Professional Tax, Deducted and Deposited State by State.
PT Registration Certificate (PTRC), monthly deduction on the right state slab, timely deposit and annual return, across the 21 states plus Puducherry that levy Professional Tax. TMS runs the state-wise PT cycle on our own compliance infrastructure so multi-state employers stop tripping over slab differences.
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A State-Levied Salary Deduction, Capped by the Constitution.
Professional Tax is a tax on trade, profession, calling and employment levied by state governments under Article 276 of the Constitution. It is capped at Rs 2,500 per person per year across all states. The employer deducts PT from every covered employee’s salary each month and deposits it with the state commercial-tax or labour department, along with periodic returns.
21 states + Puducherry
PT is currently levied in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, West Bengal, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Puducherry, Sikkim and Tripura.
5 states do not levy PT
Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan and Punjab do not levy Professional Tax. Employees based in these states are exempt on the PT line, though other statutory deductions still apply.
Rs 2,500 constitutional cap
Article 276 caps total annual PT liability at Rs 2,500 per person, per state, per year. States design slabs to stay within this limit. Amount is deductible under Section 16(iii) of the Income Tax Act.
Maharashtra has a unique gender-based exemption: women employees earning up to Rs 25,000 per month are fully exempt from PT. No other state offers this exemption.
PT Filed on the Right State Slab, Every Month.
Multi-state employers get PT wrong because every state runs its own slab table, its own deposit calendar and its own portal. Miss a monthly deposit and interest at up to 2 percent per month plus penalty up to 1.5 times the annual liability starts accruing, along with prosecution risk under most state PT Acts. TMS runs the state-wise cycle for 450 plus clients so it never lands on your compliance desk.
“PT looks trivial because the numbers are small. Miss it in one state and the penalty is bigger than the tax itself. We run it right, state by state, every month.”
The Full PT Compliance Cycle.
PTEC and PTRC registration
Professional Tax Enrolment Certificate for the entity and Professional Tax Registration Certificate as an employer, with the state commercial-tax or labour department, typically within 30 days of the trigger event.
State-wise slab mapping
Employee salaries mapped to the correct state slab for every payroll cycle, including Maharashtra women-exempt handling and inter-state transfer recalibration.
Monthly deduction and deposit
PT deducted on payroll, challan generated on the correct state portal and deposited on the state-specific due date, with reconciliation back to Form 24Q and Form 138 TDS records.
Periodic and annual returns
State-specific monthly, quarterly or annual PT returns filed on time. Employer proof of payment maintained for inspection response.
Inspection and notice response
PT department inspection support, notice response drafting, and reconciliation for state-department queries on wage-slab classification.
Multi-state consolidation
Single dashboard across all your PT-liable states with headcount by state, deposit status, next due date and any exceptions flagged.
From Onboarding to Steady State.
Onboarding
State-wise employee roster, current PTRC status per state, existing challans and pending returns reviewed. TMS becomes the point of contact.
Registration and mapping
PTRC obtained where missing, slab mapping locked per state, exemption flags set for Maharashtra women and any state-specific exceptions.
Monthly run
Every wage cycle, PT deducted, challan generated per state portal, deposited on the state due date. State transfers and joiners handled inline.
Steady state
Monthly state-wise compliance report, periodic and annual returns, inspection response with a single programme manager.
How the Top PT States Structure Their Slabs.
Every state runs its own slab table. The highest annual liability lands at Rs 2,500 across all states, but the monthly ladder to get there differs. Here are the busiest employer states.
| State | Monthly deduction pattern | Notable rule |
|---|---|---|
| Maharashtra | Rs 200 per month, Rs 300 in February | Women earning up to Rs 25,000 per month are fully exempt |
| Karnataka | Rs 200 per month above the Karnataka salary threshold | Karnataka PT Act, deposit monthly |
| Tamil Nadu | Half-yearly slabs, deposit due September and March | Six-monthly, not monthly, cycle |
| Telangana | Rs 150 to Rs 200 per month | Andhra Pradesh style slabs, similar cadence |
| West Bengal | Slab based on gross monthly salary | Enrolment certificate needed for the entity separately |
| Gujarat | Rs 200 per month above the Gujarat wage threshold | Deposit monthly through the state PT portal |
Slab tables update from time to time. TMS maintains a state-wise slab matrix internally and applies the current values every wage cycle.
In-house PT Team vs Outsourced to TMS.
PT looks like a rounding error until you run payroll in five or six states and try to keep the slab table current in each one. This is where in-house payroll teams silently pay penalties for years.
| Decision | In-house PT desk | TMS outsourced |
|---|---|---|
| State-wise slab table | Manually maintained, often stale | Updated centrally, applied every cycle |
| Monthly deposit calendar | State-by-state manual tracker | Single calendar, SLA-backed deposits |
| Maharashtra women exemption | Often missed, over-deducted | Applied automatically per profile |
| Notice and inspection response | You represent yourself | TMS drafts responses, attends |
| Reconciliation with TDS | Manual, quarter-end scramble | Automated against Form 24Q and 138 |
| Best for | Single-state employers with stable slabs | Multi-state employers with any PT-liable footprint |
Hiring in a new PT-liable state?
Tell us the state, the headcount you plan to hire and any current PTRC status. We register where missing, map the slabs and start monthly deposits from the next payroll cycle.
Two Decades of PT Filings Across Every Levying State.
Since 2006
A compliance-first HR firm that has filed PT for close to two decades, across every slab change in the levying states.
Multi-state coverage
PTRC and monthly deposit handling in all 21 PT-levying states plus Puducherry. Zero handoffs between state desks.
1 SPOC per account
A dedicated PT programme manager who owns your engagement, state calendar and department liaison end to end.
Team Management Services (TMS)
TMS is a compliance-first HR firm in India, established in 2006, serving 450+ clients across 100+ cities and 28 states. Our Professional Tax practice runs state-wise PTRC, monthly deductions and deposits, periodic returns and inspection response on the TMS payroll and compliance infrastructure. Contact: [email protected], +91 22 4896 7640.
Other Ways TMS Can Help.
PT State-wise Rates 2026
Live reference of current Professional Tax slabs across every levying state.
PF Services
EPF registration, monthly ECR filing and UAN handling under EPF Scheme 2026.
ESIC Services
ESI registration, monthly contribution filing and IP card handling for covered staff.
Statutory Compliance
Full HR labour-law compliance across PF, ESI, PT, LWF, TDS and beyond.
Professional Tax FAQs.
Which states levy Professional Tax and which do not?
PT is levied by 21 states plus Puducherry. The five that do not levy it are Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan and Punjab. Employees working in the five non-PT states have no PT line on their payslip.
What is the annual PT cap and where does it come from?
Article 276 of the Constitution caps annual Professional Tax at Rs 2,500 per person per state per year. Every state designs its monthly or half-yearly slab to fit within this cap.
Is PT deductible for the employee under income tax?
Yes. Professional Tax paid during the financial year is deductible under Section 16(iii) of the Income Tax Act. This deduction continues under the Income Tax Act 2025 (effective 1 April 2026) under both the old and new tax regimes.
Do we need to register for PT in every state where we have staff?
Yes, if that state levies PT. You need a Professional Tax Enrolment Certificate for the entity and a Professional Tax Registration Certificate as an employer, usually within 30 days of first employing PT-liable staff in that state. Missing this triggers late-registration penalties.
What happens if we miss a monthly PT deposit?
State PT Acts impose interest of up to 2 percent per month on the delayed amount and penalty up to 1.5 times the annual PT liability, plus prosecution risk. Because PT amounts are small, employers often ignore reminders until the penalty stack becomes larger than the tax itself.
Does Maharashtra really exempt women earning up to Rs 25,000?
Yes, and only Maharashtra. Women employees drawing gross salary up to Rs 25,000 per month are fully exempt from Professional Tax in Maharashtra. This exemption is not available in any other state. TMS applies it automatically for Maharashtra rosters.
Book a 30-Minute PT Compliance Call.
Tell us the states you have staff in, headcount by state, and current PTRC status. We check registrations, scope the takeover and start monthly deposits from the next payroll cycle if you want us to. Prefer to talk? Call +91 22 4896 7640 or WhatsApp +91 91360 24090.