New Delhi, Oct 13 (IANS) The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has extended, to October 22, the last date for filing the newly launched revamped Electronic Challan-cum-Return (ECR) system, which is applicable from the wage month of September 2025, according to an official statement issued on Monday.

The deadline has been extended due to requests from a number of employers who are still adapting to the new features of the revamped ECR and consequently facing difficulty in filing returns, the statement said.

The revamped system aims to simplify the return filing process for employers via the EPFO’s employer portal.

In order to facilitate a smooth transition to the revamped ECR system, the EPFO has also undertaken a series of awareness programmes with employers and industry representatives across the country.

At the central level, the EPFO held meetings with major industry bodies, including the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI), and the Employer Federation of India (EFI), to apprise them of the new features and procedural reforms introduced in the revamped ECR system. The discussions focused on the advantages of the new return filing process, including enhanced data accuracy, sequential return validation, and better compliance facilitation.

In continuation of this outreach, the zonal and regional Offices of the EPFO are also conducting interactive sessions and workshops with employers and establishment representatives. These programmes aim to provide on-ground handholding support to establishments and ensure timely and error-free filing of returns under the revamped system.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Labour and Employment has also launched the ‘Employees’ Enrolment Campaign, 2025′ (EEC 2025), a major initiative to increase the number of workers under the ambit of organised social security through the EPFO.

The scheme will be operational from November 1, 2025, to April 30, 2026. This scheme is a continued effort of the Ministry, after a successful similar enrolment campaign conducted in the year 2017 for the enrolment of left-out eligible employees from 2009 to 2016, according to an official statement issued on Monday.

This campaign is intended to encourage employers, both already registered and those newly coming under the purview of the Employees’ Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952, to voluntarily declare and enrol eligible employees. Employers can enrol all existing employees who joined the establishment between July 1, 2017, and October 31, 2025, and who are alive and employed on the date of the declaration, but were not enrolled in the EPF scheme earlier due to any reason whatsoever, according to an official statement.

–IANS

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