February 13, 2026 08:34 am (IST)
Follow us:
EPF tax rolled back, comprehensive review soon, says Jaitley
New Delhi, Mar 8 (IBNS): In response to the general discontent over the proposal to tax employee provident fund withdrawals made in the Union Budget 2016, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Tuesday announced in Parliament to roll back the tax because the government will hold a comprehensive review soon.
Jaitley said the proposal was intended to create a pensioned society.
Amid pressure from various quarters, Prime Minister also had asked the Finance Minister to examine the Employees' Provident Fund or EPF tax in details. The government had decided to tax 60% of Employees Provident Fund withdrawal on retirement.
The finance ministry earlier had hinted that it was not considering any roll back in the proposed taxation of Employee Provident Fund withdrawal even as clamour for its rollback had gained momentum.
The government clarified that only the interest accrued on contributions to employee provident fund made after April 1 will be taxed while the principal will remain exempted from tax.
Ever since the proposal to tax withdrawals from the EPF was mentioned during the Union Budget 2016 , the salaried employees have been voicing their concern while rival politicians demanded its rollback.
Mamata Banerjee, chief minister of West Bengal has tweeted, "#EPFRollBack A victory for the common people. Happy that we were the first to raise this issue. Good".
CPI-M party general secretary Sitaram Yechury tweeted, "Good EPF tax rolled back. But 1 big budget announcement, 4 different clarifications. Maximum government, Minimum governance! #ModiSarkar".
Support Our Journalism
We cannot do without you.. your contribution supports unbiased journalism
IBNS is not driven by any ism- not wokeism, not racism, not skewed secularism, not hyper right-wing or left liberal ideals, nor by any hardline religious beliefs or hyper nationalism. We want to serve you good old objective news, as they are. We do not judge or preach. We let people decide for themselves. We only try to present factual and well-sourced news.
Support objective journalism for a small contribution.
Latest Headlines
HUL’s Q3 shock: 30% core profit drop sends shares reeling
Thu, Feb 12 2026
Lenskart rallies 11% as Q3 profit soars
Thu, Feb 12 2026
TCS, Honeywell join hands to enhance autonomous operations for buildings and industries with AI
Wed, Feb 11 2026
Capgemini teams up with Microsoft to power resilient, trusted digital transformation for clients with integrated sovereignty solutions
Wed, Feb 11 2026
Britannia shares jump 4% after Q3 results beat expectations!
Wed, Feb 11 2026
Govt opens BHEL OFS: 5% stake on sale – here’s what you need to know
Wed, Feb 11 2026