Bulk UAN generation: New employee guide

Earlier this year, the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) introduced a major change, enabling employers to generate Universal Account Numbers (UANs) in bulk, even without linking Aadhaar. This was done to help employees with past accumulations to access their savings.

Some employees have money saved in EPF from their previous employers or special permissions (exempted trusts), or in cases where the EPFO recovers the unpaid amounts. This new feature, introduced in April this year, helps these employees get their UANs and access their savings, even without Aadhaar seeding.

“With a view to ensuring proper accounting of the Past Accumulations that had been remitted to EPFO by the Exempted PF Trusts consequent to the surrender/cancellation of exemption and also in other cases involving remittance of past period contributions consequent to quasi-judicial/recovery proceedings, it has been decided to relax the requirement of Aadhaar for generation of UAN/credit of Past Accumulations for such members and also provide a facility for the bulk generation of UANs based on the Member ID & other member information available on record so as to enable prompt crediting of funds in the accounts of such members,” the EPFO said in a notice dated April 25, 2025.

What is bulk UAN generation?

UAN, or Universal Account Number, is a 12-digit unique number issued by the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) serving as a single identification number for an employee’s provident fund. The UAN consolidates an employee's EPF details and makes it easier for employees to track and manage their PF contributions and withdrawals.

Bulk Universal Account Number (UAN) generation is a facility offered by the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO). It allows employers to create UANs for multiple members (employees) at once. The generation of UAN in bulk helps employers register a large number of employees quickly in the EPFO system. This makes the process more efficient, especially for employees of exempted trusts or in special cases (like recovery of old dues).

When is bulk UAN generation used?

Bulk UAN generation is used in many other cases, helping employers to issue UANs to many employees at once. This makes the process easier and enables employees to access and manage their funds.

Bulk UAN generation without Aadhaar

While the EPFO has allowed for bulk UAN generation without mandatory Aadhaar linking, UANs generated in bulk without Aadhaar linking remain in the frozen state and are activated only with successful Aadhaar seeding. Transfers and withdrawals via these UANs can only be made after Aadhaar is linked.

Through this update, the EPFO has made it easier for employers to generate UANs in bulk and made the process faster, ensuring wider coverage.

After UANs are issued, employers must inform employees and ensure that Aadhaar linking is done so UANs can be used for transfers and withdrawals.

Bulk UAN generation by employers helps EPFO beneficiaries get faster access to their old PF money and ensures the inclusion of workers who weren’t linked to Aadhaar for various reasons. Further, this helps EPFO ensure greater coverage of its services, especially for low-income workers and those in organised sectors.