EPFO Employees Enrolment Drive 2025

Launch of a Landmark Social Security Initiative

EPFO Employees Enrolment Drive 2025: In a significant move toward expanding social protection, the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has launched the Employees’ Enrolment Scheme – 2025. The scheme was formally unveiled by Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya, the Union Minister for Labour and Employment, on 1 November 2025 during EPFO’s 73rd Foundation Day celebrations in New Delhi.

This special enrolment initiative provides a six-month window—from 1 November 2025 to 30 April 2026—for employers to declare workers who were left out of EPF coverage between 1 July 2017 and 31 October 2025. The move strengthens India’s commitment to “Social Security for All.”

Objective of the Scheme

The main goal of the scheme is to regularize employees who were not enrolled earlier under the EPF scheme and to encourage voluntary compliance. By offering waivers and simplified penalties, the EPFO aims to make it easier for establishments to come forward without fear of prosecution.

Static GK fact: The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation was established in 1952 under the Employees’ Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, ensuring retirement savings and benefits for salaried employees in India.

Key Features of the Scheme

The Employees’ Enrolment Scheme – 2025 applies to all employees who joined an establishment between 1 July 2017 and 31 October 2025. Employers can voluntarily declare such employees through the EPFO online portal, regardless of whether their establishment is already registered.

Major highlights include:

• Employee share is waived if it was not deducted earlier.
• Employers need to pay only their contribution, along with interest (under Section 7Q), administrative charges, and a nominal penalty of ₹100 per establishment.
• The ₹100 lump-sum penalty covers damages under all three EPF schemes.
• Even establishments under Section 7A, Para 26B, or Para 8 of EPS-1995 are eligible.
• No suo-motu action will be initiated by EPFO during this window, ensuring a fear-free compliance environment.

Static GK Tip: Section 7A of the EPF Act empowers the EPFO to determine dues from employers, while Section 7Q mandates payment of interest on delayed contributions.

Significance for Employers and Employees

The scheme provides a unique opportunity for employers to correct past non-compliance without facing severe financial penalties. It reduces their burden and encourages them to align with formal labour laws.

For employees, it ensures access to essential social security benefits, including retirement savings, insurance, and pension entitlements under EPS-1995. This initiative will particularly benefit workers from small-scale industries and the unorganised sector, where EPF coverage has historically been limited.

Static GK fact: India’s organised sector covers about 10% of the total workforce, while the rest work in informal or semi-formal employment.

Boost to India’s Formalisation Agenda

The Employees’ Enrolment Scheme – 2025 aligns with the government’s mission to formalise the workforce and ensure universal access to social security. It complements ongoing labour code reforms and the vision of inclusive growth.

By simplifying procedures and promoting self-declaration, the EPFO is making compliance both employer-friendly and worker-centric—a key step toward a stronger and fairer labour ecosystem.

Static GK Tip: EPFO operates under the Ministry of Labour and Employment, Government of India, with its headquarters in New Delhi.

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EPFO Employees Enrolment Drive 2025: