EMPLOYEES’ PROVIDENT FUND ACT

1 Central Bank of Sri Lanka( Incorporating Amendments up to 31st December, 1998 )EMPLOYEES PROVIDENT FUND ACTE mployees PROVIDENT Fund ActOwing to the numerous amendments made to theEmployees PROVIDENT Fund Act, it has become necessary topublish a reprint of the Act. This reprint which incorporatesall amendments made to that Act up to 31st December, 1998is, however, not a statutory reprint. It is only issued forpurpose of S. JayawardenaGovernorCentral Bank of Sri LankaTABLE OF title1PA RT IEstablishment and Membership of the Employees PROVIDENT Fund andAdministration of this Act and of such of Employees PROVIDENT of the of this and duties of the Monetary Board in relation to the Fund25A.

2 Employer to communicate to member the information notified bythe Monetary to audit the accounts of the to Government67A. Expenses incurred in the administration of the Act6PA RT I ICovered Employments, Employees to whom this Act applies, and employments and employees to whom this Act employer being himself in the employment of another of employees and employers to elect to pay contributionscalculated at higher percentages, and liability of employees andemployers who make such s direction to employer who has reduced the earnings ofany employee for the purpose of reducing the amount of the employer scontributions under this Act in respect of the fraction of a cent is to be ignored, or is to be reckoned as one cent,in computing the amount of a on of contributions due from of surcharge on employers on failure to pay contributionson due of sums to be credited to the individual accounts of prohibited from reducing earnings of his prohibited from deducting from earnings of employee paymentsdue from employer under this Act in respect of employee11(iii)

3 Due under this Act from an employer to be the first charge onhis to the credit of individual accounts to be inalienable11 PART at which benefits will be to whom benefits shall be paid in certain of benefit to benefit15 PART IVApproved PROVIDENT Funds and Approved Contributory Pension PROVIDENT Funds and Approved Contributory Pension Schemes15 PART VDetermination of or an officer authorised by the Commissioner todetermine of members of the Tribunal21 PART of Commissioner to call for returns2131A. Imposition of a surcharge on employers who fail to furnish of Commissioner and other officers to inspect to keep of manager, agent &c. of employer for the employer proves that some other person is guilty of an for of arrears of payments due in certain of by bodies of prosecution without the sanction of the of regulations and from income from stamp for action taken under this of reduction, on certain ground, of rate of contribution to aprovident fund or contributory pension to prevail in case of conflict with other written law30(iv)EMPLOYEES PROVIDENT FUND ACTAN ACT TO ESTABLISH A PROVIDENT FUND FOR THE BENEFIT OFCERTAIN CLASSES OF EMPLOYEES AND TO PROVIDE FORMATTERS CONNECTED THEREWITH OR INCIDENTAL THERETO.

4 [1st June, 1958.] Act may be cited as the Employees PROVIDENT IESTABLISHMENT AND MEMBERSHIP OF THE EMPLOYEES PROVIDENT FUND AND ADMINISTRATION OF THIS ACT AND OFSUCH the purposes of this Act there shall be established afund called the Employees PROVIDENT Fund (hereafter in this Actreferred to as the Fund).3.(1)Where an employee first becomes liable under section10 to pay contributions to the Fund, he shall then become a memberof the Fund and continue to be a member of the Fund so long asthere is any sum to the credit of his individual account in the Fund.(2)Neither a member of the Fund nor any person claimingunder him shall have any interest in, or claim to, the moneys of theFund otherwise than by virtue of any provision of this Act or of (1) Except as otherwise provided in this Act, theCommissioner of Labour shall be in charge of the generaladministration of this Act.

5 (2) Subject to any general or special directions of theCommissioner of Labour, any Deputy Commissioner of Labour orany Assistant Commissioner of Labour may exercise, perform ordischarge any power, duty or function of the Commissioner underthis Act or under any Employees ofthe this of 1958,18 of 1965,16 of 1970,8 of 1971,24 of 1971,26 of 1981,1 of 1985,42 of 1988,14 of 1992.(3)There may be appointed such number of officers as maybe required for the purpose of carrying out or giving effect to theprovisions of this Act.(4)The Commissioner of Labour may either generally orspecially authorise any officer appointed under subsection (3) of thissection to exercise, perform or discharge any power, duty or functionof the Commissioner under this Act or under any (1)The Monetary Board (a) may appoint such officers and servants as maybe required by the Board for exercising itspowers, performing its duties and dischargingits functions under this Act, fix the salaries andwages of such officers and servants anddetermine their conditions of service.

6 (b) shall receive all sums paid under this Act ascontributions, surcharges and fees, and theincome from the investment of moneys of theFund and shall credit such sums and income tothe Fund;(bb) the Board shall determine, with the concurrenceof the Minister, the amount of surcharge to bedistributed among the members affected by thefailure of their employers to pay thecontributions due from him to the Fund, on theday such contribution is due, out of the moneyreceived by way of surcharge under theprovisions of section 16;(c) shall have custody of the moneys of the Fund;(d) shall pay to the persons certified by theCommissioner the benefits to which thosepersons are entitled under this Act;(e) may invest such of the moneys of the Fund asare not immediately required for the purposesof this Act in such securities as the Board mayconsider fit and may sell such securities;(f) shall maintain a general account in respect ofthe Fund, and a separate account (in this Actreferred to as an individual account) in respectof each member of the Fund;Powers andduties of theMonetaryBoard inrelation to theFund.

7 [ 2, 8 of 1971.][ 2, 1 of 1985.]2 EMPLOYEES PROVIDENT FUND ACT(ff) shall maintain a Suspense Account, into whichshall be credited the contributions receivedunder this Act in respect of which, theemployers have failed to furnish relevantreturns in terms of the Act or any regulationsmade thereunder, or have furnished deficient orincorrect returns and thus cannot be credited toindividual accounts, and all the moneys held onthe date on which this paragraph comes intoforce, in an account maintained by the Fund inrespect of such contributions, shall betransferred by the Monetary Board to theSuspense Account created by this and when an employer, who has failed tofurnish relevant returns as referred to above.

8 Furnishes correct returns in respect of hisemployee, the Monetary Board shall transferthe moneys lying in the Suspense Account tothe individual account of the any moneys are transferred from theSuspense Account to an individual account asprovided for in this paragraph interest shall bepaid on that sum, for the period from the dateof receipt of such moneys to the date oftransfer of such moneys to the individualsaccount, for a period not exceeding six yearsprior to the date of such transfer, and the rateof interest shall be the rate determined in termsof section 14(1) of the Act, and applicable forthe year in respect of which the interest ispaid;(g) shall cause the books of accounts relating tothe Fund to be balanced as on the thirty-firstday of December in each year;(h) shall cause to be prepared in respect of theFund for each year a statement of receipts andpayments, a statement of income andexpenditure, a statement of assets andliabilities, and a statement of investmentsshowing the face value, purchase price, andmarket value of each of the investments;(i) shall transmit to the Minister a copy of each ofthe statements prepared under the preceding[ 2, 42 of1988.]

9 ]EMPLOYEES PROVIDENT FUND ACT3paragraph (h) for each year within threemonths after the thirty-first day of December ofthat year;(j) shall notify (i) the employer of each member of theFund who is employed in a coveredemployment, and(ii) each member of the Fund who hasceased to be employed in a coveredemployment,within nine months after the thirty-first day ofDecember in each year, of the amount lying tothe credit of the individual account of suchmember on that day;(k) shall deduct from the income from theinvestment of moneys of the Fund the expensesincurred by the Board and the Commissioner incarrying out their respective functions underthis Act;(kk) may establish such reserves out of the incomeof the Fund as the Monetary Board maydetermine, to meet any contingencies or anydepreciation in the market value of the assetsof the Fund;(kkk) shall deduct any outstanding monies due on ahousing loan under section 22, from theindividual account of a member, upon adirective from the Commissioner to that effect,and transfer the amount so deducted to therelevant lending institution.

10 And(l) shall have such other powers and duties inconnection with the Fund as may be conferredor imposed on such Board, by Order publishedin the Gazette, by the Minister with theconcurrence of the Minister in charge of thesubject of Finance.(2)Every officer or servant appointed under paragraph (a) ofsubsection (1) shall be deemed to be employed for the performanceof duties under the Monetary Law Act, for the purpose of the[ 2, 8 of1971.][ 2, 42 of1988.][ 2, 8 of1971.][ 2, 16 of1970.][ 2, 1 of1985.][ 2, 8 of1971.]4 EMPLOYEES PROVIDENT FUND ACTapplication of the provisions of the said Act relating to officers andservants.(3) For the purposes of paragraph (k) of subsection (1), expenses shall include (i) any loss of moneys on account of theft,misappropriation or over-payment;(ii) any loss of articles of furniture, office equipment orstationery used in or purchased for the administrationof the Fund the cost of which cannot be recoveredfrom the persons responsible for such loss; and(iii) the value of any article of furniture, office equipmentor stationery written off on grounds an employer is notified by the Monetary Boardunder section 5 (j), of the amount lying to the credit of thei