Salary slip format: every component explained, and a slip you can print
The standard format, each earning and deduction explained, the CTC-to-in-hand gap, how to check your own slip — and a generator that prints or saves as PDF without uploading anything.
A salary slip (pay slip) is the monthly statement an employer gives an employee showing every component of pay — basic, HRA, allowances — every deduction — provident fund, professional tax, TDS — and the net pay that reached the bank. Under the Code on Wages, 2019 every employer must issue one. The generator below produces a correctly structured slip you can print or save as PDF, with nothing uploaded anywhere; the sections after it explain each line and how to check yours.
- Standard blocks: header · employee details · earnings → gross · deductions → total · net pay in words
- Basic is usually 40–50% of gross; PF, gratuity and the HRA limit are computed from it
- Employee PF: 12% of basic + DA, often capped at ₹1,800 (wage ceiling ₹15,000)
- Professional tax: state levy, max ₹2,500 a year; none in Delhi, UP, Haryana
- CTC ≠ slip: employer PF and gratuity are in CTC but never on the slip
- Mandatory under the Code on Wages, 2019 — electronic slips count
Salary slip generator
Type the figures from your offer letter or CTC break-up. PF fills automatically at 12% of basic plus DA, capped at the statutory ₹1,800 unless you choose the full amount. The amount in words uses Indian numbering.
Employer and employee
Earnings (monthly, ₹)
Deductions (monthly, ₹)
| Earnings | Amount |
|---|---|
| Basic | |
| House rent allowance | |
| Dearness allowance | |
| Conveyance | |
| Special allowance | |
| Other earnings | |
| Gross earnings |
| Deductions | Amount |
|---|---|
| Employee PF | |
| Professional tax | |
| TDS | |
| ESI | |
| Other deductions | |
| Total deductions |
A slip you make yourself is a format, not a document: banks, embassies and landlords accept only the slip your employer issues, on its letterhead or from its payroll system. Use this to check a slip, to prepare one if you run payroll for a small team, or to see what a given CTC looks like month to month.
Salary slip format: what a standard slip contains
| Block | Fields |
|---|---|
| Header | Company name, address and logo; the month and year of pay; slip number |
| Employee details | Name, employee ID, designation, department, date of joining, PAN, UAN or PF number, bank account, paid days out of month days, leave taken |
| Earnings | Basic, dearness allowance, house rent allowance, conveyance, special allowance, medical, LTA, overtime, bonus or incentive, arrears — and gross earnings |
| Deductions | Employee provident fund, employee state insurance, professional tax, TDS, loan or advance recovery, labour welfare fund — and total deductions |
| Net pay | Gross earnings minus total deductions, in figures and in words |
| Footer | Mode and date of payment, “computer-generated, no signature required” or a signatory |
Employer-side costs — the employer’s PF contribution, gratuity accrual, insurance premiums — are part of CTC but do not appear on a slip, because they were never paid to you. That is the single biggest reason a slip looks smaller than the offer letter. Download a blank template (PDF) if you want the layout without the numbers.
Earnings, line by line
| Component | What it is | Tax treatment |
|---|---|---|
| Basic salary | The fixed core of pay, typically 40–50% of gross. PF, gratuity and HRA limits are all calculated from it | Fully taxable |
| Dearness allowance | Cost-of-living top-up, common in government and PSU pay, rare in private companies | Fully taxable; counts as salary for PF and HRA when it forms part of retirement benefits |
| House rent allowance | Usually 40–50% of basic | Exempt up to the Section 10(13A) limit in the old regime if you pay rent; fully taxable in the new regime |
| Conveyance / transport | Commuting allowance | Taxable since the standard deduction replaced it in 2018 (exempt only for specified disabilities) |
| Special allowance | The balancing figure that makes gross add up to the agreed amount | Fully taxable |
| Leave travel allowance | Reimbursement of domestic travel fare | Exempt for two journeys in a block of four years, against bills, old regime only |
| Bonus, incentives, overtime, arrears | Variable pay | Taxable in the month paid; arrears can be spread with Form 10E relief under Section 89 |
Deductions, line by line
| Deduction | How it is calculated | Where it goes |
|---|---|---|
| Employee PF | 12% of basic + DA. The statutory wage ceiling is ₹15,000, so many employers deduct a flat ₹1,800; others deduct 12% of full basic | Your EPF account (UAN). Employer adds another 12%, split between EPF and pension |
| ESI | 0.75% of gross, only when gross is ₹21,000 or less (₹25,000 for persons with disability); employer pays 3.25% | Employees’ State Insurance medical cover |
| Professional tax | State levy, maximum ₹2,500 a year. Maharashtra ₹200 a month (₹300 in February) above ₹10,000; Karnataka ₹200 a month above ₹25,000; West Bengal and Tamil Nadu by slab; none in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana | State government; deductible from taxable salary |
| TDS | Employer estimates your annual tax under the regime you chose, divides by twelve, adjusts as declarations arrive | Income Tax Department, against your PAN; shown in Form 16 and 26AS |
| Loan / advance recovery, LWF | Per company policy; labour welfare fund is a few rupees in some states | — |
Gratuity is not a monthly deduction: it is an employer liability that becomes payable after five years of service (4.81% of basic is the usual CTC provision). If a slip shows gratuity deducted from your pay, ask why.
CTC, gross and in-hand: the three numbers
CTC is everything the company spends on you, including its PF share, gratuity provision and insurance. Gross is what appears as earnings on the slip. In-hand (net) is gross minus your PF, professional tax, TDS and any recovery. On a ₹6 lakh CTC a typical slip reads: gross ₹46,000, deductions ₹2,000 (PF ₹1,800, professional tax ₹200, no TDS below the new-regime threshold), net ₹44,000. The in-hand salary calculator does the arithmetic for any CTC and both tax regimes.
How to check your salary slip
- Gross equals the offer. Add the earnings; they should match the monthly gross in your CTC break-up, minus any unpaid leave.
- PF is 12% of basic + DA, or ₹1,800 if capped. Check it appears in your EPF passbook within two months.
- TDS matches the regime you declared. A jump in TDS after December usually means the employer had not received your investment proofs.
- Professional tax is your state’s rate, not the head office’s.
- Net pay equals the bank credit. Any gap is a recovery that should be itemised.
- Form 16 reconciles to twelve slips at year end; the “salary as per Section 17(1)” figure is the total of your gross earnings.
When you need a salary slip
Lenders ask for the last three months’ slips and six months of bank statements for a home or personal loan. Visa applications (Schengen, UK, US B1/B2) commonly ask for three to six months. Landlords, credit-card issuers and new employers (for background verification) ask for the latest one. For an income-tax return the slips are the working papers behind Form 16, and the TDS deducted on them is what you claim as credit.
Is a salary slip mandatory?
Yes. Section 15 of the Code on Wages, 2019 and the rules under it require employers to issue a wage slip; earlier the Payment of Wages Act, 1936 and state shops-and-establishments acts required it for covered employees. A slip may be electronic. If your employer does not issue one, a written request usually resolves it, and the labour commissioner is the escalation.
Common questions
A monthly statement from an employer showing every earning (basic, HRA, allowances), every deduction (PF, professional tax, TDS) and the net pay credited to the employee's bank account. It is the primary proof of income for loans, visas and tax.
A header with the company and pay month; employee details (name, ID, designation, PAN, UAN, bank account, paid days); an earnings column ending in gross pay; a deductions column ending in total deductions; net pay in figures and words; and a footer with the payment mode or signatory.
By the employer, usually 40 to 50 percent of gross. It cannot be so low that the rest of the pay is all allowances: the Code on Wages counts allowances above 50 percent of total pay as wages for PF and gratuity.
Because the statutory PF wage ceiling is ₹15,000 a month and 12 percent of that is ₹1,800. Employers may deduct 12 percent of the full basic instead if the employee opts for it.
A state government tax on employment, capped at ₹2,500 a year. Maharashtra deducts ₹200 a month (₹300 in February), Karnataka ₹200 a month above a ₹25,000 salary; Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana do not levy it.
CTC is the employer's total cost including its PF share and gratuity provision; gross is the earnings shown on the slip; net or in-hand is gross minus the employee's deductions.
You can generate one to check figures or to run payroll for your own staff, but only a slip issued by your employer is accepted as proof of income by banks, embassies and landlords.
Yes. The Code on Wages, 2019 requires employers to issue a wage slip, electronically or on paper, for every wage period.
- Code on Wages, 2019 — India Code
- EPFO — contribution rates and wage ceiling
- ESIC — contribution rates
- Income Tax Department — TDS on salary (Section 192)
Rates for PF, ESI and professional tax verified on 25 September 2026; state professional-tax schedules change, so confirm your state's current slab.