The Employees Provident Fund (EPF) form 31 is an application for advance from the provident fund. F-31 is, therefore, known as ‘Advance Form’ and used for acquiring loans, withdrawals or advances from an employee’s provident fund account. Under normal circumstances, the advance amount need not be refunded. All the same, if the advance amount is not used, it should be refunded alongwith interest. Also, it is important to note that a certain sum of minimum EPF balance is required to be maintained in the provident fund account of an employee prior to calculation of the admissible advance amount, subject to the the eligibility criteria for each condition.

The advances or loans taken from the EPF scheme can cater to his or her different financial requirements such as weddings, medical exigencies and constructing a house among others. The list of reasons for which advanced may be taken by an employee are listed below:

• Housing loan repayment
• Education
• House repair
• Wedding
• Medical treatment
• Construction of a dwelling
• Plot purchase
• Lockout
• House alteration
• Physically handicapped
• Abnormal conditions such as natural calamities
• Cut in supply of electricity

Documentation required 

The documentation which has to be produced by an employee for various purposes in EPF form 31 is listed is the table below:

What does EPF Form 31 entail? 

An employee has to fill out the following information in form 31 under the Employee Provident Fund Scheme 1952

• Mobile number
• Purpose for which advance is required
• Advance amount required
• Name of the member
• Husband’s name (married women)
• Provident Fund Account Number
• Monthly basic wages plus dearness allowance
• Full postal address
• Signature of applicant
• Signature of employer
• Mode of remittance
• If an advance is being taken for housing loan repayment or construction of a flat or site via an agency, an employee has to mention the name of the recipient on whose name the cheque has to be drawn in addition to the complete address of the recipient
• Savings Bank account number
• Name of the bank
• Branch name and complete address
• IFS code
• Copy of a cancelled cheque
• If the advance is being taken for wedding expenses, the employee has to mention the details of his daughter/sister/son/brother who is getting married including his or her age, wedding date and address (if the advanced applied for is not meant for marriage purposes, an employee need not fill in any details in the section)
• Signature of the employer
• Signature of the applicant
• Details related to advanced stamped received
• Signing official’s designation (along with establishment’s stamp)