Several important financial and administrative changes have come into effect across the country from Wednesday, July 1, 2026, affecting Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) subscribers, Aadhaar holders, passport applicants and income taxpayers. The changes have been confirmed through notifications and announcements issued by the respective government authorities.
EPFO online services restored after system upgrade
The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has resumed its online services after completing a scheduled system migration and database consolidation exercise conducted between June 26 and June 30. During the five-day maintenance period, the EPFO member portal, employer portal and several digital services remained unavailable. The organisation said the upgrade was undertaken to improve processing efficiency, security and service delivery. Services were scheduled to be restored from 00:00 hours on July 1.
Aadhaar email update made free for six months
The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has waived the fee charged for updating the email address linked to an Aadhaar number through the Aadhaar mobile application. The waiver, announced through an official memorandum issued on June 19, will remain in force from July 1 to December 31, 2026. Earlier, users were required to pay a fee for this service.
Passport application fees revised
The Ministry of External Affairs has implemented a revision in passport application fees from July 1, marking the first major increase in passport charges since 2012. Under the revised structure, the fee for a standard 36-page passport booklet has increased from Rs 1,500 to Rs 2,500, while the Tatkaal fee for the same booklet has risen to Rs 5,000. The charges for 60-page passports, minor passports and police clearance certificates have also been increased. The revised rates apply to passport services both within India and overseas.
ITR filing deadline approaches
Individual taxpayers filing Income Tax Returns under ITR-1 and ITR-2 have until July 31, 2026, to submit their returns without attracting penalties. ITR-1 is generally applicable to salaried individuals with limited additional income sources such as bank interest, while ITR-2 applies to taxpayers with capital gains, multiple house properties or annual income exceeding Rs 50 lakh. Tax experts have advised taxpayers to complete the filing process well before the deadline to avoid last-minute difficulties.
LPG & PNG Rule Changes
For individuals who have both LPG and PNG connections, June 30 was set as the deadline to switch entirely to PNG. This rule may come into effect from July. However, there has been no official announcement regarding the discontinuation of LPG supply yet. Additionally, if a person relocates to an area where PNG services are unavailable, they will be allowed to reactivate their previously surrendered LPG connection.
