EPFO allows submission of Transgender Identity Certificate for name and gender change; check details

The EPFO will now accept Transgender Identity Certificate/Card issued through the National Portal for Transgender Persons as valid proof for name and gender change in its records.

In January 2025, the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) had released a circular for the simplification of joint declaration process, in which it declared the list of documents that can be submitted for change in several parameters, including name, gender, nationality, date of birth, parents’/spouse name, marital status, date of joining, reason of leaving and date of leaving.

Transgender Identity Certificate/Card is now included in the List of Acceptable Documents for effecting a change in name or gender.

“Accordingly, the said document shall be deemed to have been included in the List of Acceptable Documents available as Annexure II to the circular dated 16/01/2025 on Simplification of Joint Declaration Process,” the EPFO said in the circular.

The EPFO simplified the online profile updating process by classifying the members into these three categories:

• Member ID linked with UAN generated based on Aadhaar from October 1, 2017
• Member ID linked with UAN generated before October 1, 2017, wherein Name, date of birth, gender and Aadhaar are validated by UIDAI
• Member ID having UAN but not Aadhaar validated by UIDAI, or without any UAN or belonging to deceased members

It also announced the levels at which the change in a certain parameter can be made.

Online profile update process without documents

In January last year, the EPFO simplified the process of updating profiles for members. Employees whose Universal Account Number (UAN) is validated through Aadhaar can update many parameters in their profile without uploading documents, and can also self-approve the update request without the need for approval from employers.

Additionally, for members who need to submit documents, they can be submitted through DigiLocker.