NPS account opening, withdrawals to become easier! PFRDA allows intermediaries for Video KYC

Opening an NPS account will soon become easier. Even NPS withdrawals or processing of any other service are soon to become easier than before. In the interest of NPS subscribers, PFRDA has now permitted its intermediaries to use the Video-based Customer Identification Process (VCIP), in addition to the existing options, in order to further facilitate on-boarding, withdrawals, exit and processing of other related service requests of the subscribers of the National Pension System (NPS).

While a lot of NPS services have been moved online including onboarding of new subscribers and their servicing, the physical presence of NPS subscribers is required at POPs (Points of Presence) for in-person verification (IPV) to complete the process of exit and some other allied services. Compulsory physical presence is posing challenges for the subscribers as well as the PoPs/Nodal officers, which leads to subscriber grievances and delays the process of withdrawal and exit.

PFRDA has issued a circular on October 6, 2020 regarding ‘Video based Customer Identification Process (VCIP) for NPS’ and has issued guidelines giving detailed process flow for implementing the facility. Central Record Keeping Agencies (CRAs) and Points of Presence (PoPs) registered with PFRDA have been advised to build an online platform for the same at the earliest.

PFRDA, in its endeavour to make the NPS subscriber registration, the exit process and processing other service requests seamless and subscriber friendly has been constantly introducing new methods of subscriber authentication such as OTP/ eSign based onboarding, Offline Aadhaar based onboarding, third party reliance for KYC, e-nomination, e – exit for eNPS Subscribers etc.

In order to ensure that the intermediaries are not additionally burdened for introducing this facility, the intermediaries which apart from being registered with PFRDA, are registered with other Financial Sector Regulators also, are allowed to follow the VCIP guidelines issued by those regulators for performing for NPS related activities also. However, the intermediaries which are solely registered and regulated by PFRDA will follow the guidelines issued by PFRDA for performing VCIP.