8. Mode of recovery of moneys due from employers
Any amount due:
(a) from the employer in relation to [an establishment] to which any [Scheme or the Insurance Scheme] applies in respect of any contribution payable to [the Fund or, as the case may be, the Insurance Fund], damages recoverable under section 14B, accumulations required to be transferred under sub-section (2) of section 15 [or under sub-section (5) of section 17] or any charges payable by him under any other provision of this Act or of any provision of the [Scheme or the Insurance Scheme] ; or
(b) from the employer in relation to an exempted [establishment] in respect of any damages recoverable under section 14B or any charges payable by him to the appropriate Government under any provision of this Actor under any of the conditions specified 60[under section 17 or in respect of the contribution payable by him towards the [Pension] [Scheme or the Insurance Scheme] under the said section 17], may, if the amount is in arrears, [be recovered [in the manner specified in sections 8B to 8G.]
8A. Recovery of moneys by employers and contractors
(1) [The amount of contribution (that is to say, the employer’s contribution as well as the employee’s contribution in pursuance of any Scheme and the employer’s contribution in pursuance of the Insurance Scheme)]; and any charges for meeting the cost of administering the Fund paid or payable by an employer in respect of an employee employed by or through a contractor may be recovered by such employer from the contractor, either by deduction from any amount payable to the contractor under any contract or as a debt payable by the contractor.
(2) A contractor from whom the amounts mentioned in sub-section (1) may be recovered in respect of any employee employed by or through him, may recover from such employee the employee’s contribution [under any Scheme] by deduction from the basic wages, dearness allowance and retaining allowance (if any) payable to such employee.
(3) Notwithstanding any contract to the contrary, no contractor shall be entitled to deduct the employer’s contribution or the charges referred to in sub-section (1) from the basic wages, dearness allowance, and retaining allowance (if any) payable to an employee employed by or through him or otherwise to recover such contribution or charges from such employee.
Explanation: In this section, the expression “dearness allowance” and “retaining allowance” shall have the same meanings as in section 6.]
8B. Issue of certificate to the Recovery Officer
(1) Where any amount is in arrears under section 8, the authorized officer may issue, to the Recovery Officer, a certificate under his signature specifying the amount of arrears and the Recovery Officer, on receipt of such certificate, shall proceed to recover the amount specified therein from the establishment or, as the case may be, the employer by one or more of the modes mentioned below:
(a) attachment and sale of the movable or immovable property of the establishment or, as the case may be, the employer;
(b) arrest of the employer and his detention in prison;
(c) appointing a receiver for the management of the movable or immovable properties of the establishment or, as the case may be, the employer:
PROVIDED that the attachment and sale of any property under this section shall first be effected against the properties of the establishment and where such attachment and sale is insufficient for recovering the whole of the amount of arrears specified in the certificate, the Recovery Officer may take such proceedings against the property of the employer for recovery of the whole or any part of such arrears.
(2) The authorized officer may issue a certificate under sub-section (1), not withstanding that proceedings for recovery of the arrears by any other mode have been taken.
8C. Recovery Officer to whom certificate is to be forwarded
(1) The authorized officer may forward the certificate referred to in section 8B to the Recovery Officer within whose jurisdiction the employer
(a) carries on his business or profession or within whose jurisdiction the principal place of his establishment
is situate; or
(b) resides or any movable or immovable property of the establishment or the employer is situate.
(2) Where an establishment or the employer has property within the jurisdiction of more than one Recovery Officers and the Recovery Officer to whom a certificate is sent by the authorized officer
(a) is not able to recover to the entire amount by the sale of the property, movable or immovable, within his jurisdiction; or
(b) is of the opinion that, for the purpose of expediting or securing the recovery of the whole or any part of the amount, it is necessary so to do, he may send the certificate or, where only a part of the amount is to be recovered, a copy of the certificate certified in the prescribed manner and specifying the amount to be recovered to the Recovery Officer within whose jurisdiction the establishment or the employer has property or the employer resides, and thereupon that Recovery Officer shall also proceed to recover the amount due under this section as if the certificate or the copy thereof had been the certificate sent to him by the authorized officer.
8D. Validity of certificate and amendment thereof
(1) When the authorized officer issues a certificate to Recovery Officer under section 8B, it shall not be open to the employer to dispute before the Recovery Officer the correctness of the amount, and no objection to the certificate on any other ground shall also be entertained by the Recovery Officer.
(2) Notwithstanding the issue of a certificate to a Recovery Officer, the authorized officer shall have power to withdraw the certificate or correct any clerical or arithmetical mistake in the certificate by sending an intimation to the Recovery Officer.
(3) The authorized officer shall intimate to the Recovery Officer any order withdrawing or canceling a certificate or any correction made by him under sub-section (2) or any amendment made under sub-section (4) of section 8E.
8C. Recovery Officer to whom certificate is to be forwarded
(1) The authorized officer may forward the certificate referred to in section 8B to the Recovery Officer within whose jurisdiction the employer
(a) carries on his business or profession or within whose jurisdiction the principal place of his establishment
is situate; or
(b) resides or any movable or immovable property of the establishment or the employer is situate.
(2) Where an establishment or the employer has property within the jurisdiction of more than one Recovery Officers and the Recovery Officer to whom a certificate is sent by the authorized officer
(a) is not able to recover to the entire amount by the sale of the property, movable or immovable, within his jurisdiction; or
(b) is of the opinion that, for the purpose of expediting or securing the recovery of the whole or any part of the amount, it is necessary so to do, he may send the certificate or, where only a part of the amount is to be recovered, a copy of the certificate certified in the prescribed manner and specifying the amount to be recovered to the Recovery Officer within whose jurisdiction the establishment or the employer has property or the employer resides, and thereupon that Recovery Officer shall also proceed to recover the amount due under this section as if the certificate or the copy thereof had been the certificate sent to him by the authorized officer.
8D. Validity of certificate and amendment thereof
(1) When the authorized officer issues a certificate to Recovery Officer under section 8B, it shall not be open to the employer to dispute before the Recovery Officer the correctness of the amount, and no objection to the certificate on any other ground shall also be entertained by the Recovery Officer.
(2) Notwithstanding the issue of a certificate to a Recovery Officer, the authorized officer shall have power to withdraw the certificate or correct any clerical or arithmetical mistake in the certificate by sending an intimation to the Recovery Officer.
(3) The authorized officer shall intimate to the Recovery Officer any order withdrawing or canceling a certificate or any correction made by him under sub-section (2) or any amendment made under sub-section (4) of section 8E.
8E. Stay of proceedings under certificate and amendment or withdrawal thereof
(1) Notwithstanding that a certificate has been issued to the Recovery Officer for the recovery of any amount, the authorized officer may grant time for the payment of the amount, and thereupon the Recovery Officer shall stay the proceedings until the expiry of the time so granted.
(2) Where a certificate for the recovery of amount has been issued, the authorized officer shall keep the Recovery Officer informed of any amount paid or time granted for payment, subsequent to the issue of such certificate.
(3) Where the order giving rise to a demand of amount for which a certificate for recovery has been issued has been modified in appeal or other proceeding under this Act, and, as a consequence thereof, the demand is reduced but the order is the subject-matter of a further proceeding under this Act, the authorized officer shall stay the recovery of such part of the amount of the certificate as pertains to the said reduction for the period for which the appeal or other proceeding remains pending.
(4) Where a certificate for the recovery of amount has been issued and subsequently the amount of the outstanding demand is reduced as a result of an appeal or other proceeding under this Act, the authorized officer shall, when the order which was the subject-matter of such appeal or other proceeding has become final and conclusive, amend the certificate or withdraw it, as the case may be.
8F. Other modes of recovery
(1) Notwithstanding the issue of a certificate to the Recovery Officer under section 8B, the Central Provident Fund Commissioner or any other officer authorized by the Central Board may recover the amount by any one or more of the modes provided in this section.
(2) If any amount is due from any person to any employer who is in arrears, the Central Provident Fund Commissioner or any other officer authorized by the Central Board in this behalf may require such person to deduct from the said amount the arrears due from such employer under this Act, and such person shall comply with any such requisition and shall pay the sum so deducted to the credit of the Central Provident Fund Commissioner or the officer so authorized, as the case may be:
PROVIDED that nothing in this sub-section shall apply to any part of the amount exempt from attachment in execution of a decree of a civil court under section 60 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908.
(3) (i) The Central Provident Fund Commissioner or any other officer authorized by the Central Board in this behalf may, at any time or from time to time, by notice in writing, require any person from whom money is due or may become due to the employer or, as the case may be, the establishment or any person who holds or may subsequently hold money for or on account of the employer or as the case may be, the establishment, to pay to the Central Provident Fund Commissioner either forthwith upon the money becoming due or being held or at or within the time specified in the notice (not being before the money becomes due or is held) so much of the money as is sufficient to pay the amount due from the employer in respect of arrears or the whole of the money when it is equal to or less than that amount.
(ii) A notice under this sub-section may be issued to any person who holds or may subsequently hold any money for or on account of the employer jointly with any other person and for the purposes of this sub-section, the shares of the joint-holders in such account shall be presumed, until the contrary is proved, to be equal.
(iii) A copy of the notice shall be forwarded to the employer at his last address known to the Central Provident Fund Commissioner or, as the case may be, the officer so authorized and in the case of a joint account to all the joint-holders at their last addresses known to the Central Provident Fund Commissioner or the officer so authorized.
(iv) Save as otherwise provided in this sub-section, every person to whom a notice is issued under this sub-section shall be bound to comply with such notice, and, in particular, where any such notice is issued to a post office, bank or an insurer, it shall not be necessary for any pass book, deposit receipt, policy or any other document to be produced for the purpose of any entry, endorsement or the like being made before payment is made notwithstanding any rule, practice or requirement to the contrary.
(v) Any claim respecting any property in relation to which a notice under this sub-section has been issued arising after the date of the notice shall be void as against any demand contained in the notice.
(vi) Where a person to whom a notice under this sub-section is sent objects to it by a statement on oath that the sum demanded or any part thereof is not due to the employer or that he does not hold any money for or on account of the employer, then, nothing contained in this sub-section shall be deemed to require such person to pay any such sum or part thereof, as the case may be, but if it is discovered that such statement was false in any material particular, such person shall be personally liable to the Central Provident Fund Commissioner or the officer so authorized to the extent of his own liability to the employer on the date of the notice, or to the extent of the employer’s liability for any sum due under this Act, whichever is less.
(vii) The Central Provident Fund Commissioner or the officer so authorized may, at any time or from time to time, amend or revoke any notice issued under this sub-section or extend the time for making any payment in pursuance of such notice.
(viii) The Central Provident Fund Commissioner or the officer so authorized shall grant a receipt for any amount paid in compliance with a notice issued under this sub-section, and the person so paying shall be fully discharged from his liability to the employer to the extent of the amount so paid.
(ix) Any person discharging any liability to the employer after the receipt of a notice under this sub-section shall be personally liable to the Central Provident Fund Commissioner or the officer so authorized to the extent of his own liability to the employer so discharged or to the extent of the employer’s liability for any sum due under this Act, whichever is less.
(x) If the person to whom a notice under this sub-section is sent fails to make payment in pursuance thereof to the Central Provident Fund Commissioner or the officer so authorized he shall be deemed to be an employer in default in respect of the amount specified in the notice and further proceedings may be taken against him for the realization of the amount as if it were an arrear due from him, in the manner provided in sections 8B to 8E and the notice shall have the same effect as an attachment of a debt by the Recovery Officer in exercise of his powers under section 8B.
(4) The Central Provident Fund Commissioner or the officer authorized by the Central Board in this behalf may apply to the court in whose custody there is money belonging to the employer for payment to him of the entire amount of such money, or if it is more than the amount due, an amount sufficient to discharge the amount due.
(5) The Central Provident Fund Commissioner or any officer not below the rank of Assistant Provident Fund Commissioner may, if so authorized by the Central Government by general or special order, recover any arrears of amount due from an employer or, as the case may be, from the establishment by distraint and sale of his or its movable property in the manner laid down in the Third Schedule to the Income Tax Act, 1961 (43 of 1961).
9. Fund to be recognized under Act 11 of 1922
For the purposes of the Indian Income Tax Act, 1922, the Fund shall be deemed to be a recognized provident fund within the meaning of Chapter IX-A of that Act:
[PROVIDED that nothing contained in the said Chapter shall operate to render ineffective any provision of the Scheme (under which the Fund is established) which is repugnant to any of the provisions of that Chapter or of the rules made thereunder.]]
10. Protection against attachment
(1) The amount standing to the credit of any member in the Fund [or of any exempted employee in a provident fund] shall not in any way be capable of being assigned or charged and shall not be liable to attachment under any decree or order of any Court in respect of any debt or liability incurred by the member [or the exempted employee], and neither the official assignee appointed under the Presidency Towns Insolvency Act, 1909, nor any receiver appointed under the Provincial Insolvency Act, 1920, shall be entitled to, or have any claim on, any such amount.
(2) Any amount standing to the credit of a member in the Fund or of an exempted employee in a provident fund at the time of his death and payable to his nominee under the Scheme or the rules of the Provident Fund shall, subject to any deduction authorized by the said Scheme or rules, vest in the nominee and shall be free from any debt or other liability incurred by the deceased or the nominee before the death of the member or of the exempted employee [and shall also not be liable to attachment under any decree or order of any Court.]
(3) The provisions of sub-section (1) and sub-section (2) shall, so far as may be, apply in relation to the family pension or any other amount payable under the 33[Pension] Scheme 11[and also in relation to any amount payable under the Insurance Scheme] as they apply in relation to any amount payable out of the Fund.]