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Complete PF registration for your establishment with EPFO under the Code on Social Security, 2020 and give your team a retirement corpus, lifelong pension and life cover. Regikart's CA and CS team handles establishment registration, UAN generation and monthly ECR compliance - starting at Rs 5,999.
Last updated
28 May 2026
EPF at a glance
Retirement, pension and insurance
Fixed quote, before you pay
Leave your name and number. Our team calls you, checks your headcount and what applies to you, and sends a fixed written quote before you pay anything.
20+
Employees - mandatory threshold
24%
Total PF contribution (12% + 12%)
₹25,000
EPF wage ceiling a month from 17 Sep 2026 (was ₹15,000)
30 days
Window to register once applicable
Reference card
PF registration at a glance
| Governing law | Code on Social Security, 2020 (in force from 21 November 2025) and the EPF Scheme, 2026; earlier the EPF and MP Act, 1952 |
| Administered by | EPFO, Ministry of Labour and Employment |
| Mandatory at | 20 or more employees (First Schedule to the Code on Social Security; earlier section 1(3) of the EPF Act) |
| Wage ceiling | EPF wage ceiling: ₹25,000 a month from 17 September 2026, raised from ₹15,000 by notification under the Code on Social Security, 2020. Pension contribution capped here |
| Contribution | Employee 12% + Employer 12% of basic plus DA (employer split: 3.67% EPF + 8.33% EPS) |
| Monthly deposit | ECR + contribution by the 15th of the following month |
| Registration code | EPF establishment code issued by EPFO; each employee gets a UAN |
The 30-day registration window is short, and the 20-employee count sweeps in contract workers most founders forget. Two reasons most employers register late - and pay interest and damages for it.
Once you cross 20 employees, registration is due within 30 days under Section 1(3). Waiting until an EPFO inspection invites backdated demands for the whole period, plus interest and damages on every wage cycle missed.
The 20-employee count includes permanent, contract, casual and temporary workers - not just direct payroll. Excluding contract staff is the single most common applicability mistake we surface during compliance audits.
EPF is not just a deduction. It builds a retirement corpus (EPF), a lifelong pension via EPS and a life cover via EDLI - a genuine retention tool that signals you are a serious employer.
An establishment that crosses 20 generally stays covered even if headcount later falls below 20. Voluntary registration below the threshold is also allowed, and many growing teams use it as a hiring asset.
Coverage is establishment-wide once triggered, and the headcount goes wider than direct payroll. Selective enrolment is one of the most commonly cited findings in EPFO inspection reports.
Important: Registration is due within 30 days of crossing 20 employees. Once covered, an establishment generally stays covered even if headcount later falls below 20. Confirm true headcount before delaying.
From applicability assessment to inspection-ready vaults - we take the brief once and run every cycle on autopilot.
01
Day 1Verify true headcount including contract and casual workers. Confirm 20+ trigger or choose voluntary registration. Lock the date the threshold was crossed for the 30-day clock.
02
Days 1 - 2Collect establishment PAN, certificate of incorporation or registration, premises address proof, cancelled cheque, digital signature of authorised signatory and the employee list with wages and Aadhaar.
03
Days 2 - 3Register the establishment on the EPFO Unified Portal and the Shram Suvidha unified Shram Suvidha portal. File the online application with DSC verification of the authorised signatory.
04
Days 3 - 5Once details are validated, EPFO issues an EPF code number for the establishment. This becomes your user ID for all UAN generation, ECR filing and contribution deposits going forward.
05
Days 5 - 7Create and link a Universal Account Number for every eligible employee. UAN stays with the employee across jobs - we link Aadhaar, PAN and bank to make it portable from day one.
06
By 15thApply 12 percent employee + 12 percent employer on basic plus DA, split correctly between EPF and EPS, plus EDLI and admin. Generate the ECR (Electronic Challan cum Return) and deposit by the 15th.
Crossed 20 employees recently?
Get PF set up the right way.
We assess, register, generate UANs and set up your monthly ECR cycle in one engagement.
We send a checklist customised to your headcount and industry on engagement. Here is the baseline list.
Establishment-level
Employee-level
Director and operations
The employee's 12 percent goes into one bucket. The employer's 12 percent is split between provident fund and pension, with EDLI and admin charges added on top of payroll cost.
| Component | Rate | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Employee to EPF | 12 percent of basic + DA | Deducted from salary |
| Employer to EPF | 3.67 percent of basic + DA | Goes to the provident fund |
| Employer to EPS (pension) | 8.33 percent, capped at ₹25,000 (₹15,000 before 17 Sep 2026) | Max about Rs 2,083 a month (Rs 1,250 before 17 Sep 2026) |
| EDLI (insurance) | 0.50 percent, capped at ₹25,000 (₹15,000 before 17 Sep 2026) | Employer cost |
| Administration charge | 0.50 percent | Employer cost |
Note: for FY 2025-26 the EPF interest rate is 8.25 percent a year. The employee's contribution can qualify for deduction under Section 123 (Section 80C for FY 2025-26 and earlier), subject to the old tax regime and the overall Rs 1.5 lakh limit.
EPF combines a retirement corpus, lifelong pension and life cover with portability across jobs - one of the most valuable statutory benefits in Indian employment.
The employee's 12 percent plus 3.67 percent from the employer accumulates a tax-free retirement corpus, earning the EPF interest rate notified each year - 8.25 percent for FY 2025-26.
The 8.33 percent employer share to the Employees' Pension Scheme funds a pension on retirement after 10 years of service. EPF wage ceiling: ₹25,000 a month from 17 September 2026, raised from ₹15,000 by notification under the Code on Social Security, 2020.
The 0.50 percent EDLI cover provides a lump sum to nominees in case of death in service - up to Rs 7 lakh - at no cost to the employee.
The employee's 12 percent contribution qualifies for deduction under Section 123 of the Income-tax Act, 2025 (Section 80C for FY 2025-26 and earlier) (old tax regime) within the overall Rs 1.5 lakh limit. EPF interest and maturity proceeds remain largely tax-free.
The Universal Account Number stays with the employee across jobs. Transfers between employers are now seamless online - no paper Form 13 chase.
Members can avail partial advances for housing, medical, education and marriage, and full settlement on retirement or after a period of unemployment set by the EPF Scheme, 2026 - rules-based and processed online.
From first registration to inspection support, every touchpoint of your EPF compliance lives with our payroll desk.
Each one is avoidable, each one is expensive, and each one shows up in EPFO inspection reports across industries.
Waiting past 30 days invites backdated demands for contributions, interest at 12 percent per annum and damages (old sections 7Q and 14B, now the corresponding provisions under the Code on Social Security) for the entire period since the threshold was crossed. We register on time once you cross 20.
The count includes contract and casual staff deployed at your premises. Many founders count only direct payroll and register late. We assess true headcount including contractor deployments before applicability is locked. See also contract labour and the principal employer.
PF is on basic plus DA, not gross or CTC. Splitting wages into special allowances to reduce the PF base has been ruled by the Supreme Court (Vivekananda Vidyamandir, 2019) and is no longer safe. We compute on the correct base.
Late deposit attracts interest at 12 percent and damages that scale with the delay (old sections 7Q and 14B, now the corresponding provisions under the Code on Social Security). Once-a-year catch-ups are a recipe for assessments. We file and deposit by the 15th every month.
The Code on Social Security 2020 changes how wages are defined for PF. Wage structures that worked under the EPF Act alone may need restructuring. We review the wage definition during onboarding. See the four labour codes.
Registering with EPFO is free. The real cost is the ongoing employer contribution and admin charges; the Regikart professional fee covers registration and monthly compliance.
| Service | Fee |
|---|---|
| Government registration on EPFO portal | Free |
| Regikart professional fee for PF registration | Rs 5,999 onwards |
| Monthly ECR filing and PF compliance | Rs 1,499 onwards / month |
| PF + ESIC + payroll compliance bundle | Rs 2,499 onwards / month |
All fees and charges listed are indicative only and do not constitute a binding offer. Final amounts may vary depending on the volume of work and the complexity involved.
Both are statutory payroll registrations. Threshold, wage base, rate and purpose are different - employers usually research both together.
| Point | PF (EPF) | ESI |
|---|---|---|
| Governing law | Code on Social Security, 2020 (earlier EPF & MP Act 1952) | Code on Social Security, 2020 (earlier ESI Act 1948) |
| Mandatory at | 20 or more employees | 10 or more |
| Wage basis | Basic + DA, ceiling ₹25,000 (₹15,000 before 17 Sep 2026) | Gross wages, limit Rs 21,000 |
| Employee share | 12 percent | 0.75 percent |
| Employer share | 12 percent (3.67% EPF + 8.33% EPS) | 3.25 percent |
| Purpose | Retirement, pension, insurance | Medical and cash benefits |
| Code | EPF establishment code + UAN | 17-digit ESI code + IP number |
| Recurring event | Frequency and date |
|---|---|
| Apply for EPF registration on portal | Within 30 days of crossing 20 employees |
| Receive EPF establishment code | Usually within a few working days |
| Generate UAN for every new employee | Within the joining month |
| File monthly ECR and deposit contribution | By the 15th of the following month |
| Reconcile annual interest credit | Once a year - usually mid-FY |
| Handle KYC, transfers and withdrawal claims | Continuous - on member request |
| Respond to EPFO inspection or 7Q/14B notice | Within the timeline mentioned (usually 7 to 15 days) |
Most PF registrations are handled by junior executives who treat it as a portal upload. Regikart's payroll desk is run by qualified CAs and CSs with statutory-payroll specialism.
Every registration and ongoing filing reviewed by a qualified professional. Our payroll desk under Regikart's CA team handles PF, ESIC and professional tax for our payroll clients.
Headquartered in Kolkata with operational offices in Delhi and Bengaluru. Local handling for EPFO regional offices and state labour departments across multiple jurisdictions.
From small teams to larger manufacturing units across IT, manufacturing, logistics, retail and healthcare. We know the regional EPFO office quirks.
Every client gets a digital compliance vault with the EPF code letter, all monthly ECRs and challans, UAN-Aadhaar linking proof and notice responses - inspector-ready any working day.
Fixed registration fee, fixed monthly retainer - no per-employee top-ups, no surprise charges for half-yearly filings. What you sign is what you pay.
Beyond PF, we cover ESIC, professional tax, Shops and Establishment registration, labour welfare fund and POSH compliance under one engagement.
Still unsure about applicability, wage base or the registration timeline? Talk to our team and a CA will assess your headcount and quote scope.
Still have questions?
Tell us about your case and our team will walk through it and outline next steps.
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State labour registration for shops, offices and commercial premises.
Regikart is a CA and CS firm headquartered in Kolkata with operational offices in Delhi and Bengaluru. We offer end-to-end compliance services covering accounting, GST, income tax, payroll, ROC and MCA, audit, GSTAT litigation and business registrations. Founded by a Fellow Chartered Accountant, the firm serves 250+ clients across India with a CA and CS-led service model.
Our payroll and statutory compliance desk, led by Regikart's CA team, handles EPF registration, ESIC registration, professional tax, TDS on salaries and labour welfare compliance for businesses from small startups to larger manufacturing units.
Tell us your headcount, location and current payroll setup. We will tell you exactly what is needed, what it costs and what backdated risk you are carrying today.
Talk to a CA
Tell us what you need. A Chartered Accountant or Company Secretary calls you back with the fee, the documents and the timeline, usually within 30 minutes during office hours.
Tell us what you need and we'll take it from there.
