Here's how to activate your UAN of PF Account online

Every month, 12 per cent of your basic salary will be deposited in the PF account and 12 per cent will be deposited in the same account by your employers. In order to access your PF passbook, withdraw money from PF account or
check PF account balance, you will Universal Account Number (UAN).

UAN is a 12-digit number, unique to each individual employee. This number remains the same all through one’s career. Initially, this number is generated by the EPFO through the employer and thereafter the employee is required to share it with the new employer every time they change their job. On shifting jobs, the PF number or the Member ID is created afresh by each employer, but the UAN remains the same. 

If you do not know your UAN, you can contact your employer to obtain it. Along with UAN, you will also get PF Member ID which is basically your provident fund number. If you don’t have it, you can contact your employer or you can also locate on your salary slip. In order to access your PF account, you have to activate your UAN first.

You will need the Member ID while activating UAN. The Member ID is an alphanumeric number representing the state, regional office, establishment, and the PF member code. For example MH NAG 0062439 000 0000738. To enter Member ID, you will have to ‘Select State’ where your PF office is located. As each state may have more than one office, select the one applicable to you. Then enter region, office, establishment id, establishment extension, Member ID.

UAN activation online process:

Step 1: Visit the Member Interface of the Unified Portal of EPFO.

Step 2: Click on ‘Activate UAN’ (Right side bottom under 'Important Links')

Step 3: Enter certain details such as Member ID, Aadhaar, PAN, Name, DoB, mobile number, email ID etc. and enter the captcha code. (Entering email id, Aadhaar and PAN are not mandatory for activating UAN, however, you may submit them if you wish to.)

Step 4: Click on 'Get Authorization Pin' and once you receive the OTP, click on validate OTP and the process gets completed. 

A password to access UAN member portal will be sent to your mobile, using which you may log in and change the password for the UAN account.

Worth mentioning here is that members with authenticated Aadhaar and bank details seeded against their UAN can submit their PF withdrawal/settlement/transfer claims online. One mobile number can be used for one registration only. A member can also view the passbooks of the EPF accounts which has been tagged with UAN. The facility of passbook is not available for members of establishments having an exemption under the EPF Scheme 1952.