At a Glance
Where the Code comes from, when it took effect and what it replaced.
The Code on Wages, 2019 came into force across India on 21 November 2025, and the Code on Wages (Central) Rules, 2026 were notified on 8 May 2026, giving the Code its full working machinery of forms, timelines and procedures.
Note: The Central Rules apply directly to establishments where the Central Government is the appropriate government, such as banking, insurance, telecom, mining, railways, major ports and central public sector undertakings. Most private employers fall under state jurisdiction, so full compliance for them depends on their respective State Rules, several of which are still in draft form as of July 2026.
- Issuing authority
- Ministry of Labour and Employment, Government of India
- Notified
- Code brought into force from 21 November 2025 (Notification S.O. 5322(E)) and the Code on Wages (Central) Rules 2026 notified on 8 May 2026 (Notification G.S.R. 343(E))
- Objection window
- Draft Central Rules were published on 30 December 2025 with a 45 day window for objections and suggestions, which closed around 13 February 2026
- Legal basis
- Section 1(3) and Section 67 of the Code on Wages 2019 (Act 29 of 2019)
- Supersedes
- Payment of Wages Act 1936, Minimum Wages Act 1948, Payment of Bonus Act 1965 and Equal Remuneration Act 1976, all repealed with effect from 21 November 2025 under Section 69 of the Code. Also supersedes 17 sets of central rules under the earlier laws, including the Minimum Wages (Central) Rules 1950, the Payment of Bonus Rules 1975 and the Equal Remuneration Rules 1976
- Status as of
- 25 July 2026, in force nationwide. Central Rules are operative for central sphere establishments, while State Rules under the Code remain pending notification in several states for private sector employers
Introduction
For nearly a century, Indian employers had to track four separate central laws to manage wages, minimum pay, bonus and equal remuneration: the Payment of Wages Act 1936, the Minimum Wages Act 1948, the Payment of Bonus Act 1965 and the Equal Remuneration Act 1976. The Code on Wages 2019 folds all four into a single law. It introduces new ideas such as one uniform definition of wages, a statutory national floor wage, and a single Inspector cum Facilitator in place of four separate inspectorates. The Code itself came into force on 21 November 2025, and the Code on Wages (Central) Rules 2026, notified on 8 May 2026, supply the forms and timelines employers actually have to follow.
Forms Employers Must File
These are the forms an employer, not a trade union or a worker, is responsible for filing and maintaining under the Code on Wages (Central) Rules 2026.
| Form No. | Title | Governing Rule | Filed By |
|---|---|---|---|
| Form I | Register of employees, covering employee details, category and wage rate | Rule 51, Code on Wages (Central) Rules 2026 | Employer |
| Form IV | Register of wages, overtime, advances, fines and deductions for each employee | Rule 51(2) and 51(3), Code on Wages (Central) Rules 2026 | Employer |
| Form V | Wage slip, issued to every employee on or before payment of wages | Rule 52, read with Section 50(3) of the Code | Employer |
| Form IX | Attendance register cum muster roll | Rule 51(1)(iii), Code on Wages (Central) Rules 2026 | Employer |
Due Dates
Compliance deadlines, the form each one uses and how often it recurs.
| Compliance | Form | Rule Reference | Frequency | Due Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wages for daily rated employees | Not applicable | Section 15 of the Code | Recurring | End of the shift |
| Wages for weekly rated employees | Not applicable | Section 15 of the Code | Recurring | On or before the last working day of the week, before the weekly holiday |
| Wages for fortnightly rated employees | Not applicable | Section 15 of the Code | Recurring | Before the end of the second day after the fortnight closes |
| Wages for monthly rated employees | Not applicable | Section 15 of the Code | Recurring | Before the 7th day of the following month |
| Full and final settlement on exit | Not applicable | Section 15(2) of the Code | Event based | Within 2 working days of removal, dismissal, retrenchment or resignation |
| Wage slip issuance | Form V | Rule 52, Code on Wages (Central) Rules 2026 | Recurring | On or before the date of payment of wages |
| VDA revision for notified employments | Not applicable | Rule 5, Code on Wages (Central) Rules 2026 | Recurring | Twice a year, before 1 April and before 1 October |
| Minimum wage review | Not applicable | Section 8(4) of the Code | Recurring | At least once every 5 years |
| Annual bonus payment | Not applicable | Section 39 of the Code | Recurring | Within 8 months of the close of the accounting year, extendable up to 2 years with prior approval |
| Register retention | Forms I, IV and IX | Rule 51(4) | Recurring | 5 years from the date of the last entry |
| Wage or bonus claim filing | Form II | Section 45(6) of the Code | Event based | Within 3 years from the date the claim arises |
| Appeal against a claim order | Form III | Section 49(1) of the Code | Event based | Within 90 days of the order |
Key Provisions
The sections that decide what an employer has to do.
Old Law vs. New Law
What employers followed before, against what applies now — point matched against point.
| On this point | Before — earlier law | Now — the new Code |
|---|---|---|
| Coverage | Minimum Wages Act applied only to listed scheduled employments; Payment of Wages Act applied only up to a wage ceiling of about Rs 24,000 a month | Applies to all employees in all establishments, with no wage ceiling and no scheduled employment list |
| Definition of wages | Different definitions existed under each of the four laws | One common definition applies across minimum wage, bonus and other statutory calculations |
| Floor wage | The National Floor Level Minimum Wage was only an advisory recommendation with no binding legal force | The Central Government has statutory power to fix a binding floor wage that no state can go below |
| Equal pay | Equal Remuneration Act 1976 addressed discrimination based on sex | Section 3 addresses discrimination based on gender, a wider term |
| Bonus eligibility ceiling | Payment of Bonus Act fixed the eligibility ceiling at Rs 21,000 a month, changeable only by amending the Act | The appropriate government can revise the eligibility ceiling by notification, without amending the law |
| Inspection | Four separate sets of inspectors operated under four different laws and processes | One Inspector cum Facilitator both advises and inspects, largely through a web based scheme |
| Penalties | Penalties under the older laws, especially the Payment of Wages Act, were low and had not kept pace with inflation | Penalties go up to Rs 1,00,000 with possible imprisonment for repeat offences, alongside a one time chance to correct minor lapses before prosecution |
| Dispute resolution | Separate claim authorities and timelines existed under different laws | A single claims authority under Section 45 handles wage, deduction, discrimination and bonus claims, with power to award compensation |
| Filing of forms and notices | Largely paper based filing with physical registers | Electronic filing, digital registers and wage slips built into the Central Rules 2026 |
Applicability
Who the Code covers, and who gets special or exempt treatment.
Covered
- Every establishment and every employee across India, for minimum wages, timely payment and equal remuneration, regardless of establishment size or wage level
- Establishments employing 20 or more persons on any day of the accounting year, for the bonus chapter
- Railways, mines, oil fields, major ports, air transport, telecommunication, banking and insurance companies, central public sector undertakings and their contractors, where the Central Government is the appropriate government
- All other establishments, where the concerned State Government is the appropriate government and State Rules apply once notified
Exempted / special treatment
- Domestic and agricultural employers with not more than 5 workers are exempted from maintaining records and returns under Section 50
- LIC employees, seamen, registered dock workers, and government and local authority establishments are excluded from the bonus chapter under Section 41
- Universities, not for profit hospitals, welfare institutions, the Reserve Bank of India and certain notified public sector financial institutions are excluded from the bonus chapter under Section 41
- The Code on Wages (Central) Rules 2026 apply only to central sphere establishments, not to those under state jurisdiction
Penalties
What each default costs, section by section.
Frequently Asked Questions
Answers to what employers ask us most about this Code.
What is the Code on Wages 2019?
It is a single central law that brings together everything to do with minimum wages, timely payment, bonus and equal remuneration. It replaces four older laws that employers used to track separately, and adds new requirements such as a uniform wage definition and a statutory national floor wage.
When did the Code on Wages come into force?
Almost the entire Code came into force on 21 November 2025. The Code on Wages (Central) Rules 2026, which supply the actual forms and timelines, were notified later on 8 May 2026.
Which older laws does the Code on Wages replace?
It replaces the Payment of Wages Act 1936, the Minimum Wages Act 1948, the Payment of Bonus Act 1965 and the Equal Remuneration Act 1976. All four stand repealed with effect from 21 November 2025.
What are the Code on Wages Central Rules 2026?
These are the detailed procedural rules made under Section 67 of the Code. They prescribe the actual forms, such as Form I for the employee register and Form V for the wage slip, along with timelines and record keeping requirements.
Does the Code on Wages apply to my company right now?
The Code itself applies nationwide from 21 November 2025 for minimum wages, timely payment and equal remuneration. However, the Central Rules only govern establishments where the Central Government is the appropriate government, such as banking, insurance, telecom and railways. Most private companies fall under state jurisdiction and need to watch for their state's own rules under the Code.
Has the national floor wage been notified yet?
Not as a binding figure. As of mid 2026, the Central Government has not fixed the statutory national floor wage under Section 9, so the earlier advisory National Floor Level Minimum Wage of Rs 178 a day continues to be referenced, and states keep setting their own minimum wages above it.
What is the 50 percent rule I keep hearing about?
Under the Code's definition of wages, if allowances and other excluded components add up to more than half of an employee's total remuneration, the amount above that half is treated as wages anyway. This affects how provident fund, gratuity and bonus get calculated, so payroll structures with a low basic pay and large allowances need a fresh look.
Who is eligible for bonus under the new Code?
Employees at establishments with 20 or more persons on any day of the accounting year, provided their wages fall within the ceiling notified by the appropriate government. The bonus itself stays between 8.33% and 20% of annual wages, just as it was under the earlier Payment of Bonus Act.
What are the wage payment deadlines I need to follow?
Daily wages by the end of the shift, weekly wages before the weekly holiday, fortnightly wages within two days of the fortnight closing, and monthly wages before the 7th of the following month.
How quickly must I settle dues when an employee leaves?
Within two working days of removal, dismissal, retrenchment or resignation, regardless of the employee's usual wage period.
What registers and forms am I expected to maintain?
At minimum, an employee register in Form I, a register of wages, overtime, advances, fines and deductions in Form IV, an attendance register cum muster roll in Form IX, and wage slips issued in Form V. These apply to central sphere establishments under the 2026 Central Rules, and most State Rules follow a similar pattern.
What happens if I pay an employee less than what is legally due?
A first offence can attract a fine up to Rs 50,000. If the same offence repeats within 5 years, the penalty rises to imprisonment up to 3 months, a fine up to Rs 1,00,000, or both.
Do I get a chance to fix a minor compliance lapse before facing prosecution?
For lapses relating to general contraventions and record keeping, yes. The Inspector cum Facilitator must give you a written direction with a time limit to comply before starting prosecution, unless you have repeated the same lapse within the last 5 years.
Where can an employee take a wage related complaint?
To the claims authority appointed under Section 45, either directly, through a registered trade union, or through the Inspector cum Facilitator. The claim must generally be filed within 3 years of the dispute arising.
What should employers do next to prepare?
Check whether the Central Rules or your state's rules apply to you, review payroll structures against the 50 percent wage rule, confirm which employees cross the bonus wage ceiling, and switch to the prescribed digital forms and registers where possible.
Sources of Information
Where every fact on this page comes from.
- → The Code on Wages 2019 (Act 29 of 2019), Gazette of India (official)
- → Notification S.O. 5322(E) dated 21 November 2025, Ministry of Labour and Employment (official)
- → Code on Wages (Central) Rules 2026, Notification G.S.R. 343(E) dated 8 May 2026, Ministry of Labour and Employment (official)
- → Draft Code on Wages (Central) Rules 2025, Notification G.S.R. 936(E) dated 30 December 2025 (official)
- → Ministry of Labour and Employment, press releases and official FAQs on the four Labour Codes (official)
For informational purposes only — not legal advice. State rules made under this Code vary, and both the Code and its rules are subject to amendment. Check your state's status or verify with our compliance team before acting.