Employees' Pension Scheme 1995: Why Pension Claims Get Rejected and How to Fix It

Most EPS-95 pension claims are returned or rejected for data mismatches in the EPFO record, a missing date of exit, an unlinked KYC, or a name or date-of-birth that does not match Aadhaar; long before the pension is calculated. The Employees' Pension Scheme 1995 (EPS-95) pays a monthly pension from age 58 after 10 years of contributory service, claimed on Form 10D through the EPFO Member Portal. This guide walks through why a Form 10D claim fails and how to fix each cause.

Reason 1: Date of exit not recorded

A missing date of exit from your last employer is the single most common reason a pension claim cannot even be filed, as noted in the scheme guide's own application steps. The portal will not let you proceed without it.

Fix: Ask your last employer to mark your date of exit in the EPFO system. If the employer is defunct or unresponsive, members can mark the date of exit themselves through the Member Portal once the required period has passed, using Aadhaar OTP verification.

Reason 2: KYC not seeded or not verified

Your UAN must be activated and KYC-seeded; Aadhaar, bank account with IFSC, and PAN linked and digitally approved by the employer. A claim with unverified KYC is rejected.

Fix: Log into unifiedportal-mem.epfindia.gov.in, confirm Aadhaar and bank are verified against the UAN, and get any pending KYC approved before filing Form 10D.

Reason 3: Bank account or IFSC mismatch

The pension is credited to the bank account linked to the UAN. A wrong account number, a closed account, or an IFSC changed after a bank merger causes the credit to fail or the claim to bounce.

Fix: Verify the last four digits of the bank account on the claim screen match your active account. Update the account on the portal if your branch's IFSC changed after a merger.

Reason 4: Name, date of birth or gender mismatch with Aadhaar

EPFO validates member details against Aadhaar. A spelling difference, a wrong date of birth, or a father/spouse name mismatch triggers rejection.

Fix: Use the joint declaration facility on the Member Portal to correct member details, get it attested by the employer, and re-file once the correction is approved.

Reason 5: Less than 10 years of contributory service

A monthly pension needs 10 years of contributory service. A member with less than that is not eligible for pension. The claim for Form 10D pension is correctly rejected.

Fix: This is eligibility, not error. Instead, take a withdrawal benefit, or a Scheme Certificate on Form 10C to carry the past service forward to your next job so the years add up toward 10. Note that a June 2024 amendment extended withdrawal benefit even to members with less than 6 months of contributory service.

Reason 6: Service periods not linked under one UAN

The 10 years need not be continuous — service across employers can be aggregated only if linked to one UAN. Multiple UANs from different jobs leave your service fragmented and short of 10 years.

Fix: Get your previous member IDs transferred and merged into your current UAN before claiming, so all contributory service is counted together.

Reason 7: Not eligible for EPS membership at all

Members who joined EPF on or after 1 September 2014 on wages above the Rs 15,000 ceiling are not EPS members, and their full employer share went to the provident fund. A pension claim from such a member is rejected because there is no EPS membership.

Fix: There is no fix, this is a coverage rule. Confirm your EPS membership status before filing.

How to correct or contest a rejection

1. Check the exact rejection remark under Online Services → Track Claim Status on the Member Portal.
2. Fix the specific defect: date of exit, KYC, bank, or a joint-declaration name correction.
3. Re-file Form 10D once the correction is approved.
4. For unresolved issues, raise a complaint on EPFiGMS, the EPFO's online grievance system.
5. Call the EPFO helpdesk on 14470, use the missed-call service on 9966044425 or SMS 7738299899, or visit your EPFO regional office.

EPS-95 pension claims are free. No consultant can speed up a claim, and EPFO never asks for an OTP or UAN password over the phone; fixing your own record data is what clears a rejection.