Plain-English Guide

How Is Salary Calculated Under the New Labour Code 2026?

Confused by your new payslip? Here's a simple, jargon-free breakdown of how your salary is now split between take-home pay, PF, and gratuity under the latest rules.

The 4-Step Salary Calculation

Step 1

Start With Your CTC

Your Cost to Company (CTC) is the total amount your employer spends on you per year. This number does not change under the new labour code. Example: ₹12,00,000/year.

Step 2

Apply the 50% Wage Rule

Your basic salary (wages) must now be at least 50% of CTC. If your current basic is 30% (₹3,60,000), it gets bumped to 50% (₹6,00,000). The difference comes out of your allowances — HRA, special allowance, etc. shrink proportionally.

Also checked: State minimum wage floor. If your state's minimum wage × 12 is higher than 50% of CTC, the higher number is used as your basic.

Step 3

Calculate Deductions on the New Basic

All statutory deductions are percentages of your basic salary:

  • Employee PF: 12% of new basic
  • Employer PF: 12% of new basic (not deducted from your pay, but uses CTC budget)
  • Gratuity accrual: (Basic ÷ 26) × 15 days per year of service
  • Professional Tax: ~₹200/month (varies by state)

Step 4

What Lands in Your Bank

Take-home = CTC − Employee PF − Employer PF − Professional Tax. Because PF contributions are now calculated on a much larger basic, more money flows into your retirement fund and less into your monthly bank transfer.

Take-Home = ₹12,00,000 − ₹72,000 − ₹72,000 − ₹2,400 = ₹10,53,600/year
Want to check your own numbers? Use our free calculator →
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Try It Yourself

Current Basic Salary % of CTC40%
Employee PF contribution preference

Current Monthly CTC

₹83,333

State wage floor used

₹20,358/month

Annual CTC band

10L

New wage base

₹41,667/month

New Monthly Take-Home

₹73,133

Calculated for Delhi with a IT/ITES salary structure.

⚠️ Your take-home salary will DECREASE by ₹2,000/month

📈 Your PF contribution will INCREASE by ₹1,000/month

This happens because basic salary is increased to 50% of CTC under the new labour code.

Annual Impact Overview:

Over a year, take-home changes by ₹24,000. Your PF corpus grows by ₹12,000 a year more, and your gratuity accrual increases by ₹400.65 each month.

ComponentOld StructureNew Structure
Basic₹33,333₹41,667
HRA₹16,667₹20,833
PF (employee)₹4,000₹5,000
PF (employer)₹4,000₹5,000
Gratuity accrual₹1,603₹2,003
Professional Tax₹200₹200
Net Take-Home₹75,133₹73,133
Confidence note: Estimate based on standard assumptions (12% PF, 50% basic rule, flat ₹200 PT). Actual numbers may differ based on employer policy and state-specific slabs.
This is an estimate based on new labour code rules.
Last updated: 30 March 2026

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Step 1: Establish Current Structure

We take your Annual CTC and multiply by your current Basic % to get your existing Basic Salary.

Step 2: Apply 50% Wage Rule

Under the new code, Basic Salary must be at least 50% of CTC. We also check if the state minimum wage is higher and use whichever is greater.

New Basic = max(CTC × 50%, State Minimum Wage × 12)

Step 3: Recalculate Deductions

PF: Basic × 12% (employee + employer match)

Gratuity: (Basic ÷ 26) × 15 days per year

Professional Tax: ₹200/month (standard estimate)

Step 4: Compute Take-Home

Take-Home = CTC − Employee PF − Employer PF − Professional Tax
Assumptions: HRA is set at 50% of Basic. Professional Tax is a flat ₹200/month estimate. Actual numbers may vary by employer policy, state PT slab, and specific allowance contracts.

Frequently Asked Questions

Wages include basic pay and dearness allowance (DA). Allowances like HRA, conveyance, special allowance are excluded — but they cannot exceed 50% of total remuneration. If they do, the excess is treated as wages.
No, HRA is classified as an allowance. However, if your total allowances (including HRA) exceed 50% of your CTC, the excess portion gets reclassified as wages for PF and gratuity calculations.
The employer is responsible for restructuring the salary to comply with the new wage definition. Employees should verify their payslips and use tools like this calculator to cross-check.
No. Your CTC remains the same. Only the internal split between basic salary and allowances changes, which affects how much goes to PF, gratuity, and your bank account.