Gratuity Nomination Form F

A Gratuity Nomination Form F in India sets out the particulars the recipient needs to deal with the request, in a structured and reviewable form.

Section 6(1) of the Payment of Gratuity Act 1972 mandates that every employee, within thirty days of completing one year of service, must make a nomination in Form F for the purposes of the Act. The Payment of Gratuity (Central) Rules 1972, Rule 6, prescribes the format of Form F and requires the employer to send an acknowledgement to the employee and to preserve the nomination form in the employee's service record.

The nomination rules under Section 6(2) restrict the nominee to family members when the employee has a family at the time of nomination. 'Family' for a male employee is defined as: wife, children (including adopted children, step-children, and illegitimate children acknowledged by the employee), parents, step-parents, widowed sister, and children of pre-deceased son. For a female employee: husband, children, parents, step-parents, mother-in-law, father-in-law, and sister-in-law (in some interpretations). An employee without a family at the time of nomination may nominate any person, but if a family is subsequently acquired, the nomination of a non-family member becomes void under Section 6(5) and the employee must renominate in favour of a family member.

The Payment of Gratuity (Amendment) Act 2018 raised the maximum gratuity ceiling to ₹20 lakh, and the Income Tax Act 1961 Section 10(10)(i) provides complete income tax exemption on gratuity received by a nominee on the employee's death — there is no monetary ceiling on the exemption for death gratuity, unlike the ₹20 lakh cap for gratuity received by living employees.

Form F nominations are entirely separate from EPF nominations in Form 2 under the Employees' Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 1952. An employee must maintain both nominations separately, confirming they are current. Many HR departments collect both forms simultaneously during employee onboarding but they are submitted to different authorities — Form F to the employer's HR records, Form 2 to the EPFO.

The Controlling Authority under the Payment of Gratuity Act (typically the Labour Commissioner or Regional Labour Commissioner notified by State or Central Government) resolves disputes about nominees' entitlement to gratuity in the absence of a valid nomination, and the process can be lengthy and expensive for the surviving family.

Gratuity Nomination Form F must be filed by every covered employee in India within thirty days of completing one year of service with an employer — and must be updated whenever the employee's family composition changes.

New employees who complete one year of service must submit Form F immediately upon reaching the one-year mark. Employers are required to remind employees to file nominations, but the obligation rests on the employee. Filing late does not invalidate a subsequently filed nomination, but an employee who dies before filing Form F leaves their family to pursue gratuity through the more cumbersome legal heir process.

Change in family composition triggers a mandatory update obligation. Marriage, birth of a child (including adoption), death of an existing nominee, or divorce are all events that require a fresh Form F within thirty days under the Act. An employee who married after filing Form F in favour of parents must refile nominating the spouse (and optionally the parents as joint nominees), as the earlier nomination in favour of parents from a non-family period becomes void once the employee acquires a family.

Change in proportional allocation among multiple nominees requires a fresh Form F. Employees who initially nominated parents in equal shares but later want to increase the spouse's share after marriage must file an updated Form F specifying the revised percentage allocation.

Pre-retirement planning by employees approaching superannuation should include a review and update of Form F to confirm it names living nominees in appropriate proportions and that address and contact details are current. Outdated nomination forms with incorrect addresses delay the processing of death gratuity claims by the employer.

Employees transferring between group companies or from one entity to another within the same group — where continuous service is treated as unbroken for gratuity purposes — must submit a fresh Form F to the new legal employer entity, as the nomination filed with the previous entity may not transfer automatically.

Nominees of deceased employees must file Form J (the claim form for nominees) with the employer referencing the Form F nomination. If Form F is missing or the nomination is invalid, the legal heirs must file Form H and produce a succession certificate from the civil court or a legal heir certificate from the revenue authority, adding weeks or months to the process.

Gratuity Nomination Form F must contain accurate and current details of nominees and their entitlements to serve its legal purpose — directing the employer where to pay gratuity on the employee's death without requiring a court order.

Employee particulars state the full name of the employee, employee code, designation, department, name and address of the establishment, the date of joining service, and the employee's address. These details link the nomination to the employee's service record maintained by the employer under Rule 26 of the Payment of Gratuity (Central) Rules 1972 (Register of Employees — Form Q).

Nominee details for each person nominated: full name, relationship to the employee, date of birth (for minor nominees), and residential address. The relationship must fall within the 'family' definition under Section 2(h) of the Payment of Gratuity Act if the employee has a family at the time of filing. For nominees who are minors, the name of the guardian who will receive and manage the gratuity on the minor's behalf until the minor attains majority must also be stated.

Proportional allocation: Where more than one nominee is named, Form F must specify the percentage share of each nominee. The total must equal 100%. If no percentages are stated and multiple nominees are named, equal division may be assumed, but the employee should specify proportions explicitly to prevent disputes. Section 6(3) permits the employee to name different proportions for different nominees.

Guardian details for minor nominees: Where a nominee has not attained the age of majority (18 years under the Indian Majority Act 1875), the employee must designate a person as guardian to receive and hold the gratuity on behalf of the minor until majority. The guardian is typically the surviving parent, but the employee may designate any competent adult. The guardian's name, address, and relationship to the minor nominee must be stated.

Date and place of execution confirms when the nomination was made. The date is relevant for determining which version of the employee's family composition applied at the time — for example, whether a subsequent marriage invalidated a pre-marriage nomination.

Signature of employee and witness: The employee must sign Form F in the employer's presence (or before two witnesses where the employer's representative is not available). For illiterate employees, a thumb impression is acceptable with two attesting witnesses. The employer must sign the acknowledgement portion of the form, enter the date of receipt, and return a copy to the employee. This acknowledgement is the employee's proof that the nomination was validly lodged.

Acknowledgement and record keeping: The employer must preserve Form F in the employee's service record for the entire period of employment and for a defined period thereafter (typically five years after the gratuity is paid or the employee's death, as per the record retention requirements under the applicable state factory rules or shops and establishment act). The forms-legal.com Gratuity Nomination Form F template covers the mandatory elements under Industrial Disputes Act, 1947.