Interest on EPF may be hiked to 8.65% for 2018-19

Once approved by the finance ministry, the rate hike will benefit six crore EPFO subscribers.

Illustration: Uttam Ghosh/Rediff.com

Retirement fund body EPFO has decided to provide 8.65 per cent interest on PF deposits for 2018-19 against 8.55 per cent in the last year to its 6 crore subscribers, Labour Minister Santosh Gangwar said on Thursday.

All members of the Central Board of Trustees (CBT) of EPFO at a meeting in New Delhi agreed to give a higher interest for subscribers for the current fiscal, the minister said further.

The proposal would now go to the finance ministry for approval, Gangwar said after the CBT meeting.

Earlier, highly placed sources had indicated that the interest on EPF deposits for this fiscal could be more than 8.55 per cent in view of impending general elections.

The Central Board of Trustees (CBT) headed by the labour minister is the apex decision making body of the EPFO which finalises rate of interest on PF deposits for a financial year.

Once approved by the CBT, the proposal requires the concurrence of the finance ministry.

The interest rate is credited into the subscribers account after the finance ministry's approval.

The EPFO had provided a five-year low rate of interest of 8.55 per cent to its subscribers for 2017-18.

The body had kept the interest rate at 8.65 per cent in 2016-17 and 8.8 per cent in 2015-16.

It provided 8.75 per cent interest for 2013-14 as well as 2014-15.

The rate of interest was 8.5 per cent in 2012-13.