EPF Calculator

EPF (Employees' Provident Fund) is a mandatory retirement savings scheme run by EPFO for salaried employees of organisations with 20+ employees. You contribute 12% of basic + DA each month; your employer also contributes 12%. The balance earns annual interest (currently 8.25%, set yearly by EPFO). The full corpus is paid out at retirement (age 58/60) — tax-free if you've been a member for 5+ years.

Both nominal contributions are 12% of basic + DA. However, of the employer's 12%, 8.33% (capped at ₹1,250/month for the ₹15,000 wage ceiling) goes to the EPS (Employees' Pension Scheme) instead of EPF. Only 3.67% of basic goes to your EPF passbook. For salaries above the ₹15K ceiling, the EPS share stays capped, so the EPF portion of the employer share grows. This calculator simplifies by treating the full 12% as EPF — which slightly overstates the corpus but matches Groww/ClearTax's simplified view. Subtract roughly 8.33% × ₹15,000 × 12 × years for a precise EPS-corrected corpus.

8.25% per annum for FY 2024-25, declared by EPFO Central Board of Trustees and notified by the Ministry of Labour & Employment. Historical rates: 8.10% (FY23-24), 8.10% (FY22-23), 8.50% (FY21-22), 8.50% (FY20-21), 8.50% (FY19-20). The rate is reviewed annually and depends on EPFO's investment returns.

Yes, with conditions. (1) Employee contributions qualify for Section 80C (Old regime, up to ₹1.5L). (2) Interest earned is tax-free up to ₹2.5L of contributions per year (₹5L if employer doesn't contribute) — interest on excess is taxable from FY21-22. (3) Maturity is fully tax-free if you've been a member for 5+ continuous years. Withdrawals before 5 years are taxed as salary income, with TDS at 10%.

Partial withdrawals are allowed for specific reasons after a minimum service period: home purchase/construction (after 5 years, up to 36× monthly wages), home loan repayment (after 10 years), wedding (after 7 years, up to 50% of employee share), education (after 7 years), medical emergency (any time, up to 6× wages or employee share). Full withdrawal is allowed only after 2 months of unemployment or at retirement. Early full withdrawal before 5 years of service is taxable.

Use UAN (Universal Account Number) to transfer your EPF balance from the old employer to the new one — never withdraw. Multiple withdrawals over a career break the 5-year continuous-service rule (making the next withdrawal taxable) and break compounding. Online transfer takes 2-15 days. Unclaimed EPF accounts continue to earn interest until age 58, after which they stop accruing if no claim is filed.

EPF wins on rate of return (~8.25% vs PPF's 7.1%) and the employer match is essentially free money. PPF wins on flexibility (open to anyone, voluntary contribution, can extend indefinitely). For salaried employees: max out EPF first (it's automatic and matched), then add PPF and ELSS to fill 80C and grow the corpus. Self-employed and freelancers should rely on PPF + NPS + ELSS instead.