The Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) has announced a major relief for certain government entities covered under the National Pension System (NPS).
Under a new circular, government entities that wish to continue using Point of Presence (PoP) services can now do so by paying a fixed fee of Rs 500 per subscriber per year.
The decision is expected to help organizations that face operational challenges in managing NPS-related activities on their own.
What Has PFRDA Announced?
In a circular issued on June 16, 2026, PFRDA said that eligible government entities can avail PoP services by paying a flat annual charge of Rs 500 for each subscriber.
This means organizations will not have to depend entirely on their own systems for handling NPS-related tasks and can continue using PoP services if required.
The move comes after several organizations requested the regulator to allow them to retain PoP support due to operational requirements.
Why Was This Decision Needed?
Earlier, in March 2026, PFRDA had reclassified certain organizations as “Government Entities” under NPS.
These entities were given the technical capability to directly connect with the Central Recordkeeping Agency (CRA) system and independently manage key NPS functions, including:
Subscriber registration
Contribution uploads
Fund remittance
Grievance handling
Exit and withdrawal processing
Other pension-related services
As a result, PoP involvement was no longer mandatory for these entities.
However, several organizations, including Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs), informed PFRDA that they still wanted to use PoP services because of practical and operational challenges.
After reviewing these requests, the regulator decided to allow continued access to PoP services for a fixed annual fee.
Which Organizations Qualify as Government Entities?
According to the March 2026 guidelines, organizations must meet certain conditions to be classified as government entities under NPS.
These include:
All employees must be mandatorily covered under NPS from a specified cut-off date.
Assets under management in the superannuation fund must be fully transferred to the NPS framework within one year, whether managed directly or through a third party.
Only entities meeting these requirements are eligible under the government entity category.
How Will the Rs 500 Fee Be Paid?
PFRDA has clarified that the annual charge is Rs 500 per subscriber.
The payment can be made in two ways:
The organization can directly pay the total amount to the PoP under a mutual arrangement.
If subscribers are required to bear the cost, the amount will be recovered from their pension accounts through quarterly unit deductions.
What Services Are Included?
The fixed annual charge covers a wide range of NPS-related services provided by PoPs.
These include:
Opening NPS accounts
Uploading subscriber information
Contribution remittance
Pension fund switching
Scheme changes
Nomination updates
Partial withdrawal requests
Other subscriber-related transactions
This means organizations can continue receiving full operational support through PoPs without worrying about separate charges for individual services.
Important Point to Note
PFRDA has clarified that the Rs 500 fee covers only PoP services.
Any fees payable to other intermediaries within the NPS ecosystem will continue to be charged separately as per existing rules.
The regulator also confirmed that the new circular has come into effect immediately under the powers granted by the PFRDA Act, 2013.
For government entities and NPS subscribers, the move offers greater flexibility and ensures continued access to important pension-related services through PoPs whenever needed.
