Salary Slip Format in India: Every Component Explained (Basic, HRA, PF, ESI)

A salary slip (also called a payslip) is the monthly document that shows what an employee earned, what was deducted and what was finally paid. Employees need it for loans, credit cards, visas and job changes, and small businesses need to issue it every month.

The basic structure of a salary slip

• Company details: name, address and logo.
• Employee details: name, employee ID, designation, department, PAN, UAN and bank account.
• Pay period: the month, working days, paid days and loss-of-pay (LOP) days.
• Earnings: every component of salary.
• Deductions: everything subtracted.
• Net pay: earnings minus deductions, in figures and words.

Earnings: what each component means

Basic salary

The fixed core of the salary, often around 40–50% of the monthly gross. PF and HRA are usually calculated from Basic, so it affects everything else.

House Rent Allowance (HRA)

Paid to help with rent. Part of it can be tax-free under the old tax regime if the employee pays rent and submits rent receipts.

Conveyance and other allowances

Fixed amounts for travel or specific purposes. Many companies combine smaller allowances into one line.

Special allowance

The balancing figure that makes up the rest of the agreed salary.

Deductions: what gets subtracted

Provident Fund (PF)

The employee contributes 12% of Basic (plus DA), and the employer contributes a matching share. Many employers calculate PF on a wage ceiling of ₹15,000, which caps the employee share at ₹1,800 a month.

Employees' State Insurance (ESI)

Applies when gross monthly wages are ₹21,000 or less. The employee pays 0.75% of gross wages and the employer pays 3.25%.

Professional tax

A state tax, with a maximum of ₹2,500 a year. Rates and rules differ by state, and some states do not levy it at all.

Income tax (TDS)

Tax deducted at source based on the employee's estimated yearly income and the tax regime they chose.

Sample calculation

Earnings	₹	Deductions	₹
Basic	15,000	PF (12% of Basic)	1,800
HRA	6,000	Professional tax	200
Conveyance	1,600	TDS	0
Special allowance	2,400
Gross	25,000	Total deductions	2,000

Net pay = ₹25,000 − ₹2,000 = ₹23,000. ESI does not apply here because gross is above ₹21,000.

How loss of pay (LOP) works

If an employee takes unpaid leave, each earning is usually reduced in proportion. With 30 working days and 28 paid days, the employee receives 28/30 of each earning, and PF is recalculated on the reduced Basic.

Make a salary slip for free

The free Salary Slip Generator does all of this for you: add your logo, enter the salary, use Auto PF and Auto ESI, set paid days, and print or save a one-page PDF. No sign-up needed. It is also available in Hindi. If you make slips for many employees every month, payroll automation can generate and send them for you.

This article is general guidance. Check PF, ESI, professional tax and TDS rules with your accountant.