Online access to the Provident Fund was made more efficient within the national labour reform system announced on Thursday, enabling employees to log in and activate their Universal Account Number (UAN). They will be able to receive SMS alerts and access updated passbooks, according to Employee Provident Fund Organization (EPFO) officials.

Employees of the board have welcomed the portability, and EPFO officials said that it has brought all the 4.16 crore PF contributors’ accounts into this system, even though users will have to log in and activate their UAN numbers.

Launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday, the system notes that the amount of funds lying unclaimed in PF accounts since 1952 till now is Rs. 27,000 crore. Under the system, PF beneficiaries can download UAN cards, access e-passbooks and information on contributions every month online. Due to the portability, PF contributions will be transferred immediately after users change employment.

Efforts to implement these efforts began in 2001. At first, it was called the Social Security Number (SSN). However, the required levels of digitization could not be achieved, so it was dropped. From 2009-10 onwards, the institution started digitizing the data, which enabled them to shift to UAN once in every few months this year, as this was complete in all 120 offices, said an official.

Employers have to download the lists and hand it over to employees and also give their Know Your Customer (KYC) details. Employees simply have to log in and activate UAN.

Between January and June, all members were identified, except those whom employers had certified as having left their jobs. As of now, all users are in the new system if they log in and activate it. New persons joining an organization will be added to the system, confirmed an official.

Aadhaar is part of KYC. The EPFO is discussing with UID officials about learning to shift to the same ecosystem over time, added the official.

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