Updated 16 October 2026. Statutory records are the evidence behind wages, working time, social-security contributions, leave, safety and employee decisions. The required format and retention period depend on the establishment, sector, applicable rules and the period covered. Maintain reliable employee-level records, but verify prescribed forms against the currently effective rules before treating a legacy form as mandatory.
The four Labour Codes came into effect on 21 November 2025, and Central rules have been published during 2026. Kerala and sector-specific requirements must be checked against the applicable State notifications, rules, licence conditions and official portals. Some records created under earlier laws may remain relevant for earlier periods or under savings/transitional directions; do not discard them solely because the framework changed.
Core employee and payroll records
Maintain an organised, access-controlled record set for each employee that supports the employment relationship and the payroll calculation. Depending on the establishment and applicable rule, this commonly includes:
- identity and employment particulars, appointment terms, joining and separation dates, work location and employee category;
- attendance, shifts, weekly rest, leave, overtime and approved corrections;
- wage structure, days worked, wage components, deductions, payslips, payment proof and full-and-final calculations;
- employee nominations and supporting documents where a law or scheme requires them;
- statutory contribution calculations, employee-level lists, returns, challans, portal acknowledgements and reconciliations;
- accident, safety training, medical fitness and incident records where required for the work or site;
- policy acknowledgements, grievance handling and POSH records, with restricted access for confidential case material.
A record should be traceable from source evidence to the filed return or payment. Keep the version of the applicable rule and the date it became effective with the compliance calendar, especially when wage definitions, limits or forms change.
Social-security and tax evidence
| Area | Useful evidence | Reconciliation |
|---|---|---|
| EPF / EPS | Membership and eligibility decisions, wage calculation, ECR acknowledgement, payment challan and portal/member-account records. | Compare employee-level wages and contributions to payroll and the ECR for the same period. |
| ESIC | Coverage decision, insured-person details, contribution wages, challans and required accident or benefit records. | Compare the monthly contribution calculation to payroll, employee records and payment proof. |
| Professional Tax | Local-body registration and instructions, half-yearly income assessment, deduction record, receipt and any return required by the local body. | Verify the correct half-yearly slab, jurisdiction and payment route. Online facilities are not universal across every Kerala local body. |
| Kerala welfare funds | Record the relevant board and coverage basis, employee list, contribution calculation, payment and board acknowledgement. | Keep Shops and Commercial Establishments Workers’ Welfare Fund Board records separate from Kerala Labour Welfare Fund Board records. |
| Salary TDS | Tax-year calculation, employee declarations/proofs where applicable, payment reference, quarterly statement and tax certificate. | For events on or after 1 April 2026, confirm the Income-tax Act, 2025 form and portal path. Salary TDS statements use Form 138, earlier Form 24Q. |
Prescribed formats and retention
Do not assume old form numbers—such as legacy Shops Act or factory registers, EPF annual returns, ESIC half-yearly forms or a generic Kerala PT/LWF annual return—apply to every establishment after the Labour Codes and new rules. Check the rule for the appropriate government, the establishment’s sector and the relevant period. A portal’s currently available workflow may also differ from a historical guide.
Retain records for the period required by each applicable statute, rule, scheme, tax period and licence condition. Keep older records long enough to answer open inspections, claims, litigation or audit queries where applicable. There is no safe universal retention period that replaces those checks.
Electronic records should be readable, backed up and retrievable by employee and period. Restrict access to personal and sensitive records, preserve an audit trail for changes, and keep evidence that a required filing or payment was accepted. If an authority requires a specific display or physical register, follow that requirement rather than relying only on a software export.
Practical setup checklist
- List each site, activity and employee group, then identify the applicable Central, Kerala and local-body rules.
- Map each required record to its owner, source system, update event, approval and retention period.
- Test a sample employee from appointment through monthly payroll, statutory filing, leave and exit.
- Reconcile portal records and payments monthly; investigate mismatches and document corrections.
- Review templates whenever a code, rule, notification, wage ceiling or portal form changes.
Consult the Ministry of Labour’s Labour Code material, Kerala Labour Commissionerate notices, EPFO, ESIC and the Income Tax Department’s Form 138 guide for current filing information.
For audit planning, see our HR audit guide and Kerala compliance calendar. For support, visit payroll services or contact GHR Consultancy.