Running a PF trust without a formal exemption order?
More trusts are in this position than anyone says out loud: recognised under the Income Tax Act, operating in good faith for years, but without an exemption order under Section 17 or Section 143. AMNESTY, 2026 is EPFO’s one-time route to fix that retrospectively — and it closes on 28 December 2026.
20-minute eligibility call. No cost, no obligation, no software required.
How a trust ends up here
It is rarely negligence. A company sets up a provident fund trust, gets it recognised under the Income Tax Act, 1961, appoints trustees, runs the ledgers, credits interest, files its returns. Everything a compliant trust does, it does.
What never quite completed was the separate exemption order under Section 17 of the EPF & MP Act, 1952 — now Section 143 of the Code on Social Security, 2020. The application stalled, the regional office asked for something that was never sent back, a corporate action changed the entity, or the paperwork simply predates everyone currently in the building.
EPFO has acknowledged this category exists and opened a six-month window to close it retrospectively — with several of the normal qualifying conditions waived. It expects roughly 105 private PF trusts to apply, and is working through ICAI and the Income Tax Department to find them.
Who qualifies, and what gets relaxed
You are likely eligible if…
- Your trust is recognised under the Income Tax Act, 1961
- You do not hold a formal exemption order under Section 17 of the EPF & MP Act, 1952
- You do not hold a formal exemption order under Section 143 of the Code on Social Security, 2020
- You are willing to apply before 28 December 2026
Not sure which orders your trust actually holds? That is the most common answer we get, and it is exactly what the eligibility call establishes.
Conditions relaxed under the scheme
- Minimum employee strength
- The usual headcount threshold for exemption is waived for applicants under this scheme.
- Required corpus size
- The minimum corpus condition is relaxed, bringing smaller trusts into scope.
- Three-year compliance record
- The standard requirement to demonstrate a clean three-year track record is relaxed.
These relaxations exist only inside this window. A trust applying for exemption after 28 December 2026 faces the full set of conditions again.
What regularisation actually buys
Retrospective regularisation
Exemption status is regularised for an earlier period, with procedural relaxations under the Code on Social Security, 2020 — rather than starting the clock today and leaving the intervening years unresolved.
A real choice afterwards
Once regularised, the establishment can decide on its merits whether to remain exempt or move to EPFO. That decision becomes a strategy question instead of a consequence of paperwork.
A clean base for continuation
The EPF Scheme, 2026 requires existing exempted establishments to apply for continuation of exemption. A trust without a formal order has nothing to continue from — this is what makes that filing possible.
An answer for your auditor
EPFO is identifying eligible trusts through ICAI and the Income Tax Department. It is better to have this resolved before the question arrives from outside.
The other 28 December deadline
VISHWAS, 2026AMNESTY fixes exemption status. VISHWAS, 2026 deals with what a period of irregular status tends to leave behind: damages under Section 14B. It allows eligible employers to settle ongoing, pre-adjudication and unpaid 14B cases at materially reduced rates through the EPFO portal, and it closes on the same date.
Most trusts that qualify for one should be checking the other. We look at both in the same call — there is no sense resolving your exemption status while a damages proceeding runs in parallel.
The sequence
- 1
11 July 2026
EPFO circular setting out the application procedure for the scheme.
- 2
Now
Establish which orders your trust actually holds, and assemble the supporting record.
- 3
Before 28 Dec 2026
Application filed. This is a one-time opportunity — EPFO has not indicated an extension.
- 4
After regularisation
Decide whether to remain exempt or move to EPFO, then file for continuation under the EPF Scheme, 2026.
AMNESTY 2026: common questions
- What is AMNESTY, 2026?
- A one-time scheme under which EPFO allows eligible provident fund trusts to regularise their exemption status retrospectively. It is aimed at trusts that hold recognition under the Income Tax Act, 1961 but do not have a formal exemption order under Section 17 of the EPF & MP Act, 1952 or Section 143 of the Code on Social Security, 2020. Applications close on 28 December 2026.
- How do I know whether my trust has a formal exemption order?
- Look for a notified exemption order naming your establishment — not the Income Tax recognition letter, which is a different document from a different authority, and the one most often mistaken for it. If your records only show IT recognition, your trust may be exactly who this scheme is for. A 20-minute call is usually enough to establish which side of the line you are on.
- What conditions are relaxed?
- The scheme waives the usual requirements on minimum number of employees, required corpus size, and the three-year compliance record. These relaxations apply only within the window.
- What happens after regularisation?
- The establishment can choose to remain exempt or to become unexempt and move to EPFO. Regularisation restores the choice; it does not force either outcome. If you remain exempt, the next step is the continuation application under the EPF Scheme, 2026.
- What happens if we miss 28 December 2026?
- EPFO has described this as a one-time opportunity and has not indicated that it will be reopened. A trust that does not apply continues to operate without formal exemption status, which becomes progressively harder to sustain under the EPF Scheme, 2026 — where exemption is a renewable three-year term with a continuation filing attached to it.
- Is this the same as VISHWAS, 2026?
- No, though they close on the same date and often apply to the same establishment. AMNESTY regularises exemption status. VISHWAS settles damages proceedings under Section 14B at reduced rates. A trust with irregular status frequently has both problems.
- Do we need to buy software to apply?
- No. The eligibility assessment is free and independent of any purchase. Software becomes relevant afterwards, when a regularised trust has to sustain the continuation filings, digital trust accounts and member statements the EPF Scheme, 2026 expects — but that is a separate decision, later.
Guidance only, not legal advice. Confirm your trust’s position and any application with your legal and compliance advisers, and against EPFO’s own circular.
Before 28 December
AMNESTY is one of two windows closing that day. Here is the other one, the regime you are regularising into, and the choice that follows.
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Read the postTwenty minutes now, or a closed window in December
Tell us what orders your trust holds and we will tell you plainly whether AMNESTY, 2026 applies, whether VISHWAS is worth filing alongside it, and what the application needs.