EPF Rate for 2025-26 Recommended at 8.25%, Awaiting Finance Ministry and Government Notification

The Employees' Provident Fund (EPF) is a retirement savings scheme for salaried workers, administered by the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) under the EPF Scheme, 1952. Each year the scheme pays interest on members' balances, and EPFO credits that interest to member accounts. For 2025-26, the recommended rate is 8.25 per cent.

The rate passes through three stages. A trustees' board recommends it, the Ministry of Finance concurs, and the government formally notifies it. The rate is recommended by trustees, approved by the government, and only then credited to members. Not every date in the sequence has been reported.

The Trustees Recommend the Rate Each Year

The Central Board of Trustees (CBT) is EPFO's top decision-making body, according to Angel One. Its meeting on 2 March 2026 was chaired by Union Labour Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, and it recommends the annual interest rate for each financial year.

For 2025-26, the CBT met on Monday, 2 March 2026, and recommended 8.25 per cent. ThePrint reports that this was the third straight year at that rate. The rate was also 8.25 per cent for 2024-25. For 2023-24 it rose to 8.25 per cent from 8.15 per cent in 2022-23.

Business Today says interest is calculated on the monthly running balance and compounded annually, under Paragraph 60 of the EPF Scheme, 1952.

ThePrint says the Government of India must officially notify the rate before EPFO credits it to subscribers' accounts.

A Proposed Cut to 8.10 Per Cent Was Not Adopted

People Matters reports that EPFO's investment sub-committee recommended lowering the rate to 8.10 per cent, and that the Ministry of Finance agreed with the proposed cut. The Central Board of Trustees kept the rate at 8.25 per cent. The sub-committee's proposal was therefore not the final figure, and the Ministry of Finance's agreement with it did not settle the rate.

The same report gives projected figures for 2025-26. At 8.25 per cent, a deficit of ₹944.06 crore could result. At 8.10 per cent, a surplus of ₹1,675.82 crore would have been generated, members present at the meeting indicated. The projected shortfall at 8.25 per cent is expected to be adjusted from the previous year's surplus, which the report gives as ₹5,480.34 crore for 2024-25.

The figures rest on income estimates for 11 months of the year, and they remain subject to revision at the end of March. People Matters links the projected deficit to a stock market slide and broader financial uncertainty, and reports that a CBT member cited geopolitical tensions and market volatility.

Trade unions made representations to the board before it kept the higher rate. People Matters describes the trade-off in plain terms: the lower rate would have produced a surplus, and the higher rate a projected deficit expected to be adjusted from the previous year's surplus.

ThePrint reports that the Ministry of Labour and Employment said EPFO had kept strong financial discipline, ensuring stable and competitive returns despite global uncertainties, without straining the interest account. The ministry pointed to a consolidated corpus of more than ₹28.34 lakh crore as of March 2025.

Why the Finance Ministry Signs Off Next

The government guarantees EPF deposits, which is why the CBT's recommendation goes to the Finance Ministry for concurrence, according to Tribune. On 18 June 2026, Tribune reported that the ministry had given its concurrence to the 8.25 per cent rate, and that over seven crore contributing members are likely to benefit. People Matters puts the number of subscribers who benefit at over 7.8 crore.

Business Today says the interest amount is credited only after the government formally approves and officially notifies the rate. Approval is followed by reconciliation of accounts across millions of subscribers. People Matters said the recommendation needed the Finance Ministry's ratification before EPFO credits interest to subscribers' accounts.

No date has been reported for either the Finance Ministry's concurrence or the formal notification. Once the government has approved and notified the rate, the steps described are reconciliation of accounts and then the credit.

The Credit Date Is Reported Differently

After approval, EPFO reconciles accounts and updates records before the amount is transferred to each member. Business Today says this usually leaves a gap of several months between the rate announcement and the credit.

Tribune reports that the credit is likely in June 2026, acting on the Labour Ministry's direction, and that under EPFO's new ecosystem interest can be credited immediately after approval and processing. Angel One expects the credit later in June 2026 and says members need not take any separate action. On 12 June 2026, Business Today said no official crediting date had been announced and expected the credit between June and September 2026.

Business Today says the entry may not appear in every passbook at the same time, and that a passbook delay does not reduce the amount payable. The confirming entry reads 'Int. Updated up to 31/03/2026'.

The rate is recommended by trustees, approved by the government, and only then credited to members.

Checking Your Balance Against the Rate

Business Today lists the UMANG app, the EPFO Member e-Sewa portal, a missed-call service and SMS as ways to check an account. The passbook entry is the reference point for whether the year's interest has been posted.

As of the June 2026 reporting, the trustees had recommended 8.25 per cent for 2025-26 and the Finance Ministry had concurred, but no official crediting date had been announced. Sources put the number of members affected at over seven crore or over 7.8 crore. The credit date for all member accounts had not been confirmed in that reporting.

A Timeline of the 2025-26 Rate So Far

On 2 March 2026, the CBT recommended 8.25 per cent. On 12 June 2026, Business Today reported that no official crediting date had been announced. On 18 June 2026, Tribune and Angel One reported that the Finance Ministry had concurred with the rate.

The credit window differs by source. Tribune and Angel One pointed to June 2026, while Business Today expected the credit between June and September 2026. Notification has no reported date, so the timeline has no confirmed step between the concurrence and the credit.