passbook. To resolve this, the employee can upload his cheque instead of his passbook. Since the cheque does not have the father’s name. Ensure that the employee’s name and bank details given on the cheque are correct. The other method is to submit a joint declaration form with the correct father’s name.
18. Service Overlapped
The PF portal is still unable to process overlapping services. In case of any overlapping service periods, it is difficult to get PF claim. The only solution here is to visit your local PF office and get your overlapping services merged. Post merging also, it may be difficult to claim PF online. Hence, we recommend opting for the offline PF claim in this situation.
Video on PF rejection reasons
Join the LLA telegram group for frequent updates and documents.
Download the telegram group and then search ‘Labour Law Advisor’ or follow the link – t.me/JoinLLA.
It’s FREE!
