New Delhi, Aug. 24 -- For salaried employees covered by the Employees' Provident Fund (EPF), the Universal Account Number (UAN) is an essential identifier for helping in managing retirement savings.

The UAN is a 12-digit number that is allotted by the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO). It serves as an umbrella for the different member IDs that may be allocated to an individual while working for different establishments.

To put it simply, an individual's UAN remains associated with them even when they change jobs. Whereas their employer-specific PF member ID can change. This makes it vital for employees changing jobs to provide their existing UAN details to a new employer. Providing these details helps link the new PF account...