Indian Economy News

The Employees' Provident Fund Organization (EPFO) adds 14.58 lakh net members during March 2025

The Employees' Provident Fund Organization (EPFO) released provisional payroll data for March 2025, showing a net addition of 14.58 lakh members. This represents a 1.15% YoY increase compared to March 2024, reflecting improved employment opportunities and heightened awareness of employee benefits, supported by EPFO’s effective outreach initiatives. Notably, 7.54 lakh new subscribers joined in March 2025, a 2.03% rise from February 2025 and 0.98% YoY growth. The 18-25 age group led payroll additions, accounting for 58.94% of new subscribers with 4.45 lakh additions, marking a 4.21% MoM and 4.73% YoY increase. The net payroll addition for this age group was approximately 6.68 lakh, growing 6.49% compared to the previous year, underscoring youth as primary entrants into organised employment.
Other key trends include the return of 13.23 lakh rejoined members, a 0.39% monthly and 12.17% annual increase, reflecting job switches and transfer of provident fund accumulations to maintain social security benefits. Female membership growth was also positive, with 2.08 lakh new female subscribers in March 2025, showing 0.18% monthly and 4.18% annual growth; net female payroll additions stood at 2.92 lakh with a 0.78% YoY rise, indicating a shift towards a more inclusive workforce. Of all the states, Maharashtra leads by adding 20.24% of net payroll during the month. The states/Union Territories (UT) of Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Haryana, Gujarat, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, and Telangana individually added more than 5% of the total net payroll during the month: the top five states and union territories accounting for 59.67% of new payroll. Industry-wise, sectors such as restaurants, cement, general insurance, canteens, forwarding agencies, travel agencies, and hotels showed notable growth, with expert services comprising 45.59% of total additions. The data remains provisional as payroll records are continuously updated to reflect late filings, modifications, and member exits.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.