The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation has rolled out a digital overhaul of its Universal Account Number generation and activation process, enabling members to use Aadhaar-based face authentication via the government’s UMANG mobile application, the Labour Ministry said on Wednesday.
The initiative aims to reduce dependency on employers and enhance the ease of access for millions of EPFO members by leveraging biometric authentication. The move follows a year in which only about a third of newly allotted UANs were activated by employees.
“This contactless and secure method will ensure 100 percent Aadhaar validation and enable instant UAN activation, significantly improving user experience and data accuracy,” the ministry said in a statement.
A Shift Away from Employer Dependency
Previously, UANs were typically generated by employers using employee-submitted data, often resulting in mismatches in key personal fields like date of birth or mobile number.
These discrepancies frequently delayed benefit claims and communication with members.
In the 2024-25 fiscal year, EPFO allotted 12.6 million UANs but saw activation by only 4.47 million members.
The new process allows users to bypass employers entirely, generating and activating UANs themselves by submitting a live facial image, matched against Aadhaar records.
How the New Process Works
The revamped system requires users to install both the UMANG and Aadhaar FaceRD apps, enter Aadhaar-linked credentials, and complete biometric validation.
Once verified, a UAN is generated and auto-activated, with an electronic UAN card instantly available for download.
“This is a significant leap towards digital empowerment and self-service, enhancing security and efficiency through biometric verification,” the statement said.
Simplified Access for Existing Members
Existing members with inactive UANs can also activate them through the new process. The EPFO has urged employers to assist first-time workers in adopting the new system to ensure smooth onboarding and accurate registration.
In a further step toward digital inclusion, EPFO said it will partner with youth volunteers from the MY Bharat initiative to deliver Aadhaar-based digital life certificate services to pensioners at their homes using the same face authentication technology.
The EPFO, which manages social security funds for over 277 million Indian workers, continues to expand its digital services to streamline benefit delivery and improve member engagement.
