Art. 276 · ₹2,500/yr cap · 22 states

Professional tax — which state, how much

A small state levy with big variation: ₹200 a month in one state, nil next door, ₹300 in February in two of them. Pick the state; see the slab, the amount and the due date.

The rules this tool applies

• Constitutional cap ₹2,500 a year (Article 276) — no state can charge more; most top out at ₹200/month, with ₹300 in February in Maharashtra and Karnataka to reach ₹2,500.
• Employer's duty: register (PTRC/EC), deduct from salary, deposit and file returns on the state's schedule; the employer also pays its own enrolment tax (PTEC, usually ₹2,500/yr).
• Basis differs: most states slab the monthly gross; Bihar, Jharkhand, MP, Odisha, Punjab, Meghalaya, Manipur use annual income; Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry are half-yearly and levied by the local body.
• Exemptions commonly: senior citizens (65+), persons with disability, parents of disabled children, armed-forces members, women in Maharashtra up to ₹25,000.
• Income-tax side: PT paid is deductible from salary under s.16 — old regime only.

Worked example

Gross ₹30,000 in Karnataka: ₹200 a month, ₹300 in February → ₹2,500 a year. The same salary in West Bengal: ₹150 (₹25,001–40,000 slab) → ₹1,800. In Delhi: nothing. In Chennai: half-yearly income ₹1.8 lakh sits in the top slab → ₹1,250 per half-year, ₹2,500 a year.

Edge cases to know

• Tamil Nadu slabs vary by local body — Chennai shown here; Coimbatore, Madurai and others differ slightly.
• Multi-state employers register in each state where employees work — the employee's work location decides, not the head office.
• Directors and partners pay under the professional enrolment (PTEC) route, not as employees.
• Late payment attracts interest (typically 1.25–2% per month) and penalties — cheap tax, expensive delay.

Related tools

• Salary breakup — PT inside the payslip.
• PF & ESI.
• Payslip generator.

Last verified: 18 September 2026 — Slabs per state Acts and 2025–26 notifications (Karnataka Amendment Act 2025; Gujarat 2022 revision); compiled in data/pt_states.json; re-checked each April · Verify with your state department before the first payment.