EPFO Death Claim: Forms and Process for PF, Pension and EDLI

The three payouts — do not claim just one

A death in service (or after leaving service, for the PF balance) can trigger up to three benefits. Families routinely claim the provident fund and miss the other two.

• Provident Fund withdrawal — Form 20. The member's EPF balance, with interest, paid to the nominee or family.
• Monthly family pension — Form 10D. Under the Employees' Pension Scheme (EPS), the spouse and children may receive a monthly widow/family pension.
• EDLI insurance — Form 5IF. The Employees' Deposit Linked Insurance scheme pays a lump sum to the family. The cover runs from a minimum of ₹2.5 lakh to a maximum of ₹7 lakh for members with 12 or more months of continuous service; a ₹50,000 minimum applies for shorter service or low balances. There is no separate premium and no separate policy document — if the person was an EPF member, this cover existed.

EPFO also offers a Composite Claim Form (Death) that covers all three benefits in a single application. Use it where possible — it reduces repeat visits and mismatched paperwork.

Who can claim

The benefits go first to the nominee registered in the member's EPF/EPS records. If there is no nominee, the PF and EDLI amounts are shared among eligible family members, and the EPS pension goes to the eligible spouse and children. Keep one caution in mind: a nomination made before marriage in favour of someone outside the family may no longer be valid after the member married — if the family situation changed after the nomination was made, expect EPFO to examine who the eligible family members are.

Option A — File online (death claim by beneficiary)

EPFO allows a beneficiary to file the death claim online on the Unified Member Portal. The broad flow:

1. Choose the "Death claim filing by beneficiary" option on the EPFO member portal.
2. Enter the deceased member's UAN along with the claimant's own Aadhaar details, name and date of birth as asked.
3. Verify with the Aadhaar OTP sent to the claimant's Aadhaar-linked mobile number.
4. Fill in the claim details for PF, pension and EDLI, and upload the documents listed below — death certificate, the claimant's bank proof (cancelled cheque or passbook copy showing the account clearly) and photographs as required.
5. Submit and note the claim ID for tracking on the portal.

One step sits with the employer: the member's exit in the EPFO records must be marked with the reason "Death in Service". If the employer has not updated this, the claim can stall — contact the employer's HR or the regional PF office and ask for the exit marking to be corrected before or alongside filing.

Option B — File offline through the employer or PF office

1. Collect the Composite Claim Form (Death) — or Forms 20, 10D and 5IF individually — from the EPFO website or the regional PF office.
2. Fill the forms for the nominee/family claimant and attach the documents below.
3. Submit through the last employer (who certifies the member's service details) or directly at the regional PF office that holds the member's account. Take a stamped acknowledgment.
4. Track the claim status on the EPFO portal using the claim ID.

Documents to keep ready

• Death certificate of the member
• The member's UAN and PF account details (the employer or a payslip usually has these)
• Claimant's Aadhaar and PAN
• Claimant's bank account proof — cancelled cheque or passbook with the name printed
• Passport-size photographs of the claimant (and of family members, for the pension claim)
• For the pension: details and documents of the spouse and children, such as birth certificates or Aadhaar, as the form requires
• Proof of relationship / legal heir documents, if there is no nominee on record

Timeline and follow-up

A complete death claim is ordinarily settled in around 20 days. Most delays come from fixable mismatches, so check these before you file:

• The member's name and date of birth in EPFO records vs Aadhaar — small spelling differences cause rejections.
• The claimant's bank account must be in the claimant's own name, and the IFSC and account number on the cheque must be legible.
• The exit reason "Death in Service" not marked by the employer (see above).
• An outdated nomination that no longer matches the family — resolve this question first, because it decides who gets paid.

If a complete claim sits without movement, raise a grievance on EPFO's EPFiGMS portal with your claim ID and acknowledgment before visiting the office — a registered grievance creates a trackable record.