The Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority of India (PFRDA) on Friday allowed subscribers of the National Pension System (NPS) for a partial withdrawal of funds from their NPS accounts for meeting expenses for themselves and their families for COVID-19 treatment.
In a circular addressed to all stakeholders and subscribers under the NPS, PFRDA said, “In view of the decision of Government of India, which has declared COVID-19 as a pandemic, it has been decided to declare COVID-19 as a critical illness which is life threatening in nature.”
Partial withdrawals will be allowed to fulfill financial needs of the NPS subscribers if they required it for the treatment of themselves or their family members, the circular added.
The funds can be used for the treatment of the subscriber’s illness, his legally wedded spouse, children, including a legally adopted child or dependent parents, it added.
PFRDA clarified that the facility of partial withdrawal will not be applicable for Atal Pension Yojana (APY) subscribers.
“We would like to clarify that presently, there is no provision for subscribers to make partial withdrawals under APY,” PFRDA added.
NPS and APY are the two flagship pension scheme run by PFRDA.
While the NPS is for the central, state governments, autonomous bodies and corporates, APY is mainly meant to cater to the pension needs of those employed in the unorganized sector.