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A majority of the working-class population are salaried individuals who are usually looking for better investment plans to secure their future. It is essential to understand several instruments when you are thinking of investing your income. Most of the salaried professionals look for secure investment options such as Fixed Deposits. Fixed Deposits are provided by various reputed institutions like Bajaj Finance, which provide you with several benefits that can get the investor best returns upon maturity.
Employee Provident Funds is one such investment option for employees who are a part of the EPFO. To be a member of EPFO, it is essential to have an active UAN number. This can be done following a simple procedure on the UAN member portal.
Benefits of Having an EPF Account
Employee Provident Funds are a good investment option because of several reasons. Some of the significant benefits of having an EPF account are discussed below.
Various PF Contributions
The primary benefit of having an EPF account is that every organization you work with has to contribute to your PF balance. Apart from a part of your salary being invested, the organization also provides a certain percentage of your salary to your PF balance.
Guaranteed Pension Scheme
A part of the employer’s contributors goes under the Employee Pension Scheme. This pension scheme guarantees a regular income for the employee after retiring from their working years. This makes up for a solid investment plan for the employee’s portfolio. A fixed pension scheme adds on to the investor’s retirement financial plans.
Guaranteed Life Cover
As a part of Employee’s Provident Funds, a part of EPF is contributed to a life cover insurance for the employee. This contribution is made under Employees Deposit Linked Insurance (EDLI). This life insurance makes it easier for the employee to plan their finances for their retirement. This insurance ensures a cover of Rs 1.5 Lakhs, which is recently revised to Rs 2.5 Lakhs in case of unfortunate demise of the employee during the service period.
Tax-free Interest
Since the government facilitates the Employees’ Provident Funds, the returns earned on the investments are exempted from income tax under section 80c. This tax exemption adds to the employee’s benefits due to lesser tax liability. Tax exemption is a significant reason why working professionals opt for EPF as an investment instrument in the first place.
Also, Read This: How to Check EPF Account Balance on Smartphone/Mobile
Emergency Funds
Employee’s Provident Funds can act as emergency funds in certain situations. Premature withdrawal options are available in cases like funding marriage, education, and home loan repayment. These offers can only be availed under particular conditions. The employee should have provided their services for a pre-defined amount of time to get funds for different situations.
These are some of the significant benefits of having an EPF account. These benefits can add value to the employee’s investment portfolio.
How to do EPF Balance Check?
After understanding the benefits of having an EPF account, it is essential to know how can you keep a track on your EPF balance and PF contributions from the various organizations you have worked with. Here are the ways for EPF balance check.
UAN Member Portal
You can check your EPF balance on the UAN member portal. You need to login to your UAN account and check your passbook which is available under online services provided by EPFO. You can get a detailed report of your EPF balance and PF contribution from all the organizations you have worked with.
UMANG App
Unified Mobile Application for New-age Governance (UMANG) is a mobile application for several online services provided by the government. EPF balance check is one of the features offered by this app.
Some other ways of checking your EPF balance can be through the missed call and SMS service provided by the EPFO. Apart from the EPF, there are several different investment instruments which provide similar financial security and high-interest rates such as Bajaj Finance Fixed Deposits. An investor can opt for these when they are looking for investment options to add to their investment portfolio.
