Employment Documents in India: Payslip, Form 16, Relieving Letter

Before your first hire in India starts, you need to know which papers arrive, for whom and when. What documents does an EOR provide in India? Employment documents in India fall into two sets when you hire through an employer of record. One is the records your company receives; the other is the papers each employee is owed by law. A People Ops lead needs both lists, with dates, before the first person starts.

Versatile Club is an India-only Employer of Record (EOR). Its EOR service employs your team on its own Indian company, Foo Falcon Technologies Pvt Ltd. So it issues every employee document, from the salary slip to Form 16 and the relieving letter. It also sends your company a monthly set of records and proof. This page lists each document, who gets it, when, and the law behind it.

At a glance

Document	Who receives it	When
Master services agreement	Your company	Day 1 of onboarding
Offer letter	Your new hire, after your company approves it	Day 2
Employment contract and appointment letter	Your new hire; the OSH Code requires a letter of appointment to every employee	Day 3
Wage slip	Each employee	Every pay run, on or before payment of wages
USD invoice, with a cost line for each employee	Your company	Every month
Payroll summary: gross, deductions and net per employee	Your company	Every month
PF and ESI challan confirmations, TDS deposit receipts	Your company	Every month
Compliance status report: what's filed, what's next	Your company	Every month
Annual salary tax certificate	Each employee	Once a year; Form 130, formerly Form 16, due by 15 June
Full and Final settlement and relieving letter	The employee who leaves; your company gets the settlement statement	On exit
Service certificate	A leaving worker covered by standing orders	Within ten days of leaving

An employee's September 2026 payslip showing earnings, deductions, the employer PF paid on top of gross, net pay and a Download or print option — The wage slip is the document employees see most: one every month, issued by Versatile Club's Indian company as employer. Figures are sample data.

Documents your company receives

Your company's paperwork runs between you and Versatile Club. The employees' own documents come from the EOR's Indian company, because that company is the employer. As your Employer of Record, Versatile Club employs each hire and files their PF, ESI, TDS and professional tax under its own registrations.

Before the first hire starts

You sign the master services agreement with us on day 1 of onboarding. The agreement is where the five-day onboarding commitment sits, as a contractual term. Its services clause lists the documents we owe each employee: an appointment letter that complies with the Labour Codes, payslips, and Form 16 and other statutory certificates. The five-day onboarding schedule shows what happens on each of the five days.

For your vendor file, we publish the company identifiers, including the CIN, GSTIN, PAN, TAN and ESIC employer registration, on our about page. The entity and registrations page explains what each identifier proves.

Clause 3 of the master services agreement listing Versatile Club's services, including the appointment letter, payslips, statutory certificates and full and final settlement — The services clause is your written list of the documents the EOR must issue to each employee, from the appointment letter to the annual tax certificate.

Every month

Each month's set gives finance and People Ops the same view of the run:

One USD invoice. It carries a cost breakdown for each employee. We invoice in dollars directly, not through a foreign holding company and not converted from INR.
A payroll summary. Gross pay, deductions and net pay for each employee.
PF and ESI challan confirmations. The record that each month's contributions were deposited. The Provident Fund page covers what PF costs and how it is worked out.
TDS deposit receipts. Proof that the tax deducted from salaries was paid to the government.
A compliance status report. What has been filed and what is coming up.

The monthly payroll process explains how these records come out of each run. For how they fit a month-end close, the India EOR guide for finance teams walks through the invoice and the proof.

Payroll register for September 2026 listing two employees with basic, HRA, allowances, gross, employee PF, professional tax, TDS, employer PF and net pay — The payroll summary your company receives comes from a register like this one, with every pay line per employee. Names and figures are sample data.

Documents your employees receive

When they join

Your new hire receives an India-compliant offer letter on day 2 of onboarding, once your company has approved it. On day 3 they sign the employment contract with our Indian company and hand over their documents. PF, ESI and professional tax are started on day 4, and payroll goes live on day 5.

Indian law adds its own joining document. The OSH Code requires the employer to issue a letter of appointment to every employee in the prescribed form. Our India addendum commits us to a written contract and an appointment letter. Both state the designation, place of work, wages, hours, leave, notice period and statutory benefits.

A new hire's onboarding checklist showing personal details, bank account, identity documents, UAN, policies, offer letter approval, signed contract, PF enrolment and payroll — The joining documents arrive in a fixed order: offer letter for your approval, then the signed contract, PF enrolment and payroll. The hire shown is sample data.

Schedule 1 of the master services agreement, the India employer of record addendum, describing the contract of employment, appointment letter and wage structure — The India addendum sets what every appointment letter must state, and keeps basic pay at half of total pay or more under the Code on Wages.

With every salary

The Labour Ministry's employer handbook says employers must issue wage slips in prescribed form to all employees on or before payment of wages. Under an EOR, that duty sits with the EOR's Indian company rather than yours. The Social Security Code's record provisions allow wage slips in electronic form or otherwise. Each employee gets a monthly payslip they can download or print.

When an employee asks why take-home pay differs from the offer, the India salary calculator shows how gross pay becomes net. The next section walks through every line of a sample slip.

Once a year

Each employee gets an annual certificate of the tax deducted from their salary. Versatile Club commits to issuing it to each employee by 30 May. The Income Tax Department's FAQ sets the legal deadline: by the 15th June after the tax year in which the tax was deducted.

If someone changed employers during the year, each of the employers shall issue Part A and B for its own period of employment. Employees use the certificate when they file their own return, and the India income tax calculator helps them check the numbers.

What is Form 16, and what replaced it

Form 16 was the annual certificate of tax deducted from salary. From 1 April 2026, under the Income-tax Rules, 2026, the same certificate is Form 130. It has three parts. Part A identifies the employer and the employee, Part B reconciles the amounts paid and the tax deducted, and Part C computes the employee's taxable income.

How an employee gets it

The employee doesn't apply for it: the employer issues it. The employer downloads it from the TRACES website once its quarterly TDS statements are processed, then signs and hands it over. An employee who loses it can ask for a duplicate. The certificate isn't attached to the tax return, but the employee should keep it.

The employee's Documents page showing the annual tax certificate for FY 2026-27 under Tax, still labelled Form 16, with an availability date of 15 June 2027 — The annual tax certificate sits with the employee's documents once a year. The screen still uses the old name, Form 16, for what is now Form 130.

When they leave

When an employee leaves, we run the Full and Final settlement. It covers notice pay, leave encashment, gratuity and PF, and the employee receives a relieving letter. Under the agreement, we complete the settlement within the period the Code on Wages requires. Your company gets a copy of the settlement statement and evidence of payment.

Two legal documents can follow. For workers covered by standing orders, the Service Sector Standing Orders give a right to a service certificate within ten days, stating the work, designation and period of employment. The relieving letter itself is the standard confirmation that the person has been released from duty. The India offboarding planner helps you plan the last weeks.

Clause 14 of the master services agreement on ending an assignment, covering notice, lawful separation, the full and final settlement and exit costs — The exit clause promises a settlement within the Code on Wages period, with a copy of the settlement statement and proof of payment sent to you.

Salary slip in India: what is on it, line by line

When an employee asks about a line on their slip, read the sample below together. A salary slip in India has three blocks: earnings, deductions and net pay. The table reads a sample slip line by line. All amounts are in rupees and are sample figures from a September 2026 slip.

Line	Sample amount	What it means
Basic	1,00,000	Core pay. It drives PF and gratuity, so it is usually the largest line
HRA	50,000	House rent allowance, which can lower taxable income for employees who pay rent
Allowances	47,000	Other fixed allowances in the pay structure
Gross	1,97,000	Basic plus HRA plus allowances
Employee PF	3,000	The employee's provident fund contribution, deducted from gross
Professional tax (PT)	200	A state tax on employment, deducted where the state levies it
TDS (income tax)	23,595	Income tax the employer deducts each month and deposits for the employee
Total deductions	26,795	Employee PF plus PT plus TDS
Net pay	1,70,205	Gross minus total deductions: the amount paid into the bank
Employer PF	3,000	Paid by your company on top of gross and deposited by the EOR; not taken from pay

The arithmetic checks out: 1,97,000 less 26,795 is 1,70,205. Basic is 1,00,000 of a 1,97,000 gross, just over half. That matters because the Code on Wages adds back excluded payments that exceed one-half of total pay into "wages".

Two terms appear on many Indian slips but not on this sample. YTD means year to date: the running total since the start of the tax year in April. LWF is the labour welfare fund, a small state contribution in the states that run one. Versatile Club's India addendum lists labour welfare fund among the statutory amounts it deducts and remits.

Sample September 2026 payslip with Earnings, Deductions and Net pay cards, listing basic, HRA, allowances, employee PF, professional tax and TDS — Read the slip in three steps: earnings add to gross, deductions come off, and net pay is what reaches the bank. Figures are sample data.

What is a salary slip?

A salary slip, or wage slip, is the employer's monthly statement of what an employee earned, what was deducted and what was paid. Indian law calls it a wage slip, and the Code on Wages requires every employer to issue one. What the law says, below, quotes the rule. The slip goes out on or before payday, on paper or in electronic form.

How to make a salary slip in India

The employer makes the slip from the month's payroll run. Start from the pay structure, add the earnings to reach gross, then subtract employee PF, professional tax and TDS to reach net pay. Under an EOR, you never make the slip yourself: the EOR issues it as the employer, every month.

A year of documents, as a timeline

This timeline follows one sample hire through a full tax year. They join in July 2026 and resign the following year.

When	Document or deadline	Who receives it
Onboarding day 1	Master services agreement	Your company
Onboarding day 2	Offer letter, after your approval	New hire
Onboarding day 3	Employment contract and the OSH Code appointment letter	New hire
Every month	Wage slip, issued on or before payment of wages	Employee
Every month	Monthly salary, paid before the expiry of the seventh day of the next month	Employee
Every month	Invoice, payroll summary, challan confirmations, TDS receipts, status report	Your company
By 30 May 2027	Form 130 for the 2026-27 tax year, on Versatile Club's commitment; the legal deadline is 15 June	Employee
Last working day	Relieving letter and Full and Final settlement	Leaving employee; statement to your company
Within two working days of leaving	Final wages, paid within two working days of resignation	Leaving employee
Within ten days of leaving	Service certificate, where standing orders apply	Leaving worker

What the law says

Wage slips: Code on Wages

The Code on Wages says "every employer shall issue wage slips to the employees" in the prescribed form and manner. The duty applies to every employer, whatever its size. With an EOR, the duty sits with the EOR's Indian company, which is why we issue the slips.

What to check: confirm the slip reaches each employee on or before payday and comes from the EOR's Indian company.

Government sourcelabour.gov.in

Appointment letters: OSH Code

The OSH Code requires an employer to "issue a letter of appointment to every employee on his appointment in the establishment". The letter carries the information and form the government prescribes. It applies to establishments covered by the Code, and the employer issues it at joining.

What to check: confirm each new hire has the appointment letter that comes with the employment contract on day 3.

Government sourceegazette.gov.in

Paying final wages: Code on Wages

When an employee resigns or is removed, the Code says wages due "shall be paid within two working days of his removal, dismissal, retrenchment or, as the case may be, his resignation". This sets the clock for the final salary. Other exit amounts, such as gratuity, follow their own rules.

What to check: when someone resigns, compare the date final wages were paid with the resignation date.

Government sourceindiacode.nic.in

The annual tax certificate: Form 130

Under the Income-tax Rules, 2026, the certificate of tax deducted from salary is Form 130, and the employers shall issue Part A and B for each period of employment. It applies from 1 April 2026. The employer must issue it once tax has been deducted and deposited.

What to do: expect the certificate by 30 May, which is Versatile Club's commitment. The legal deadline is 15 June.

Government sourceincometax.gov.in

Service certificates: model standing orders

The Service Sector Standing Orders, part of the Model Standing Orders notified on 8 May 2026, say "every worker shall be entitled to a service certificate" stating the work, designation and period of employment. Standing orders apply to industrial establishments with three hundred or more workers. For smaller teams, the relieving letter does the same practical job.

What to check: when a worker leaves, find out whether standing orders cover them. If they don't, the relieving letter is the document to expect.

Government sourcelabour.gov.in

Documents employees hand over

The paperwork also runs the other way. On day 3, we collect the documents onboarding needs, at the same time as the contract is signed. The new hire gives their PAN and Aadhaar, which payroll needs for TDS and PF, and uploads copies. A UAN carries over an existing PF account, and someone on their first PF job leaves it blank.

Identity and tax onboarding step asking for PAN, Aadhaar number and UAN, with uploads for PAN and Aadhaar card copies — Identity and tax documents come first, because PAN and Aadhaar are what let payroll deduct TDS and enrol the employee in PF. Details shown are sample data.

Two tax forms let an employee give the employer facts that change the tax deducted. An employee claiming deductions, such as rent paid, gives the evidence in Form 124. Someone who joins partway through the year may report salary from a previous employer in Form 122, and the employer shall take into account what they furnish.

A new hire can also upload one recent payslip from their last job. It helps us carry over PF and tax for the year, and only we see it, never your company. If you are moving contractors onto payroll, the contractor to employee conversion guide lists what changes for them on paper.

Optional upload step for a payslip from the employee's last job, noting that only Versatile Club sees it and the client company does not — A mid-year joiner's last payslip lets the year's tax and PF carry over correctly, and your company never sees it. The screen shows sample data.

Form names that changed on 1 April 2026

The Income-tax Act, 2025 and its Rules renumbered the salary tax forms. Employees who know the old names may ask for Form 16 by habit. This table maps each one:

Old form	New form	What it is
Form 16	Form 130	The annual salary tax certificate, furnished under the new Act
Form 12BA	Form 123	Perquisite particulars, used when salary is more than ₹1,50,000; below that, the details go in Form 130
Form 12BB	Form 124	Evidence of claims an employee gives the employer, mapped in the official rule navigator
Form 12B	Form 122	Salary from another employer in the same tax year, which the employer must count

The India EOR and payroll glossary defines TDS, perquisites and the other words these forms use.

Who uses this list

A People Ops lead building joiner and leaver checklists

A People Ops lead at a 40-person marketing software company in Atlanta is hiring three engineers in Bengaluru. Her checklist maps each document to a day: the offer on day 2, the contract on day 3, the first slip with the first salary. The EOR page for HR leaders shows how the rest of the employee lifecycle runs.

A controller filing monthly proof

The controller keeps one folder per month: the invoice, the payroll summary, the challan confirmations and the TDS receipts. When the auditors ask whether statutory dues were paid, the folder answers. The guide to payroll compliance in India sets out the wider calendar.

A legal reviewer checking the paper trail

Before signature, in-house counsel checks which entity issues the employee documents and which identifiers it files under. The contract names Foo Falcon Technologies Private Limited, trading as Versatile Club, as the employer. The Indian entity behind the documents answers the identifier question, and IP ownership for India employees covers what the contracts assign.

Clause 1 of the employment agreement, interpretation, naming Foo Falcon Technologies Private Limited, trading as Versatile Club, as the Company and the employee as the other party — Clause 1 answers counsel's first question: the employer on every employee document is the EOR's Indian company, and the client is named only as the deployment.

A team planning its own India entity later

A company that may move its India team to its own entity later wants the history to carry across. Annual certificates and the Full and Final records are part of that record. The GCC use case shows how an EOR team can come first, and the guide to switching EOR providers lists what to protect in a move.

Limits, what goes wrong and what to check

India only. Versatile Club is an India-only Employer of Record, so this list covers employees working in India.
The issuer is the EOR's Indian company. Employee documents come from us as the employer, not from your company.
Company records are monthly. The invoice, summary and proof arrive once a month, and the salary certificate once a year.
Tax forms follow the 2026 Rules. Forms issued from 1 April 2026 use the new numbers in the table above.
Not tax or legal advice. The agreement says we give general guidance on Indian law, not legal, tax or accounting advice.
EOR is a new service. We built the entity, payroll operations and registrations through Contract-to-Hire. It doesn't claim years of EOR-specific track record.
An employee asks for Form 16. The certificate is now Form 130, and the employee's Documents screen still shows the old name. Tell them it is the same certificate.
PAN or Aadhaar is missing on day 3. Payroll needs both for TDS and PF, and PF starts on day 4. Ask the new hire to upload both copies when they sign.
A mid-year joiner's earlier salary is not reported. The employer must count salary from another employer in the same tax year, but only what the employee furnishes. Ask for Form 122 details, or the last payslip.
An employee changed employers during the year. Each employer issues Part A and B for its own period of employment. Collect the certificate from each employer before the employee files a return.
Final wages run past two working days. The Code on Wages sets that clock from the day of resignation. Check the payment date against the resignation date, and ask Versatile Club if they differ.

Common questions

What documents does an EOR provide in India?

Your company gets a service agreement, then a monthly invoice, payroll summary, deposit proof and filing status. Each employee gets an offer letter, an employment contract and appointment letter, wage slips, an annual tax certificate and, on exit, a relieving letter.

Who issues the employees' documents?

Versatile Club's Indian company, Foo Falcon Technologies Pvt Ltd, because it is the legal employer. Your company does not issue employment documents to people the EOR employs for you.

When does a new hire get the offer letter?

On day 2 of the five-day onboarding, after your company approves it. The employment contract follows on day 3, when the new hire signs it and hands over their documents.

Do employees get payslips?

Yes, every month. The Code on Wages requires every employer to issue wage slips, and the EOR is the employer, so it issues one every month.

What is Form 16, and is it still issued?

Form 16 was the annual certificate of tax deducted from salary. From 1 April 2026 it is Form 130 under the Income-tax Rules, 2026. We commit to issuing it to each employee by 30 May.

How does an employee get Form 16 or Form 130?

From the employer, not the tax department. The employer downloads it from TRACES after its quarterly TDS statements are processed, then hands it over. A lost certificate can be reissued as a duplicate.

What is a relieving letter?

A letter from the employer confirming the employee has been released from duty on a given date. New employers in India usually ask for it. We issue it as part of the Full and Final settlement.

Are a relieving letter and an experience letter the same?

No. A relieving letter confirms the exit date and release from duty. An experience letter describes the role and the period worked, much like the service certificate the standing orders give covered workers.

What is YTD on a salary slip?

YTD means year to date. It shows the running total of each pay line since the start of the Indian tax year in April, which helps employees check their tax.

What are PT and LWF on a salary slip?

PT is professional tax, a state tax on employment deducted monthly where the state levies it. LWF is the labour welfare fund, a small state contribution in the states that run one.

What proof does our company get each month?

PF and ESI challan confirmations and TDS deposit receipts, alongside the invoice, the payroll summary and a report of what's filed and what's coming up.

Is the invoice in dollars?

Yes. We invoice in USD directly from our Indian company, so there is no conversion from INR on your side. Fees are on the EOR pricing page.

What does a leaving employee receive?

A Full and Final settlement covering notice pay, leave encashment, gratuity and PF, and a relieving letter. Your company receives a copy of the settlement statement and evidence of payment.

Who answers questions about a document?

Write to the Versatile Club team through the contact page, naming the employee and the document.