PF, ESI, TDS, gratuity and the returns that go with them, worked through with real numbers.
ESOP sell to cover and net-share exercises use the employee's own shares to pay the tax. How payroll reports them, and why cash for surrendered options differs.
7 min read
Form 130 from TRACES replaces Form 16 from tax year 2026-27. Why it cannot be merged or edited, where your salary computation goes, and a June 2027 plan.
7 min read
Form 140 section codes replaced 94C, 4JA and 4JB from 2026-27: contract work 1023/1024, technical 1026, professional 1027, director's fee 1028, T and Y flags.
6 min read
GST input credit on employee expenses: invoices in the company GSTIN, blocked credits under section 17(5), out-of-state hotels, time limits and receipt OCR.
6 min read
Reverse charge on foreign software: pay IGST in cash, raise a self-invoice in 30 days, claim the credit in GSTR-3B 4(A)(2). When a bill gives no credit.
6 min read
Labour Code registers under the Wages (Central) Rules 2026: Forms I, IV, IX, wage slip Form V, nomination Form VII, and when your State's forms apply instead.
6 min read
Is PF on subsistence allowance payable now? The old EPFO answer was no, but the EPF Scheme 2026 uses the Code's wage definition. ESI, rates and an example.
6 min read
A tax equalisation allowance or a grossed-up perquisite? How to pay an employee's tax under the Income-tax Act 2025, s.35(a)(i), and what is still open.
7 min read
The EPF Scheme 2026 replaced the 1952 Scheme on 29 June 2026. The new paragraph numbers, the joint option, voluntary PF and late-payment damages, in plain words
6 min read
When is ESI due on arrears? ESIC's own manual says no contribution on revision arrears for earlier months. Other arrears, and how to pay for a closed month.
6 min read
Form 138 replaced Form 24Q for salary TDS from tax year 2026-27. How to prepare the Form 138 FVU file for Q2, due 31 October 2026, and the checks to run first.
6 min read
The gratuity calculation formula in India under the Code on Social Security, with worked examples: 15/26, the 240-day year, fixed-term staff, the ₹20 lakh cap.
6 min read
A leave encashment provision needs an actuarial valuation for most companies, small ones too. Who may use a simple accrual, the AS 15 tests and the tax rule.
5 min read
PF on full and final settlement belongs to the exit month. When the F&F is paid after that ECR, use a supplementary or revised return, not the arrear ECR.
6 min read
PF on salary arrears goes in a separate arrear ECR, with each month's own wage ceiling. A worked wage-settlement example, the due date and the employer share.
6 min read
The PF wage ceiling of ₹25,000 applies from 17 September 2026. Who must now join EPF and EPS, how to split the September ECR, and what it costs employers.
6 min read
When TDS on an ESOP is more than the month's pay, can the company pay it? Tax paid by employer on behalf of employee: the s.392(2) route, gross-up and booking.
6 min read
How the 50% wage rule in the new labour code works, which salary components count, what the Labour Ministry FAQs settled, and two worked salary structures.
5 min read
