EPFO Pushes VISHWAS 2026 for Legacy PF Damages Cases; Reduced Rates Available Until December 28

The Employees' Provident Fund Organisation has renewed its call for eligible establishments to use VISHWAS, 2026, the one-time settlement mechanism for long-pending provident-fund damages disputes, and has stressed that the window closes on December 28, 2026. In a September 3 Press Information Bureau release, the Ministry of Labour & Employment said the closing date will not be extended.

The fresh government push is particularly relevant for finance, payroll, legal and compliance teams carrying old EPF damages exposures. It also comes with judicial momentum: the PIB release records recent High Court directions encouraging establishments to settle through the scheme.

Reduced damages rates under VISHWAS, 2026

The scheme applies to eligible cases involving delayed provident-fund contributions for periods before June 14, 2024. PIB says that, compared with normal penalty levels that can reach as high as 37% a year, the scheme uses sharply reduced monthly rates:

- delay up to two months: 0.25% per month;

- delay from two to four months: 0.50% per month;

- delay beyond four months: 1% per month.

These rates are relevant to the damages or penalty settlement calculation; employers should not read the scheme as a waiver of every amount associated with a delayed PF payment.

Which cases can be considered

The September 3 release describes four broad categories that may fall within the mechanism, subject to the scheme's conditions:

- penalty proceedings already pending before a court or tribunal;

- cases where EPFO has passed a penalty order but recovery is still wholly or partly pending;

- cases where a notice proposing penalty has been issued but the final order is yet to be passed; and

- cases where EPFO records show delayed PF payments but no penalty notice has yet been issued.

Outstanding interest must be cleared first

An employer must first clear the outstanding interest on the delayed provident-fund contributions before filing under VISHWAS, 2026. The application is then made through the EPFO Employer Portal, using the VISHWAS, 2026 module, selecting the applicable case category, uploading the required documents and completing digital authentication.

The portal is designed to calculate the revised penalty amount automatically. Once approval is available, the employer gets 15 days to make payment, with an automatic further extension of 15 days where required. After payment is confirmed, EPFO issues a digitally signed Settlement Certificate; the PIB release says the related court or tribunal proceedings then stand closed.

High Courts are directing parties toward the scheme

The government's September 3 update cites several court developments. It says the Bombay High Court's Pune Bench, in WP No. 4246 of 2018, directed an employer to apply under VISHWAS, 2026 within two weeks, modified the earlier tribunal order and disposed of the writ petition. It also states that the Madras High Court disposed of WP No. 38008 of 2024 after the employer expressed willingness to use the scheme, closing the related tribunal proceedings.

PIB further reports that the Kerala High Court's Ernakulam Bench has issued similar directions in 19 separate cases, asking establishments to approach EPFO for settlement under VISHWAS, 2026.

What CAs and finance teams should do now

Employers with historical PF delays should inventory open Section 14B or corresponding penalty matters, recovery cases, notices and pending litigation, then reconcile the underlying period of default, outstanding statutory interest and amounts already paid. The finance and legal teams should also confirm that the case falls within the scheme's eligible period and category before committing to settlement.

For audit and financial-reporting purposes, the settlement process should be documented carefully: the original demand or notice, interest payment, online application, revised system calculation, payment challan, Settlement Certificate and any resulting closure of litigation should be retained as one complete trail.

EPFO says assistance is available through 153 Regional Offices, where dedicated VISHWAS Cells and Helpdesks have been set up. The immediate action point is therefore not to wait for year-end: eligible establishments have a defined final date of December 28, 2026, and the government has explicitly said there will be no extension.

Official source: View the official source document

Key takeaway

A fresh September 3 government reminder combines a hard deadline, quantified reduced rates, court developments and a concrete online action path for employers and advisers.