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The Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) has updated its rules for paperless onboarding under the National Pension System (NPS), making OTP-based or e-sign authentication mandatory for online account registration.
In a circular, the regulator said applicants opening NPS accounts online must now authenticate their registration either through an electronic signature or a one-time password (OTP) sent to their registered mobile number. The move partially modifies an earlier circular issued in June 2020, which had allowed digital submission of NPS account opening forms using e-sign or OTP.
Under the revised framework, PFRDA has clarified that applicants’ consent and mandatory declarations for opening an NPS account must be explicitly obtained at the end of the online onboarding journey through e-sign or mobile OTP authentication. The change aims to strengthen subscriber authentication while continuing to support paperless account opening.
The regulator has directed Central Recordkeeping Agencies (CRAs) and Points of Presence (POPs) to align their systems and subscriber onboarding processes with the updated requirements. This would involve changes to digital workflows to ensure authentication and consent capture occur as specified.
PFRDA said the circular has been issued under the powers conferred by Section 14 of the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority Act, 2013.
The National Pension System is a voluntary, long-term retirement savings scheme regulated by PFRDA, with CRAs and POPs playing a key role in subscriber registration, recordkeeping, and servicing.
In a circular, the regulator said applicants opening NPS accounts online must now authenticate their registration either through an electronic signature or a one-time password (OTP) sent to their registered mobile number. The move partially modifies an earlier circular issued in June 2020, which had allowed digital submission of NPS account opening forms using e-sign or OTP.
Under the revised framework, PFRDA has clarified that applicants’ consent and mandatory declarations for opening an NPS account must be explicitly obtained at the end of the online onboarding journey through e-sign or mobile OTP authentication. The change aims to strengthen subscriber authentication while continuing to support paperless account opening.
The regulator has directed Central Recordkeeping Agencies (CRAs) and Points of Presence (POPs) to align their systems and subscriber onboarding processes with the updated requirements. This would involve changes to digital workflows to ensure authentication and consent capture occur as specified.
PFRDA said the circular has been issued under the powers conferred by Section 14 of the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority Act, 2013.
The National Pension System is a voluntary, long-term retirement savings scheme regulated by PFRDA, with CRAs and POPs playing a key role in subscriber registration, recordkeeping, and servicing.
