Shares and dividends are movable assets, and maintaining the portfolio is not an easy task. We diversify shares and invest our time and effort in researching and monitoring the market fluctuations. In this process, sometimes we neglect some shares or follow up on them. It can be due to a change of address not being updated, closing of the bank account, loss of share certificate, or passing away of the investor. While the company timely pays the dividends to the investors, the cheque may get bounced because of wrong bank details. In these cases, the companies communicate with the IEPF authority and tell them about the unclaimed dividends. If you are wondering how to get shares and dividends from IEPF, this blog will help you know the right steps and choose the best professional service to claim your shares.

What Can Be Claimed From IEPF?

IEPF is a body authorized by the government to claim the shares if they remain unclaimed for more than 7 years. It is done to safeguard the shares from being misused or lost. There are several that can be held by IEPF. The unpaid dividends that don’t get transferred to the bank account, inactive shares for a long time, matured debentures, and bonus shares or split shares that have been transferred to IEPF are recoverable and claimed back by following a set of procedures.

Process Of IEPF Recovery

There are certain legal steps that need to be followed in order to claim the shares back from IEPF. This authority holds the right to reject the claim if it finds any irregularity in the application because it cannot issue the claimed shares to any application if there is any doubt. Here are the steps on how to get shares and dividends from IEPF:

1. The official website reveals information about the shares held by them. You can check by entering your basic details and company name.
2. If you find the shares being held by IEPF, go to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs’ website and download the Form IEPF-5.
3. Attach all the necessary documents with this application form. The documents include copy of identity proof, original share certificate, proof of ownership, cancelled cheque for bank details and any other document demanded by the company.
4. This form should be submitted to the Nodal Officer of the company.
5. The Company verifies the details.
6. When they find the application valid, they forward the application to the IEPF authority.
7. After the review, IEPF sends the dividends to your bank account and shares to the Demat account.

Conclusion

By following these steps, one can get their shares and dividends back into their bank and Demat accounts. However, these steps demand patience and communication with people in high authority. If there is any mistake in the application, or the documents are missing or lost, the claim is deemed invalid by IEPF. To avoid this, you can take legal assistance from companies like Share Connection. With our skilled team of lawyers, Chartered Accountants and people with financial knowledge, we help you in filling the form, attaching the right documents, assisting in getting the lost documents and certificates and communicating with the officer in the company and IEPF authority.