Statutory Compliance5 min read
PF and ESIC every month: the checklist that stops notices
A monthly routine for provident fund and ESIC compliance that a small employer can follow, and the three mistakes that generate most of the notices we see.
By AK Employer Shield, Compliance team
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Provident fund and ESIC compliance is not difficult. It is relentless. The same steps have to happen every month, on time, with correct data, and one missed month becomes a notice that takes ten times longer to resolve than the filing would have taken.
This is the monthly routine we run for retained clients, written so that an owner or accounts person can follow it. The specific due dates, wage ceilings and contribution rates are deliberately not stated here; they change by notification and must be confirmed for your business. [CLIENT TO CONFIRM CURRENT DUE DATES AND RATES]
The monthly routine
| When | What | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Last working day | Freeze attendance and finalise salary data | Every downstream filing depends on this being right |
| First week | Generate UANs and IP numbers for new joiners; exit leavers | Contributions for a joiner with no UAN cannot be filed |
| First week | Compute PF and ESIC contributions per employee | Wage definition and ceilings decide who is covered and on what amount |
| Before the due date [CLIENT TO CONFIRM] | File ECR and pay the PF challan | Late payment attracts interest and damages |
| Before the due date [CLIENT TO CONFIRM] | File ESIC contribution and pay | Late payment affects employees' ability to claim benefits |
| After filing | Save acknowledgements and update registers | This is what you show an inspector |
The three mistakes behind most notices
1. New joiners enrolled late
An employee joins on the 3rd, the UAN is generated on the 28th, and the first month's contribution is missed or filed as arrears. Enrolment should be part of onboarding on day one, which is why our onboarding service includes it.
2. Wages computed on the wrong base
Contributions computed on a basic that does not reflect the applicable wage definition are the most common finding in PF inspections. The Labour Codes make this question more important, not less. Get the base confirmed in writing.
3. Data mismatches between portals
Name spellings, dates of birth and Aadhaar details that differ between your records, the EPFO portal and the ESIC portal cause rejections and, later, claim problems for employees. Reconcile at enrolment, not at exit.
Note: If you have already received a notice
Send it to us with your last twelve months of filings. Many notices are data mismatches that can be resolved with a correct submission. Some are not. You need to know which within days, not months.
If you would rather not run this routine yourself, it is the core of our statutory compliance retainer.
- PF
- ESIC
- Due dates
- Payroll