Sri Vijaya Puram, Dec. 22: As per the provisions of the Employees’ State Insurance Act, 1948 and the Employees’ Provident Funds & Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952, employers are mandatorily required to register their factories/establishments and cover all eligible employees drawing wages within the prescribed threshold limits under the EPFO and ESIC.
However, it has been observed that some employers and employees may have remained outside the coverage of the EPF and ESI Schemes. With a view to encouraging voluntary compliance and extending social security benefits to such uncovered establishments and employees, the Ministry has introduced two special one-time schemes, namely:
1. Employees’ Enrollment Scheme (EES)–2025 and
2. Scheme to Promote Registration of Employers/Employees (SPREE).
These schemes provide an opportunity for employers to register their factories/establishments and enroll uncovered employees without any retrospective coverage or penal action.
Under SPREE, employers and employees registered during the scheme period shall be deemed to be covered from the date declared by them, and no records for the prior period shall be sought. The SPREE scheme shall remain open for a period of six months, from 1st July, 2025 to 31st December, 2025.
The Employees’ Enrollment Scheme (EES)–2025 enables employers to voluntarily enroll eligible employees who were left out of EPF coverage during the period from 1st July, 2017 to 31st October, 2025. The special enrollment window under this scheme shall be open from 1st November 2025 to 30th April 2026. In view of the above, all eligible but uncovered employers and employees have been appealed to avail themselves of the benefits under EES–2025 and SPREE, as announced by the Ministry of Labour & Employment, Government of India, and ensure social security coverage for the workforce.