How to get an online EPF Pass book (Yahoo Finance 20th Nov 2012)

Employees Provident Fund (EPF), generally known as PF is a retirement benefit scheme available to the salaried class in India, wherein both the employer and employee contribute an equal amount towards the fund. This year, the EPFO (Employees Provident Fund Organization) has introduced an e-passbook facility for members, which enables them to check their PF account online.

What is an EPF e-passbook?

The EPF e-passbook is an online version of the employee’s provident fund account. Transactions are recorded date-wise and these can be tracked easily by the member. You can check your EPF balance online anytime you wish to.

How to register online?

Registration on the EPFO website is necessary to avail the e-passbook facility. The following steps need to be followed to register online -

1.      Visit the EPFO members site - http://members.epfoservices.in/

2.      Click on the “Register” at the bottom of the page or “Click here to Register” button under the Login area.

3.      You will reach the registration page, where you will have to enter your mobile number mandatorily. You will also need to enter your date of birth, email id and select one of the eight documents (PAN number, Aadhar (UID), NPR (National Population Register), bank account number, voter ID card, driving license, passport number or ration card number) along with its unique number and your name as it is in the document. On entering a six digit unique text character, you will have to click “GET PIN” to get a four digit authorization PIN on your mobile.

4.      Once you receive the PIN on your mobile, you will have to enter this PIN in the box provided at the bottom of the page. Check the “I agree” box and click on “Submit” button.

5.      After clicking on “Submit”, your registration will be complete and you will get a confirmation message on your mobile.
This completes the registration process on the EPFO member website.

How to generate e-passbook?     

After successful registration, you will need to login to your account in the member login area to generate the e-passbook. The following steps need to be followed.

1.      Log in to your account by selecting your document, entering the document number and your mobile number that you entered on the Registration page and click on the “Sign In” button.

2.      When you successfully login, you will see your name on the right hand side of the page. This is the page on which you can edit your personal details and also download your EPF e-passbook.

3.      When you click on “Download E Passbook” link, you will be prompted to select the state under which your establishment is covered.

4.      On selecting the state, you will be asked to choose the EPFO office. If you are unaware about the EPFO to which you belong, you can use the establishment search facility to get these details.

5.      When you have selected the EPFO office, you should now enter your EPF account number. The next step is to enter your name, which should exactly match EPF records.

6.      Click on “Get PIN” to receive the PIN on your mobile and email. Do not close this page till you receive the PIN on your mobile/email.

7.      When you receive the authorization PIN, you will need to enter this in the “Enter Authorization PIN” box, check the “I Agree” button and then click on “Get Detail”.

8.      You will then be able to download the PDF.

Points to remember while using EPFO’s e-passbook facility:

1.      Only one mobile number can be used for one registration. However, your mobile number details can be edited subsequently.

2.      You can view details of only one EPF account under one establishment. If you wish to view details of all your EPF accounts under a single establishment, then you will have to first transfer one EPF to another.

3.      You can view a total of 10 EPF accounts under different establishments. You can view your accounts any number of times and transfer old EPF accounts to existing ones too.

4.      You will not be able to view details of inoperative accounts and also EPF accounts which have been settled.

5.      If you have left your job before March 2012, then you will not be able to see details online. However, you can place a request for the same on the website and it will be uploaded in a few days.

6.      For logging into your account you just need your mobile number, document name and document number.

7.      You can use multiple ids to register by using different document types.

The EPFO’s e-Passbook facility is a welcome move which will enable employees in managing their EPF accounts in a better manner. The success of this facility depends on the efficiency of the EPFO in managing the website and handling requests from the members.

Did you know | You can use your short-term capital loss to your advantage (Mint Dec 19 2011)

This has been a disappointing year for domestic equity markets with the Nifty declining at least 20% year-to-date. Investors are likely to have both unrealized and realized loss in their portfolios. Realized capital loss arises when you sell a stock or mutual fund (MF) at a price lower than your purchase price; hence, you book loss. While this isn’t anything you can rejoice about, you can set off or deduct capital loss from capital gain in the same year. This, in turn, means your tax liability stands reduced as the net capital gain reduces.

What is a capital asset?

Capital asset means property of any kind (the Income-tax Act clearly identifies exceptions). The Act doesn’t define “property” as such. Judicially, property is a bundle of rights which the owner can lawfully exercise to the exclusion of all others and is entitled to use and enjoy as he pleases, provided he does not infringe any law. Once something is identified as property, it is a capital asset unless specifically exempted under the Act or if it figures in the exceptions mentioned in the Act.

What is short-term and long-term capital asset?

A short-term capital asset is that which is held for 36 months or less and long-term capital asset is one held for more than 36 months. In case of shares, any specified MF unit or units of Unit Trust of India or any security listed on a recognized stock exchange, short-term capital assets are those held for less than a year and long-term capital assets are those held for more than a year.

How can the loss be set off?

Realized short-term capital loss (asset held for less than a year in case of MF units and shares and less than 36 months for other capital assets) can be set off against gain from transfer of any other long-or short-term capital asset. Additionally, loss from transfer of a long-term capital asset (held for more than a year in case of MF units and shares and more than 36 months for other capital assets) can be set off against gains from transfer of long-term capital asset in the same year. This means if you have booked a loss of Rs 100 in a short-term capital asset and you have booked a gain of Rs 200 in a long-term capital asset, your net long-term capital gain on which you will be taxed is Rs 100. Similarly, if you booked a loss of Rs 200 in a long-term capital asset and booked a gain of Rs 100 in a short-term capital asset and Rs 200 in a long-term capital asset, your capital gains tax will be calculated for the gain of Rs 100 in the short-term capital asset. Note that long-term capital loss can only be set off against long-term capital gain from any capital asset and not against short-term capital gain.

Capital loss computed in an assessment year (AY) can be carried forward for eight AYs if it isn’t utilized fully in a given year. So if you booked a capital loss in the AY 2010-11 but didn’t earn any capital gains in that year, the loss can be set off against any other capital gain in the same AY or carried forward till AY 2018-19. Also, capital loss can’t be set off against any other income.

My Add-on:

Investors can also use Section 94 (8) on the Income Tax Act to their advantage, this sections states the treatment of Tax regarding Dividend and Bonus. For the purpose of explanation section 94 is mentioned below:

--- ITA - Income Tax Act ---

SECTION 94: Avoidance of tax by certain transactions in securities

Avoidance of tax by certain transactions in securities.
3 94. (1) Where the owner of any securities (in this sub-section and in sub-section (2) referred to as "the owner") sells or transfers those securities, and buys back or reacquires the securities, then, if the result of the transaction is that any interest becoming payable in respect of the securities is receivable otherwise than by the owner, the interest payable as aforesaid shall, whether it would or would not have been chargeable to income-tax apart from the provisions of this sub-section, be deemed, for all the purposes of this Act, to be the income of the owner and not to be the income of any other person.
Explanation.—The references in this sub-section to buying back or reacquiring the securities shall be deemed to include references to buying or acquiring similar securities, so, however, that where similar securities are bought or acquired, the owner shall be under no greater liability to income-tax than he would have been under if the original securities had been bought back or reacquired.
(2) Where any person has had at any time during any previous year any beneficial interest in any securities, and the result of any transaction relating to such securities or the income thereof is that, in respect of such securities within such year, either no income is received by him or the income received by him is less than the sum to which the income would have amounted if the income from such securities had accrued from day to day and been apportioned accordingly, then the income from such securities for such year shall be deemed to be the income of such person.
(3) The provisions of sub-section (1) or sub-section (2) shall not apply if the owner, or the person who has had a beneficial interest in the securities, as the case may be, proves to the satisfaction of the 4 [Assessing] Officer—
(a ) that there has been no avoidance of income-tax, or
(b ) that the avoidance of income-tax was exceptional and not systematic and that there was not in his case in any of the three preceding years any avoidance of income-tax by a transaction of the nature referred to in sub-section (1) or sub-section (2).
(4) Where any person carrying on a business which consists wholly or partly in dealing in securities, buys or acquires any securities and sells back or retransfers the securities, then, if the result of the transaction is that interest becoming payable in respect of the securities is receivable by him but is not deemed to be his income by reason of the provisions contained in sub-section (1), no account shall be taken of the transaction in computing for any of the purposes of this Act the profits arising from or loss sustained in the business.
(5) Sub-section (4) shall have effect, subject to any necessary modifications, as if references to selling back or retransferring the securities included references to selling or transferring similar securities.
(6) The 5[Assessing] Officer may, by notice in writing, require any person to furnish him within such time as he may direct (not being less than twenty-eight days), in respect of all securities of which such person was the owner or in which he had a beneficial interest at any time during the period specified in the notice, such particulars as he considers necessary for the purposes of this section and for the purpose of discovering whether income-tax has been borne in respect of the interest on all those securities.
6 [(7) Where—
( a) any person buys or acquires any securities or unit within a period of three months prior to the record date;
7[( b) such person sells or transfers—
(i) such securities within a period of three months after such date; or
(ii) such unit within a period of nine months after such date;]
(c ) the dividend or income on such securities or unit received or receivable by such person is exempt,
then, the loss, if any, arising to him on account of such purchase and sale of securities or unit, to the extent such loss does not exceed the amount of dividend or income received or receivable on such securities or unit, shall be ignored for the purposes of computing his income chargeable to tax.]
8 [(8) Where—
(a ) any person buys or acquires any units within a period of three months prior to the record date;
(b ) such person is allotted additional units without any payment on the basis of holding of such units on such date;
(c ) such person sells or transfers all or any of the units referred to in clause (a) within a period of nine months after such date, while continuing to hold all or any of the additional units referred to in clause (b),
then, the loss, if any, arising to him on account of such purchase and sale of all or any of such units shall be ignored for the purposes of computing his income chargeable to tax and notwithstanding anything contained in any other provision of this Act, the amount of loss so ignored shall be deemed to be the cost of purchase or acquisition of such additional units referred to in clause (b) as are held by him on the date of such sale or transfer.]
Explanation.—For the purposes of this section,—
(a ) "interest" includes a dividend ;
9[( aa) "record date" means such date as may be fixed by—
(i) a company for the purposes of entitlement of the holder of the securities to receive dividend; or
(ii) a Mutual Fund or the Administrator of the specified undertaking or the specified company as referred to in the Explanation to clause (35) of section 10 , for the purposes of entitlement of the holder of the units to receive income, or additional unit without any consideration, as the case may be;]
(b ) "securities" includes stocks and shares ;
(c ) securities shall be deemed to be similar if they entitle their holders to the same rights against the same persons as to capital and interest and the same remedies for the enforcement of those rights, notwithstanding any difference in the total nominal amounts of the respective securities or in the form in which they are held or in the manner in which they can be transferred;
10[( d) "unit" shall have the meaning assigned to it in clause (b) of the Explanation to section 115AB .]

3. For relevant case laws, see Google.com.
4. Substituted for "Income-tax" by the Direct Tax Laws (Amendment) Act, 1987, w.e.f. 1-4-1988.
5. Substituted for "Income-tax" by the Direct Tax Laws (Amendment) Act, 1987, w.e.f. 1-4-1988.
6. Inserted by the Finance Act, 2001, w.e.f. 1-4-2002.
7. Substituted by the Finance (No. 2) Act, 2004, w.e.f. 1-4-2005. Prior to its substitution, clause (b ) read as under :
"(b) such person sells or transfers such securities or unit within a period of three months after such date;"
8. Inserted by the Finance (No. 2) Act, 2004, w.e.f. 1-4-2005.
9. Substituted by the Finance (No. 2) Act, 2004, w.e.f. 1-4-2005. Prior to its substitution, clause (aa ), as inserted by the Finance Act, 2001, w.e.f. 1-4-2002, read as under :
‘(aa) "record date" means such date as may be fixed by a company or a Mutual Fund or the Unit Trust of India for the purposes of entitlement of the holder of the securities or the unit-holder, to receive dividend or income, as the case may be;’
10. Inserted by the Finance Act, 2001, w.e.f. 1-4-2002.

Location in ITA: CPC\Chapter X\Section 94
Location in App: ITA\Chapter X\Section 94

-Shared from 'ITA - Income Tax Act'

Are NRE FDs better than FMPs for NRIs? (www.onemint.com 7th Oct 2012)

In a prior post I compared FMPs (Fixed Maturity Plans) with bank fixed deposits, and said that if you are in the higher tax bracket, the tax advantage of FMPs tilt the balance in their favor somewhat (if you can live with the uncertainty).

That’s true for domestic investors but what about NRIs?

Allwyn left the following comment on the Suggest a Topic page a few days ago:

allwyn September 4, 2012 at 12:59 am [edit]

Hi,
Could you pls. explain the advantages/disadvantages of FDs(presently int. rates of over 9% tax free) over FMP/Debt funds for NRI’s

Thanks in advance

Allwyn

This is an interesting question, and in my mind since it’s only the tax advantage that makes you think of FMPs over fixed deposits for domestic investors, you need to look at the tax angle to answer this question for NRIs as well.

For close to a year now, NRE fixed deposits are tax free, and this was one step by RBI to arrest the Rupee slide. This means that NRE fixed deposits are currently better than NRO fixed deposits, and they are an obvious competitor to NRI investments in FMPs.

I didn’t know how FMPs are taxed for NRIs but this DSP BLACKROCK page on NRI taxation states that NRIs will be taxed at their applicable assessee rate in case of short term capital gains, and will be taxed at 10% without indexation or 20% with indexation for long term capital gains on non – equity mutual funds.

Since most FMPs are slightly over a year to make them count under long term capital gains, this means that most of the time your NRI FMPs will taxed at 10% whereas the returns from your NRE fixed deposits are tax free.

I think in general it is easier to open a NRE fixed deposit than it is to buy a FMP for NRIs, so that’s another thing in their favor along with the fact that you know before hand how much your fixed deposit will earn.

If the tax situation for NRIs change as far as FMPs are concerned then this might be worth a re-look but until then I can’t think of a good reason to favor FMPs instead of FDs for NRIs.