Lay out one row per employee per month with: employee code, name, UAN, ESIC IP, days in month, paid days, monthly rates (basic, DA, HRA, other), earned amounts (rate × paid days ÷ days in month), overtime, gross, employee PF (12% of basic + DA up to the ₹25,000 ceiling from 17 September 2026), ESI (0.75% where gross is up to ₹21,000), professional tax, TDS, advances, total deductions, net pay, payment date and UTR. Add employer PF and ESI on the right. These columns cover everything in the Form IV wage register.
Salary register layout (Excel columns)
SALARY REGISTER: [COMPANY NAME] Month: [OCTOBER 2026] Days in month (cell B1): 31 Col Header Formula / entry A Emp. code E-014 B Name Ravi Kumar C UAN [NUMBER] D ESIC IP No. [NUMBER] E Paid days =31-LOP (from muster roll, e.g. 28) F Basic (rate) 15000 G DA (rate) 0 H HRA (rate) 6000 I Other allow. (rate) 4000 J Basic earned =ROUND(F2*E2/$B$1,0) -> 13,548 K DA earned =ROUND(G2*E2/$B$1,0) -> 0 L HRA earned =ROUND(H2*E2/$B$1,0) -> 5,419 M Other earned =ROUND(I2*E2/$B$1,0) -> 3,613 N Overtime (from overtime register) -> 0 O Gross earned =SUM(J2:N2) -> 22,580 P PF wages =MIN(J2+K2,25000) -> 13,548 Q Employee PF 12% =ROUND(P2*12%,0) -> 1,626 R ESI 0.75% =IF((F2+G2+H2+I2)<=21000,ROUNDUP(O2*0.75%,0),0) -> 0 S Professional tax (state slab, e.g. Maharashtra) -> 200 T TDS (from tax computation) -> 0 U Advance recovery (from advance register) -> 0 V Total deductions =SUM(Q2:U2) -> 1,826 W 50% check =IF(V2>O2*50%,"OVER 50%","OK") X Net pay =O2-V2 -> 20,754 Y Payment date 06/11/2026 Z UTR / reference [NUMBER] AA Employer EPS 8.33% =ROUND(MIN(P2,15000)*8.33%,0) [ceiling for EPS per your scheme set-up] AB Employer EPF =Q2-AA2 AC Employer ESI 3.25% =IF(R2>0,ROUNDUP(O2*3.25%,0),0) TOTAL row: =SUM() for J:X and AA:AC. Freeze panes at C2. Lock formula columns.
The example matches the worked payslip in the salary slip generator: Pune, basic ₹15,000, HRA ₹6,000, other ₹4,000, 28 paid days in a 31-day month, Maharashtra PT ₹200, net ₹20,754.
Points to set before you copy it
- EPS split. The employer's 12% is split into EPS (8.33%) and EPF (the rest). How the EPS wage ceiling applies after the 17 September 2026 change depends on your PF set-up; check the PF calculator and the EPFO FAQs before you lock column AA.
- ESI test on full-month wages. Coverage is decided on the wage rate, and an employee covered at the start of a contribution period stays covered until it ends (30 September or 31 March), even after a raise.
- PT by State. Replace column S with a lookup on your State's slab; see professional tax slabs by State.
- 50% wage rule. If allowances exceed half of total pay, the excess counts as wages for PF under the Codes. Test it in a helper column.
How it maps to the statutory wage register
| Form IV column | Excel column |
|---|---|
| (8) Days worked | E |
| (13)-(17) Earnings | J to O |
| (18) EPF, (19) ESIC | Q, R |
| (21) Income tax | T |
| (23) Advances | U |
| (27) Total deductions, (28) Net | V, X |
| (29) Date, (30) Bank ID | Y, Z |
When the spreadsheet gets too big
Past ten or fifteen employees, formulas break and months get copied wrongly. FundRaksha HR builds this register from attendance every month and exports the PF ECR, ESI and PT files. See payroll software with PF and ESI.
Sources
- www.labour.gov.in/static/uploads/2026/09/2b0f1dbbd3769fc388416186ec145328.pdf
- www.staffnews.in/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/EPFO_Wage_Ceiling_FAQs.pdf
- www.esic.gov.in/contribution
- www.esic.gov.in/coverage
- www.staffnews.in/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/Wages-Central-Rules-2026.pdf
- www.labour.gov.in/static/uploads/2025/06/c328da14bbb15fc4ad571dc33e7a4ab3.pdf
Last reviewed: 2026-10-21. Information for Indian businesses; not legal advice.