Professional tax in Kerala: slabs, registration and due dates

Professional tax slabs in Kerala

Professional tax in Kerala is levied under the Kerala Panchayat Raj and Kerala Municipality Acts, with the Kerala Panchayat Raj (Profession Tax) Rules, 1996. It is charged per half-year (April to September and October to March) by the local body. The rates below are G.O.(Rt) No.1149/2024/LSGD of 27 June 2024, from the second half-year of 2024-25 (1 October 2024), for both panchayats and municipalities, as published on the official source listed at the end of this page (checked 21 October 2026). Article 276 of the Constitution caps professional tax at ₹2,500 a year per person.

The revision followed the Sixth State Finance Commission's recommendation and applies in panchayats and municipalities alike.

Who deducts it and registration

Under the Profession Tax Rules, 1996 the Secretary of the local body asks the employer for employees' income details (Form I); the employer replies in Form II within 15 days (Rule 16). The Secretary then issues the demand notice in Form III (Rules 17 and 18). The employer deducts the tax from that month's salary and remits it within 10 days (Rule 20), and keeps the register in Form V. Drawing officers certify in the February and August salary bills that the tax has been remitted (Rule 21(3)).

The employee does not pay separately when the employer deducts: the deduction on the payslip is the employee's tax, and the employer is liable if it fails to deduct or pay.

Due dates and payment

• Payment is triggered by the local body's demand notice, with 10 days to remit after deduction (Rule 20). Fixed calendar dates quoted elsewhere were not found on an official page.

Keep the challan or payment receipt for each period and reconcile it with the payroll register: a mismatch between what payslips show and what was paid is the most common finding when the department checks an employer.

Penalties and interest

From the Act and Rules as published on the official site:

• Not complying with a requisition, or giving false information: fine of ₹100 on conviction (Rule 24).
• An employer who fails to deduct or remit: the amount is recovered from the employer as an arrear.

Worked example: Kerala

A Kochi clinic pays a nurse ₹15,000, a receptionist ₹6,500 and a doctor ₹60,000 a month.

Under the old rates the receptionist paid ₹300 a half-year; the October 2024 revision doubled it.

Getting PT right on every payslip

• Use the salary for the half-year to pick the slab, and recheck after every raise or arrears payment.
• Register in each state where you employ people: PT follows the place of work, not the head office.
• Show PT as a separate deduction on the payslip, next to PF, ESI and TDS.
• Under the new income-tax regime PT is not deductible from salary income; under the old regime it is.

Check take-home pay with the salary calculator, the employer and employee shares with the PF calculator and ESI calculator, and show every deduction clearly using the salary slip format. FundRaksha HR calculates professional tax with PF, ESI and TDS on each payroll run and produces the PT, PF ECR and ESI files, so the deduction on the payslip and the amount paid agree. Compare all states on the professional tax slabs by state page.

Sources

• go.lsgkerala.gov.in/files/go20240627_37169.pdf
• panchayatwiki.lsgkerala.gov.in/Panchayat:Repo18/Law_Manual_Page0521