EPFO Adds 16.10 Lakh Net Members In February, Female Participation Increases By 9.23 Per Cent YoY

The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) net payroll addition increased by around 4 per cent in February 2025 compared to the same period the previous year. EPFO’s provisional payroll data for the month shows a net addition of 16.10 lakh (1.6 million) members, including 7.39 lakh new subscribers.

Key Data Points:

• Of the total net addition during the month, around 13.18 lakh members have been the existing members who exited from one organisation and joined another, and rejoined EPFO. The number of such members increased by 11.85 per cent in February 2025 compared to the same month in 2024.

• Female participation has increased significantly to 3.37 lakh, reflecting a 9.23 per cent growth year-over-year. This includes 2.08 lakh new female subscribers, indicating a 1.26 per cent growth over the previous year.

• Youngsters grabbed a chunk of the total net additions. According to the data, 4.27 lakh new EPFO subscribers were in the 18 to 25 age bracket. Most of them are first-time employees. The young cohort contributed around 58 per cent of the total new subscribers in February. It brings the net payroll addition for this age group to 6.78 lakh.

• Geographically, five states and union territories (UTs) added more than half (60 per cent) of the net addition in February. Maharashtra added around 21 per cent of the net addition, followed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Telangana with more than 5 per cent of the total net payroll addition.

• Industry-wide, the highest net payroll addition (41.72 per cent) was from the expert services, including security services, manpower suppliers, contractors, etc.

EPFO is one of the largest organisations in India to offer social security to its members. It covers retirement benefits for organised sector employees, consisting of the employee provident fund (EPF) and employee pension scheme (EPS). Lately, it has made several changes in its rules and processes to streamline its operations and reduce the ever-growing number of complaints.

According to the latest updates, it will launch its EPFO 3.0 version by the end of June this year. The new version is expected to offer members upgraded and faster services, such as auto claim settlement, ATM withdrawal of PF funds, and digital changes in personal details, among others.