The Employees' Provident Fund Organization (EPFO) has taken a major and revolutionary step in expanding digital services to more than 6 crore employed employees working in the private sector and organized industry. Till now, PF account holders had to rely on EPFO's official Unified Member Portal or UMANG app to check their balance, track claim status or download passbook. Portal downtime at the beginning of the month or during heavy traffic on the server, delay in receiving OTP and login failure due to technical glitches had become a common problem for millions of shareholders. Solving this everyday problem of salaried employees working in major industrial and corporate centers of Uttar Pradesh like Lucknow, Kanpur, Noida, Ghaziabad, Varanasi to Delhi-NCR, Bengaluru, Mumbai and Pune, EPFO has directly linked its services to the social messaging platform 'WhatsApp'. Now employees can get a complete account of their PF account at their fingertips with just a simple text message. Which services will be available on WhatsApp? From balance to claim status, various essential services are being provided to the members in real-time through this WhatsApp-based support and chatbot system launched by EPFO. The first and foremost facility among these is 'PF Balance Check', through which you can know how much fund has been deposited including your and your company's contribution. The second major service is 'Claim Status Tracking'; If you have applied online for PF transfer on change of job, PF advance for treatment or marriage (Form 31) or Full and Final Settlement (Form 19 and 10C) on leaving job, then you will not need to log in to the portal again and again. You can know the current status of the claim by directly entering your acknowledgment number in the chat window. Additionally, more than 138 Regional Offices of EPFO have activated their official WhatsApp helpline numbers where members can get direct resolution of their complaints related to errors in their UAN, KYC, name or date of birth. How does WhatsApp system work through MyGov Helpdesk and DigiLocker? To provide secure services on WhatsApp to the employees, the cooperation of 'MyGov Helpdesk' and 'DigiLocker' platform of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, Government of India has been taken. Under this arrangement, the government's official and blue tick (verified) WhatsApp bot is directly connected to the databases of EPFO and DigiLocker. If you want to check your PF passbook or balance on WhatsApp, the process is very simple: First, save the official MyGov helpdesk number of Government of India +91-9013151515 in your mobile contacts. Open WhatsApp from your mobile number which is registered with your Aadhaar and EPFO's UAN. go to the chat window "Hi" Or "Namaste" Send it in writing. From the chatbot side, you will see two main options—'MyGov Services' and 'DigiLocker Services'. Here select the option 'DigiLocker Services'. The system will ask you if you have a DigiLocker account; Select 'Yes' and enter your 12 digit Aadhaar number. A one-time security OTP will be sent to your Aadhaar-registered mobile, enter it in the chat. Once the authentication is successful, the list of all government documents available in DigiLocker will open. Here select the option of 'EPFO UAN Services' or 'UAN Card / Passbook'. Once selected, within a few seconds your latest PF passbook and balance details will appear as a PDF file for download directly in your WhatsApp chat. Direct WhatsApp Helpline Numbers of 138 Regional Offices of EPFO If your problem is not limited to just checking the balance, but your claim is stuck for 20 days, the company is not putting the exit date or the bank KYC is getting rejected, then EPFO has issued separate dedicated WhatsApp helpline numbers for all the 138 regional offices across the country. By visiting the 'WhatsApp Helpline' section of the official portal of EPFO (epfindia.gov.in), any account holder can get the unique WhatsApp number of his/her district or respective regional office (like Lucknow, Kanpur, Meerut, Noida, Delhi North, Bandra etc.). Your complaint and copy of documents can be shared by sending WhatsApp messages directly to these numbers, where EPFO PROs and Grievance Cell officials directly monitor the cases and provide resolution within the stipulated time frame. 2 other easy and superfast ways to know balance without internet If for some reason you are not able to use WhatsApp or your phone has run out of internet data, you can still get information about your PF balance without any interruption. EPFO offers two free and reliable services for this: Missed Call Facility: Just give a missed call to the toll-free number 9966022424 from your EPFO-registered mobile number. The call will automatically disconnect after two rings. After a few seconds, an official SMS will come from the EPFO system, which will contain complete details of your UAN, name, date of birth, Aadhaar seeding status and total PF balance in the account. SMS Service: Send a text message to 7738299899 from your registered phone. In the message box, type: EPFOHO UAN HIN (if you need information in Hindi) or EPFOHO UAN ENG (for English). As soon as the message is sent, you will immediately receive information about your previous and total contribution in the return SMS. 4 strict rules to avoid cyber fraud while taking PF update on WhatsApp. With the spread of digital services on WhatsApp, the activity of cyber thugs and fake gangs also increases. EPFO has issued a strict warning to all the account holders in the country, urging them to follow these security precautions: Must check for Blue Tick (Green/Blue Verified Badge): While interacting with any government or official chatbot, ensure that there is a green or blue 'Verified Checkmark' on the profile. Never trust claims of 'EPFO Support' coming from any unknown or personal mobile number. Never share OTP and UAN password: Any genuine representative of EPFO or authorized system never asks you for your login password, CVV of the bank or UPI PIN on chat. Only the system OTP sent by the government gateway is authorized for authentication. Beware of fake APK files: If someone on WhatsApp sends you a file saying that 'full PF money will be withdrawn instantly from this app', then do not download any such suspicious file. It could be a Trojan or malware hacking your phone. Complain instantly on money demand: All WhatsApp and online services of EPFO are 100% free. If anyone asks for money in exchange for passing a claim or checking balance, immediately call the National Cyber Crime Helpline 1930 or lodge a written complaint on epfigms.gov.in. This step of EPFO shows that the administration is making best use of technology to provide social security benefits to the common citizens. Gone are the days of complex website errors and office visits; Save the correct number in your smartphone and whenever you need it, get instant access to the details of your hard-earned money with a simple message.
