Everything you want to know about unclaimed shares & dividends in IEPF.
1. Transfer of shares to IEPF?
IEPF full form is Investors Education and Provident Fund (IEPF).
Through the Companies (Amendment) Act of 1999, the Investor Education and Protection Fund (IEPF) was created in accordance with Section 205C of the Companies Act of 1956 in order to advance investor knowledge and safeguard investor interests.
The Amendment Act further stated that every company should transfer the unclaimed shares and dividend to IEPF wherein the dividend has not been claimed for a period of seven years following the dates they first became due for payment.
The responsibilities assigned to IEPF are to make refunds and recovery of unclaimed shares, matured deposits/debentures, unpaid dividends, and to promote awareness among the investors. It also ensures reimbursement of legal expenses incurred in pursuing action suits by the depositors.
As per government rules, all the dividends on shares that have not been claimed for seven or more consecutive years are required to be transferred to the Investor Education and Protection Fund (IEPF) by the respective company.
Transfer of unclaimed shares to IEPF is mandatory for a company if no dividend is claimed for seven consecutive years. Previously, if the investor didn’t claim the dividend, corporations would take advantage of the investor’s unawareness and keep the money for themselves. Later, after realizing this oversight, the government passed the IEPF, which requires companies to transfer shares that have not been claimed for seven years in a row.
If you are someone whose shares have been transferred to IEPF, don’t worry, we are here to help you step by step. IEPF claims can be made by following certain procedures.
2. How to claim transfer of shares from IEPF?
IEPF full form is Investors Education and Provident Fund. For IEPF claim follow the steps given below ;
1. Access the IEPF-5 form on the MCA portal from the IEPF website by going for the IEPF login button. Claimants are advised to follow the instructions carefully from the instruction kit given on the IEPF website.
2. After completing the form, submit it. An acknowledgement will be generated with a “Submit Request Number” (SRN). Please note this SRN for tracking purposes of the form in the future.
3. Take out the printout of the form along with the acknowledgement issued.
4. Now, submit the original copy of the indemnity bond, copy of acknowledgement, share certificate and IEPF Form 5 along with self attested adhaar card, details of bank account linked with Aadhaar card in which claim is to be received and demat account number to Nodal officer (IEPF) of the company at its registered office in the envelope marked as “Claim for refund from IEPF Authority”.
5. Now, the concerned company will verify the claim form and, on the basis of the verification report, the IEPF authority will issue the refund of unclaimed shares and dividend in the client account.
6. IEPF authorities must reply to the verification report sent by the company within 60 days.
Refund from IEPF is a very long and tedious process, which might take more than 8-12 months because IEPF has only one office, which is situated in Delhi
Go to below website to claim IEPF Shares
3.Difference between transfer of shares and transmission of shares?
People usually misunderstand the transfer of shares and the transmission of shares and use them interchangeably, but there is a big difference between the transfer of shares and the transmission of shares. The transfer of shares is a voluntary act of an individual based on a contract. The transfer of shares is also done by the company if the dividends on particular shares are not claimed for seven consecutive years or more. Transmission of shares is a completely different term in its concept and definition. Transmission of shares takes place when a shareholder passes away, or becomes insolvent or lunatic.
In both cases, documentation and procedures are different.
For more details, please check.
https://iepfzone.com/transfer-of-shares/
4. How to determine if shares have been transferred to IEPF?
If you have not claimed a dividend on your unclaimed shares for seven consecutive years or more, then you should consider that your unclaimed shares are transferred to IEPF as it is mandatory for any company to do so.
However, if you want to verify it, then the best way to check whether your shares have been transferred to IEPF is to contact the registrar of the company. The Registrar is responsible for managing all the Shares related work for the company. To get to know about the registrar of any company and his contact details, you can check the annual report of the company.
Link to check
http://https://www.iepf.gov.in/IEPFWebProject/SearchInvestorAction.do?method=gotoSearchInvestor
5. How can IEPFZone help to recover shares from IEPF?
Recovery of Unclaimed Shares Now from IEPF is a lengthy and laborious process, making it difficult for ordinary investors to recover their unclaimed shares . Due to a lack of familiarity with the procedure, claimants occasionally make errors that result in future rejection by the nodal officer or IEPF authorities. Due to this, the claimant becomes frustrated.
IEPFZone is a dependable partner that can assist you in completing your work efficiently and without difficulty. At IEPFZone, we have a team of qualified CAs and lawyers who assist clients with the recovery of unclaimed shares, the transmission of shares, and the creation of succession certificates, etc.
Having served tens of thousands of satisfied and delighted customers, we have become one of the most reliable platforms to claim unclaimed shares from IEPF.