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Employees who wish to withdraw their PF contributions before completing 5 years of service often pay TDS, even though they do not have taxable income. In such a scenario, submitting Form 15G for PF withdrawal can avoid a TDS deduction on the PF withdrawal amount.
Employee Provident Fund or EPF is meant for employee welfare, where employees and the employer contribute monthly. The employee can later withdraw the accumulated funds at the time of their retirement or when they quit their job in their present company.
Employees contribute 12% of their basic salary and dearness allowance to the EPF account every month. The employer also matches the amount and contributes to the EPF account of their employees.
The EPF authorities pay 8.15% interest every year during the accumulation period. But if you wish to withdraw the funds, you need to submit Form 15g for pf withdrawal.
To learn how to download Form 15G online, read this blog.
Table of Content
What is Form 15G?
Form 15G is a simple declaration form. If your income is below the tax* threshold, you can state that in this form. Not only for PF withdrawal, but Form 15G will also allow you to get tax exemption on interest earned on other investments like fixed deposits (FD) and recurring deposits (RD).
Simply put, Form 15G for PF withdrawal is essential because it can help you avoid TDS (Tax Deducted at Source) deductions on your EPF or PF earnings.
Here, we should mention that if your EPF amount is lower than ₹50,000, you may not need to submit Form 15G. It is the same for FDs and RDs. If your withdrawal amount is higher than ₹50,000, it will be subject to TDS. You will receive the balance amount after tax deduction as per section 192A of the Income Tax Act.
So, by submitting Form 15G for PF withdrawal, you declare that your earnings from the salary combined with the EPF interest are below the income tax slab.
Note: Senior Citizens need to submit Form 15H in place of 15G. So, if you are a senior citizen, consider 15H for all uses of 15G mentioned here.
Download Form 15G for PF Withdrawal
Now that you know how important Form 15G is, here is how you do Form 15G download.
Downloading Form 15G is pretty simple. You can get it from EPFO’s online portal. Log into your EPFO account and look for the PF Form 15G download option. It is also available on the Income Tax Department’s website and on the websites of major banks.
Is Form 15G Mandatory for EPF Withdrawal?
Form 15G is not mandatory for PF Withdrawal if your total withdrawal amount is less than ₹50,000. In that case, there will not be any Tax Deducted at Source (TDS). However, if your withdrawal amount exceeds the mentioned threshold, you will have to pay 10% TDS (for withdrawal before 5 years).
Remember, if your PAN card is not updated with your PF account, the TDS will be as high as 30%.
But there are some benefits of completing Form 15G if your total earned interest is more than ₹40,000 every financial year. You can avoid a TDS deduction if your annual income is not taxable.
Steps to Fill up Form 15G for PF Withdrawal
Form 15G (Source)
Form 15G has two parts — Part 1 and Part 2, and you only need to fill out Part I for PF withdrawal. Here is how you fill up Form 15G:
(First, we have mentioned the field and then what information you need to put in those respective fields.)
Name of the Assessee (Declarant) – Enter your name per PAN card.
PAN of the Assessee — Since Form 15G can only be submitted by an individual, you need to enter your valid PAN card number.
Status — Enter your income tax status (individual).
Previous Year — Mention the financial year in which you are claiming the TDS exemption.
Residential Status — NRIs are not eligible for Form 15G submission, so put ‘Resident’ as your Residential Status.
Address — Mention your address along with your PIN code. If applicable, mention the address as per the Aadhaar card.
Email ID and phone number — Provide a valid email ID and phone number for communications.
(a) Whether assessed to tax under the Income-tax Act, 1961: Place a tick in the ‘’Yes’’ box if you filed an ITR in any of the last few years.
(b) If yes, latest assessment year for which assessed: Mention the latest assessment year for which you have filed the ITR.
Estimated income for which this declaration is made: In this field, you will mention your estimated withdrawal amount.
Estimated total income of the P.Y. in which income mentioned in column 16 to be included: Mention the total estimated yearly income for the same financial year in which you are withdrawing the PF amount.
Details of Form No. 15G other than this form filed during the previous year, if any: If you have filed multiple Form 15G in that financial year, mention the total number and the total income amount of all these forms. Calculate all the amounts you have put in the field (16) of all the forms.
Details of income for which the declaration is filed: In this part, you need to enter the following details.
Investment identification number
Nature of Income
Section under which tax is deductible
Amount of Income
Once you have filled out the form, review it before submitting it.
We hope this comprehensive guide helps you easily fill the Form 15G.
Submit Form 15G Online for PF Withdrawal
You can submit Form 15G both online and offline. To submit the 15G form online, you need to follow these steps:
Log in to your EPFO UAN Portal.
Select ‘Online Services’ and then select ‘Claim’
Enter your bank account details and ‘Verify’
Once you get an option to ‘Upload Form 15G’, click on it
You will need all the details we mentioned in the preceding section. So, make sure you have ready access to them.
Is TDS Applicable on EPF Withdrawal?
As per Section 192A of the Finance Act, 2015, EPF withdrawals are subject to TDS deduction. As we have already mentioned, if you are withdrawing your PF amount before 5 years of starting the contribution, you will have to pay 10% TDS on the withdrawal amount.
There are two exceptions, however:
If the withdrawal amount is less than ₹50,000, no tax will be deducted at source (TDS).
If you do not have your PAN updated with the PF account, the 30% TDS will be deducted from your withdrawal amount instead of 10%.
If your annual salary or earnings are not taxable, you can submit a Form 15G for PF withdrawal to avoid any TDS deduction.
With all that said, in certain scenarios, TDS does not apply to PF withdrawal.
When TDS is not applicable
TDS is not applicable for EPF account transfers — when transferring one PF account to another.
Your withdrawal is not subject to TDS if your service has been terminated due to ill health, project completion, business discontinuation by an employer, or any other causes that are beyond the employee’s control.
TDS is not applicable if you withdraw the EPF amount after completing a total of 5 years of service.
Conclusion
PF or EPF is a crucial element of an employee’s retirement plan. It accumulates over the years and can gather a substantial amount at the end of your service life. And having access to such liquidity after retirement can help you fulfil your needs and dreams.
Further, the employee contribution to the EPF account is tax-exempt under Section 80C of the Income Tax Act. The employer’s contribution is also tax-free, subject to 12% of the employee’s basic salary. Such tax relaxations are also very critical to prudent retirement planning.
