Central and state government pensioners must submit their life certificates every year by the November 30 deadline to continue receiving pensions. Super senior citizens, those aged 80 and above, are allowed to submit their life certificates one month ahead, starting October 1.

Nowadays, the process of submitting a life certificate is easy. They can visit a bank branch, opt for a doorstep banking service, or submit it online through the Jeevan Pramaan app. 

It takes only a few minutes to submit the life certificate through the ‘Jeevan Pramaan’ app, with features like “face scanning” for verification, which is much quicker than visiting a bank in person. However, if you miss the deadline for whatever reasons, including a technical error, you can submit it next month or later. The amount will only be disbursed after the certificate reaches the Central Pension Processing Centres (CPPC), the relevant pension authority. 

As per the State Bank of India (SBI) website, the pensioner will not receive the payment for November and onwards if the life certificate is not submitted by the due date.

What Should One Do If Miss The Deadline To Submit A Life Certificate? 

Although the payment will be stopped from the month after the non-submission of a life certificate, you can reactivate it or resume receiving payments by submitting the same. 

“Once the life certificate is keyed in the pension system, the pension will get paid along with arrears on the next pension processing cycle, usually on a weekly basis,” says the SBI’s website. 

The UIDAI portal states, “Once the life certificate is updated in the pension system, the pension will be paid along with arrears immediately on the next pension payment. However, if the life certificate is not submitted for three years and above, the pension will commence after the sanction of the competent authority through the CPAO (Central Pension Accounting Office).” 

Submitting the life certificate within the due date is vital to avoid payment interruptions. 

Remember that the details will be updated on time if you submit it physically to pension disbursing agencies, like banks, post offices, and other designated government offices. 

What Should We Do If The Pension Disbursing Agency Delays The Submission? 

For any grievance related to delay or updating the life certificate on the part of the pension disbursing agencies, a pensioner can approach the bank’s pension-paying branch (PPB). The branch manager is empowered to resolve the grievance. The bank can also consult CPPC to resolve the issue. The pensioners can further approach the Banking Ombudsman if the grievance remains unanswered or they are unsatisfied with the response. However, the banking ombudsman will deal with grievances only related to the banking services. They can lodge their complaints on the pensioners’ portal if the grievance is for any other issue. 

As per the UIDAI website: “In case the payment of arrears due to non-submission of the life certificate relates to a period less than three years, these may be paid by the CPPC of authorized banks after obtaining specific orders of the manager/officer in charge of the bank who would release the payment, subject to verification of the bonafide of the claim of the pensioner. 

“In case the period is three years and above, the disburser’s portion of the PPO is returned to the CPAO by the CPPC, with a suitable endorsement thereon; the CPAO will forward the same to the PPO issuing authority for updating their record. Payment of arrears in such cases and the current pension will be made by the CPPC on receipt of PPO with a sanction of the competent authority through the CPAO.” 

So, to avoid the hassle, don’t forget to submit the life certificate by November 30, but if there is a delay, try to do it as soon as you can using the easiest face authentication mode.