Why is the balance lower than twenty-four per cent of my salary compounded?

Because 8.33 per cent of wages up to the ceiling goes to the pension scheme instead of the fund. The tool shows that amount on its own line so the gap is visible rather than mysterious.

What is the wage ceiling for?

The pension diversion is capped at 8.33 per cent of a statutory wage figure rather than of your actual salary, so above that wage the diverted amount stops growing and more of the employer's share reaches your fund.

Can I contribute more than twelve per cent?

Yes, through a voluntary contribution. It earns the same rate and the employer is not obliged to match it. Raise the contribution field to model it.

Is the balance taxable when I withdraw it?

Not after five years of continuous service. Withdrawal before that is taxable and attracts deduction at source, which is what section 192A covers.

EPF Calculator

Provident fund at retirement, with the pension share taken out properly.

Everything runs inside your browser. Your files never leave your device.

Result

The result appears here as you type.

Ask about EPF Calculator

Questions about what this tool does, which option to pick, or what it can and cannot handle.

The question you type here is sent to an AI provider to be answered — your files and whatever you put in the tool above are not, and the assistant cannot see them. Answers are generated and can be wrong. The tool itself is not guessing: it runs deterministic code on your device.

About the EPF Calculator

The Employees' Provident Fund takes twelve per cent of basic pay and dearness allowance from you and a matching twelve per cent from your employer. What most projections get wrong is what happens to the employer's half.

It does not all reach your provident fund. Of the employer's twelve per cent, 8.33 per cent of wages up to the statutory ceiling is diverted to the Employees' Pension Scheme and never appears in the balance you can withdraw. Only the remainder joins your fund. Modelling the whole twenty-four per cent as accumulating is the standard error in this calculation, and on a thirty-year projection it overstates the corpus substantially. This tool takes the pension share out and reports it separately, so you can see both what accumulated and what was redirected.

Salary growth is the other lever, and it compounds against the contribution rather than the balance. A five per cent yearly rise means the contribution in year twenty is roughly two and a half times the contribution in year one, and those larger later contributions have the least time to grow — which is why the projection is more sensitive to the early years than to the salary you eventually reach.

The rate is declared each year by the central board rather than fixed, so treat the default as a recent figure rather than a promise. You can also raise your own share above twelve per cent through a voluntary contribution, which the employer does not match but which earns the same rate; the contribution field accepts that.

The pension share buys a monthly pension rather than a lump sum, and this does not project it.

How to use it

1Enter your monthly basic plus dearness allowance — not your gross salary, which is a larger number.
2Set your current age and the age you expect to retire.
3Add whatever balance is already in the account, from your passbook.
4Set a realistic yearly salary growth, then read the pension diversion line alongside the balance.

Questions

Why is the balance lower than twenty-four per cent of my salary compounded?: Because 8.33 per cent of wages up to the ceiling goes to the pension scheme instead of the fund. The tool shows that amount on its own line so the gap is visible rather than mysterious.
What is the wage ceiling for?: The pension diversion is capped at 8.33 per cent of a statutory wage figure rather than of your actual salary, so above that wage the diverted amount stops growing and more of the employer's share reaches your fund.
Can I contribute more than twelve per cent?: Yes, through a voluntary contribution. It earns the same rate and the employer is not obliged to match it. Raise the contribution field to model it.
Is the balance taxable when I withdraw it?: Not after five years of continuous service. Withdrawal before that is taxable and attracts deduction at source, which is what section 192A covers.