EPFO urges employers to enrol left-out staff before EEC 2026 closes on 31 October

The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has urged establishments to use the Employees’ Enrolment Campaign, 2026 (EEC 2026) to bring employees who were left out of provident fund coverage into the system. The campaign, notified with effect from 29 June 2026, is a special one-time opportunity covering the period 1 April 2009 to 31 March 2026. It will remain open up to 31 October 2026.

What has changed

According to the Ministry of Labour and Employment’s release of 22 August 2026, eligible employers can declare and enrol employees who:

• were left out of EPF coverage during the period 1 April 2009 to 31 March 2026; and
• are alive and continuing in employment with the establishment on the date of declaration.

The campaign offers specified relaxations to help regularise past compliance. The release names one: the employee’s share is waived where it was not deducted earlier, subject to the conditions of the campaign. Its stated aim is to encourage voluntary compliance by employers and extend provident fund, pension and insurance benefits to eligible workers.

The process is online. For each declared employee, the employer must generate a Face Authentication-based Universal Account Number (UAN) through the UMANG app. Contributions must be remitted through the Electronic Challan-cum-Return (ECR).

The release does not set out the other relaxations, the amount payable for past periods, or how interest or damages are treated. Employers should check these in the campaign’s notified terms before declaring employees.

Who is affected

Employers with current staff who were outside EPF coverage at some point between April 2009 and March 2026. Because the campaign is limited to employees who are alive and still employed on the date of declaration, staff who have since left are outside it. EPFO says it is running awareness and outreach for employers, employees, establishments, contractors and other stakeholders. It is also encouraging ministries, state governments, union territories, public sector undertakings and autonomous bodies to spread word of the campaign among establishments and service providers under their control.

What this means for businesses

For startups and smaller companies, the campaign gives a structured, one-time route to regularise past gaps in PF coverage instead of leaving them unresolved. Where the employee share was never deducted, the waiver means it does not have to be paid, subject to the campaign’s conditions. In practice, though, the employer’s own cost under the campaign is not stated in the release and will depend on its notified terms.

EPFO has asked employers to review their employment and wage records to identify eligible employees. Finance and HR teams can match current staff against past PF filings, confirm who was outside coverage during the period, and work out the cost before deciding. With the window closing soon and the details mattering, take advice where past exposure is significant.

What to do now

• Review employment and wage records for current employees who were outside EPF coverage between 1 April 2009 and 31 March 2026.
• Check the campaign’s conditions, including when the employee share waiver applies.
• Generate a Face Authentication-based UAN through the UMANG app for each declared employee.
• Remit contributions through the ECR and finish enrolment before the campaign closes on 31 October 2026.