Your business just reached 10 or 20 staff: what to do next

First, check if PF and ESI apply

PF (Provident Fund, also called EPF) gives your staff savings and a pension. ESI (Employees' State Insurance) gives your staff medical care, and pay when they can't work because of sickness, injury or maternity.

• 10 or more staff: ESI applies. ESI does not apply to seasonal factories.
• 20 or more staff: PF applies, in any industry.

Count all your staff, including casual staff and staff sent by a contractor. For the full rules on who counts, read PF: who must register and ESI: who must register.

Or check your business with our free PF eligibility checker and ESI eligibility checker.

Register your business

Register as soon as PF or ESI applies to you.

• PF: we register your business with EPFO (the government PF office).
• ESI: we register your business with ESIC (the government ESI office).

We tell you which documents we need when you call. The list depends on your type of business. Once we have all your documents, it takes just a few hours.

We work by phone and email. We can visit you if needed, in Mangalore and Bangalore. See PF registration and ESI registration.

Add your staff (UAN and IP number)

After registration, your staff are added to PF and ESI, if the rules cover them. We'll check who must be in PF and ESI.

PF: staff whose PF wages are ₹25,000 a month or less must be in PF. PF wages are basic pay plus DA (dearness allowance), not the full salary. PF wages must be at least half the total pay. If they come to less, the difference is added to PF wages.

Staff with PF wages above ₹25,000:

• Already in PF: they stay in PF.
• New joiners above ₹25,000 who were never in PF: they can join PF if you and they both agree in writing.
• In PF at an old job? Call us to check.

Read more in PF wage limit is now ₹25,000.

ESI: staff whose ESI wages are ₹21,000 a month or less (₹25,000 for a person with a disability) must be in ESI. ESI wages leave out some pay items, such as HRA (house rent allowance) and overtime. ESI wages must be at least half the total pay. If they come to less, the difference is added to ESI wages.

Each employee in PF needs a UAN (their PF account number). New staff get their UAN with a quick face scan on the UMANG app. We guide them.

Each employee in ESI needs an IP number (their ESI number). We create IP numbers on the ESIC portal.

When someone new joins later, we'll check who must be in PF and ESI again. Mark the date when staff leave.

Pay by the 15th, every month

PF and ESI must be paid every month, by the 15th of the next month. For example, PF and ESI on October salaries must be paid by 15 November.

• PF: the employee pays 12% of their PF wages. You pay 12%, split between their PF savings and the pension.
• ESI: most employees pay 0.75% of their ESI wages. You pay 3.25%. Staff on very low daily pay don't pay their share, but you still pay 3.25%.

Check the amounts with our free PF contribution calculator and ESI contribution calculator.

Each month, we file the ECR (the monthly list of each employee's wages and PF, sent to the PF office) and your monthly ESI details. We get the payment slip (challan) ready in time, so you can pay by the 15th. Or send us the amount and we pay it.

For the full monthly routine, read our monthly PF and ESI checklist.

If you registered late

Did you reach 10 or 20 staff some time ago, but did not register? Register as soon as it applies. Call us to check your case. We register you, and then we file on time every month.

How we help

Call us. We tell you if PF and ESI apply to your business. Then:

1. We register your business for PF, ESI or both.
2. We add your staff, if the rules cover them.
3. We can file every month. You send us salary details. We file and email you the confirmation and challans.

Our founder worked at EPFO for 35 years. He taught us the PF rules.

You can talk to us in English or Kannada, and we can help you in Hindi too. See our PF monthly filing and ESI monthly filing services.