EPFO invites applications for Amnesty Scheme 2026 for exempted Provident Fund trusts
EPFO has launched a six-month Amnesty Scheme, 2026, for certain exempted Provident Fund trusts to regularise their status.
- The Employees' Provident Fund Organisation has notified the Amnesty Scheme, 2026 for eligible exempted provident fund trusts.
- The Amnesty Scheme, 2026 will remain open for six months from the date of notification.
- The Finance Act, 2026 aligned the Income Tax framework for recognised provident funds with the Employees' Provident Fund & Misc. Provisions Act, 1952, according to the official release.
- Category I covers establishments seeking retrospective trust regularisation that have already started compliance as an unexempted establishment or are opting for prospective compliance as an unexempted establishment.
What happened
The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO), under the Ministry of Labour & Employment, has notified the Amnesty Scheme, 2026 for establishments operating exempted Provident Fund (PF) trusts. The scheme gives eligible establishments a one-time opportunity to regularise their status over a six-month period from notification.
The scheme is meant for provident fund trusts recognised under the Income Tax Act, 1961 but lacking a formal exemption notification from the appropriate government. The official release says the scheme was notified on 29 June 2026.
UPSC may ask about the legal basis of exempted provident fund trusts, the role of EPFO, or the effect of the Amnesty Scheme, 2026 on compliance and pending proceedings. The issue also connects labour welfare with administrative regularisation and statutory alignment under the Employees' Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952 and the Code on Social Security, 2020.
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