A significant amount of retirement savings remains unclaimed across India, with more than ₹9,330 crore lying dormant in over 30 lakh inoperative Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) accounts. The revelation comes through a Right to Information (RTI) response obtained by India Today, highlighting the scale of unclaimed retirement funds even as the government rolls out a modernised EPF framework.
The findings have renewed attention on the challenges faced by employees in tracking and claiming provident fund balances after changing jobs, retiring, or losing access to old accounts.
More Than 30 Lakh Accounts Remain Inactive
According to the RTI response from the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO), as of March 31, 2026, there were 30.91 lakh inoperative EPF accounts holding approximately ₹9,330 crore in unclaimed funds. These accounts belong to workers whose provident fund balances remain untouched despite being eligible for withdrawal or transfer.
While the numbers remain substantial, the latest data indicates a modest improvement compared to the previous year. The number of dormant accounts declined from 31.83 lakh in March 2025 to 30.91 lakh in March 2026, while the total unclaimed balance fell from ₹10,181 crore to ₹9,330 crore.
New EPF Scheme Comes Into Effect
The disclosure comes shortly after the implementation of the EPF Scheme, 2026, which officially replaced the EPF Scheme, 1952. The new framework aims to simplify provident fund regulations, improve digital services and make account management easier for nearly eight crore active subscribers.
Government officials hope that increased digitisation and streamlined processes will reduce the number of dormant accounts and help workers access their savings more efficiently.
Why EPF Accounts Become Inoperative
EPF accounts often become inactive when employees change jobs without transferring their balances, fail to update KYC information, retire without withdrawing funds, or lose track of older accounts linked to previous employers. In many cases, workers may not even realise they still have money lying in dormant accounts.
The problem has become more visible as job mobility increases and employees move across multiple organisations during their careers.
EPFO Working on Auto-Settlement Mechanisms
To address the issue, EPFO has been working on auto-settlement initiatives aimed at returning funds to rightful beneficiaries. Earlier this year, the organisation announced pilot projects to automatically settle small-balance inoperative accounts, particularly those linked to Aadhaar-verified bank accounts.
These initiatives are expected to reduce paperwork, speed up settlements and ensure that dormant balances reach account holders more efficiently.
Importance of Checking Old PF Accounts
The latest RTI findings serve as a reminder for salaried employees to regularly review their EPF accounts, update KYC details and transfer balances when switching jobs. With thousands of crores still lying unclaimed, many workers could unknowingly be missing out on retirement savings that rightfully belong to them.
Summary
An RTI response has revealed that ₹9,330 crore remains unclaimed in 30.91 lakh inoperative EPF accounts across India as of March 2026. While the figures show a slight improvement from the previous year, the amount remains substantial. The disclosure comes alongside the rollout of the new EPF Scheme, 2026, as EPFO works to simplify account management and introduce auto-settlement mechanisms for dormant provident fund balances.
