New Delhi: The retirement fund body EPFO is likely to announce the rate of interest on employees’ provident fund (EPF) deposits for the financial year 2025-26 with two-day meeting beginning on March 2, news reports have said.
After the CBT decision, the interest rate on EPF deposits for 2025-26 will be sent to the Ministry of Finance for concurrence. EPFO provides the rate of interest only after it is ratified by the government through the finance ministry.
The Centre had ratified the interest rate on employees’ provident fund (PF) deposits at 8.25% for FY2024-25 — the same as the previous fiscal. In February, the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) announced to retain the interest rate on employees’ provident fund deposits at 8.25% for FY25. The decision was taken by the EPFO’s Central Board of Trustees at a meeting in the national capital.
The Employees’ Provident Fund (EPFO) was established with the enactment of the Employees’ Provident Funds Ordinance on November 15, 1951, which was later replaced by the Employees’ Provident Funds Act, 1952.
EPF interest rate of 12 percent –the highest so far — maintained from FY 1989-90 to FY 1999-2000. However, in July 2001, PF interest rate was reduced to 11 percent. This marked the gradual decline in rates in subsequent years following upto FY 2021-22.
Interest rate on employees’ provident fund deposits was cut to a four-decade low of 8.1 percent for the 2021-22 fiscal from 8.5 percent in the previous year. This was the lowest interest rate since 1977-78 on deposits that employees make towards their retirement fund. Interest rate on employees provident fund that year stood at 8 percent.
The EPFO paid 8.5 percent interest rate to its subscribers in 2020-21, the same as in the previous year. The EPF rate was 8.65 percent in 2018-19 and 8.55 percent in 2017-18. In 2016-17, the EPF interest rate was at 8.65 percent.
