IEPF Claims refunds – India Fast Forward Advisory Services

IEPF Claims & Refunds

The Investor Education and Protection Fund (IEPF) is a fund established by the Government of India under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA), under Section 205C of the Companies Act, 1956, and is governed by Section 125 of the Companies Act, 2013. IEPF serves as a repository for unclaimed dividends, matured deposits, and other amounts such as application money due for refund and interest accrued thereon, which have been lying with companies for a specified period without being claimed by the rightful owners.

Shares, dividends, matured deposits, lien on deposits or debentures transferred to IEPF by company or banks can be claimed by the investors. Unclaimed dividends resulting from lack of transmission of shares from the investor’s name to the nominee after the former’s death can also be claimed by the investors.

Claiming shares from the Investor Education and Protection Fund (IEPF) involves a multi-step process to ensure that rightful owners or their legal heirs can reclaim their unclaimed or unpaid dividends and shares.

Step-by-step process to claim shares from IEPF –

Prepare documents :

Original Share Certificates: If the shares are in physical form.
Proof of Entitlement: For example, a demat account statement.
Identity Proof: PAN card, Aadhaar card, or any other government-issued ID.
Address Proof: Utility bills, bank statements, or any other acceptable documents.
Bank Account Details: Cancelled cheque or bank statement.
Copy of Acknowledgement of the Latest Income Tax Return.
Indemnity Bond: As per the prescribed format available on the IEPF website, stamped as per state regulations.
Advance Receipt: Also as per the prescribed format.

Filing the form IEPF-5 :

Visit the IEPF website.
Download and fill out the Form IEPF-5 online with details such as claim amount, folio number, company name, etc.
Upload the necessary documents.
Save and submit the form.

Submission of form IEPF-5 :

After submission, an acknowledgment will be generated.
Print the acknowledgment and attach it to the physical copies of the documents.

Sending documents to the nodal officer :

Submit the printed copy of the Form IEPF-5 along with the acknowledgment and the original documents to the Nodal Officer of the respective company at their registered office address.
Ensure that all documents are self-attested.

Verification by the company :

The company will verify the claim and the documents.
If the verification is satisfactory, the company will submit a verification report to the IEPF Authority.

Processing by IEPF authority :

The IEPF Authority will process the claim based on the company’s verification report.
If the claim is found to be valid, the shares will be credited to the claimant’s demat account and the amount will be transferred to the claimant’s bank account.

Tracking the status :

You can track the status of your claim on the IEPF website using the SRN (Service Request Number) of Form IEPF-5.

With so many steps to follow, claiming shares from the Investor Education and Protection Fund (IEPF) can indeed be a complex process. IFFAS specializes in providing expert consultancy services for the claim of shares from IEPF (Investor Education & Protection Fund), a government entity where unclaimed shares and dividends are transferred. When dividends remain unclaimed for seven consecutive years, both the dividends and the associated shares are transferred to IEPF, which operates under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Government of India.

Some of the issues faced by investors in claiming shares from IEPF-

In case the original investor is not alive then the legal heir can make the claim from IEPFA after complying with the mandatory document requisites. The heir may claim the refund by on IEPFA website by filling Form IEPF-5 with IEPF authority after obtaining necessary approvals the company or RTA as applicable to avoid objections post filing the claim.
Investors often need to complete various formalities, including verification by the company’s Nodal officer, before approaching IEPF to claim their shares. Separate claims must be filed for holdings in each individual company, requiring coordination with the Registrar, Company, and IEPF, as explained above.
The claim process involves a tedious process of filing online and submitting physical documents to the authorities, who review and approve them at various stages. For all types of unclaimed investments, investors can approach our advisors. Experts at IFFAS are ready to offer effective solutions through detailed due diligence thus making the recovery process a stress-free experience.

Our experts will facilitate a smooth claiming of the investments from IEPF authority by providing very simple procedures and solutions. Team IFFAS will also take care of all obligatory legal actions for mutation to help you claim ownership in the absence of notified authorized heirs, which in turn will keep the possibility of any judicial disputes at bay.