What are NCP days?
NCP days are non-contributory period days in a month when no PF contribution is paid, usually due to leave without pay.
NCP days stands for non-contributory period days. In PF, an NCP day is a day in a month when no PF contribution is paid because the employee did not earn wages for that day. The most common reason is leave without pay (LOP), but any unpaid absence can create an NCP day.
NCP days are reported in the monthly ECR filed by the employer. They matter because they reduce the employee's pensionable service under the Employees' Pension Scheme (EPS). The EPS pension is based on the number of years of service. Every NCP day reduces the service counted, which can lower the monthly pension and may delay eligibility for a pension, which requires at least 10 years of pensionable service.
EPFO uses NCP days to calculate the exact number of days counted for service. A month with NCP days does not get full credit. For example, an employee who works only 20 days in a month and takes 10 days of LOP gets credit for 20/30 of a month, depending on the exact formula used by EPFO.
Worked example
An employee with a monthly basic salary of ₹18,000 takes 3 days of LOP in a 30-day month. The payable salary is for 27 days.
| Item | Calculation | Value | |---|---|---| | Daily basic | ₹18,000 / 30 | ₹600 | | Payable basic | 27 × ₹600 | ₹16,200 | | NCP days | 30 − 27 | 3 | | Pensionable service for the month | 27 / 30 | 0.90 month |
The PF contribution is calculated on ₹16,200 and 3 days are reported as NCP in the ECR.
Related reading
Read the statutory deductions guide or use the PF calculator.
Frequently asked questions
- Do NCP days reduce PF balance?
- They reduce pensionable service under EPS and can affect pension eligibility, but they do not remove money already in the EPF account.
- Are all unpaid leave days NCP days?
- Generally yes. If basic wages are not paid for a day, it is usually recorded as an NCP day for that month.
- Can NCP days affect pension?
- Yes. They reduce the number of years counted for EPS pension and can delay meeting the 10-year pensionable service requirement.