Salary Slip Format in India: Every Component Explained (Free Template)

A salary slip is the proof of income your employees will hand to a bank, a landlord or a visa officer, so it has to show gross earnings, every deduction, and the net paid, for a stated month. There is no single prescribed national format, but the components below are what any of those readers expect to see.

What has to be on it, and why

Wage legislation requires employers to issue wage slips and to keep wage records. In practice the document is checked by third parties, so it must show the employer's name, the employee's name and identifier, the period, the earnings split by component, statutory deductions, and the net. EPF is deducted where the establishment is covered and the employee is eligible; ESI applies below the notified wage ceiling; professional tax is a state levy and its slabs differ by state; TDS depends on the employee's projected annual liability.

What the document must contain

• Employer name and address (required): As registered. A payslip without it is rejected by banks.
• Employee name, code, designation (required): Plus date of joining on most formats.
• Pay period and pay date (required): The month, and days paid versus days present.
• Basic salary (required): The base for EPF, gratuity and most other calculations.
• House rent allowance (required): What the employee will claim exemption against.
• Other allowances (optional): Conveyance, special allowance, and any performance component.
• Gross earnings (required): Total before any deduction.
• EPF (employee contribution) (required): Where the establishment is covered and the employee eligible.
• ESI (employee contribution) (required): Where wages are below the notified ceiling.
• Professional tax (required): State levy. Slabs differ by state; some states do not levy it.
• TDS (optional): Where the projected annual liability requires deduction.
• Net pay, in figures and words (required): What actually reached the bank account.
• Bank account and UAN (optional): UAN helps the employee track EPF across jobs.

Frequently asked questions