India Hiring at a Glance

India has become one of the leading destinations for global recruitment, offering access to a massive and highly skilled labor force at a fraction of Western hiring costs. As the world’s second-largest workforce, India produces millions of graduates in business, engineering, and technology every year. This makes it possible for companies to hire both specialized professionals and operational teams without needing to establish a legal entity locally.

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Cost of Entity Setup in India

While forming a company is a one-time event, maintaining it is expensive. Every quarter and year requires statutory audits, filings, compliance renewals, accounting teams, payroll teams, and legal advisors.

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Work Permits in India

India's visa and work permit framework is managed primarily by the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of External Affairs. Foreign nationals planning to work in India must obtain the appropriate visa category based on their employment type, duration, and purpose. Understanding these requirements is crucial for compliance and smooth onboarding.

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Employment Visa

The Employment Visa is the most common category for foreign workers in India. It is designed for highly skilled professionals, technical experts, and senior management personnel. To qualify, candidates must meet specific eligibility criteria including minimum salary thresholds and relevant qualifications.

• Minimum annual salary requirement: ₹16.25 lakh (approximately $19,500 USD)
• Valid for up to 5 years or the duration of the contract, whichever is less
• Allows multiple entries into India
• Requires proof of employment contract and educational qualifications
• Employer must be registered with the relevant Indian authorities
• Processing time typically 4-6 weeks

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India’s rapid growth is driven by technology adoption, foreign investment, and digital transformation initiatives such as Digital India and Startup India. Since the early 2000s, the nation has lifted over 90 million people out of poverty, building a strong and competitive labor market.

Key characteristics of India’s talent market:

• Highly skilled remote workforce familiar with global standards
• Competitive, quality-driven salary structures
• English proficiency suitable for collaboration and customer-facing roles
• Mature outsourcing ecosystem supporting both back-office and core functions

Primary hiring regions: Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Pune, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai

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Top Universities Supplying Talent: 

These institutions produce graduates who contribute heavily to engineering, fintech, research, product development, healthcare data operations, and consulting.

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EOR vs Legal Entity in India

International companies hiring in India can do so in two distinct ways: by establishing a local legal entity, or by employing talent through an Employer of Record (EOR). On the surface, both support compliant hiring, but they differ fundamentally in how they manage employment law, payroll taxation, legal liability, operational overhead, and risk exposure.

The best approach depends on one key question: Is your company ready to operate a business in India, or do you simply want to hire employees?

A legal entity means you are formally operating in India as a business. An EOR means you are employing workers in India without becoming a business under Indian law.

What Setting Up a Legal Entity Means?

A legal entity gives your company long-term control but also binds you to India’s full employer obligations, which involve both business registration and ongoing compliance management. Setting up an entity is not the same as being allowed to hire; hiring only becomes lawful after specific tax and labor registrations are complete.

Failure to register even one system can lead to penalties, denied benefits, and backdated liabilities, even if salaries are being paid correctly. This is why entity setup is most suitable for companies that are building long-term, large-scale operations in India, not exploratory hiring.

To legally hire employees in India, a company must:

• Incorporate with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA)
• Obtain PAN + TAN for tax withholding
• Register under the Shops & Establishments Act in each state where employees work
• Register for Provident Fund (EPF) for social security
• Register for Employee State Insurance (ESI) when eligible
• Register for Professional Tax (varies by state)

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Cost of Entity Setup in India

While forming a company is a one-time event, maintaining it is expensive. Every quarter and year requires statutory audits, filings, compliance renewals, accounting teams, payroll teams, and legal advisors.

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What Hiring Through an EOR Means?

An EOR is the legal employer on paper, but the employees work for you exclusively. While the foreign company manages productivity, work output, and role ownership, the EOR takes responsibility for everything required under Indian labor law. This protects companies from the compliance risks caused by federal + state rules, payroll laws, and potential employee disputes.

An EOR handles:

• Locally compliant employment contracts
• Payroll processing & TDS withholding
• PF, ESI, gratuity, and statutory benefits administration
• State-wise labor registration compliance
• Terminations, severance, notice requirements & disputes
• Correct employee classification (full-time vs contractor)

This model works best for companies who want to hire quickly, hire remotely across states, or scale in India before deciding whether to establish a business presence.

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Risk Involved in Both Models:

India’s regulatory structure is dual-governed, meaning both federal and state laws apply simultaneously. Payroll figures may look simple, but behind them are state-driven wage floors, holiday calendars, minimum leave, and overtime laws. These are not optional; they vary by city, and each variation requires proper record-keeping, filings, and audits.

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In a legal entity setup, your company is fully liable for incorrect benefits, overtime, wage calculations, leave accruals, wrongful termination, or tax deductions. Under an EOR model, the EOR assumes the liability, and your company remains protected from inspection penalties, employee disputes, or misclassification issues (e.g., treating contractors as employees). 

Employees can legally challenge terminations in India, and without an EOR, your company bears the full cost, legal justification, and settlement.

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Why is an EOR the Most Efficient Way to Hire in India?

Hiring in India offers strategic advantage, but it also exposes foreign businesses to a complex blend of state legislation, federal labor laws, financial reporting obligations, and dispute-led litigation risks. For companies that want to grow teams without turning labor compliance into a core business activity, an Employer of Record (EOR) becomes the most complete and efficient hiring model.

An EOR is not merely a payroll vendor or HR outsourcing partner. It becomes the legal employer in India, carrying accountability for labor compliance, tax accuracy, benefits administration, IP protection, regulatory filings, and dispute management while your company retains full operational control over the employee’s work. This division of responsibility protects foreign companies from penalties, lawsuits, employee claims, and local governance risk, without slowing down scaling.

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EOR Simplifies Multi-State Employment Without Rework

India’s employment compliance is state-driven within a federal system. A company hiring in Bengaluru, Pune, and Noida would technically need separate registrations and ongoing compliance monitoring in all three jurisdictions.

Different states enforce:

• Different minimum wages per job category
• Different working hour thresholds
• Different leave entitlements and holiday mandates
• Different professional tax rules
• Different Shops & Establishments registration processes
• Different record-keeping formats and inspection requirements

This makes a single remote hire in a new state equivalent to creating a new compliance workload.

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An EOR centralizes compliance under one legal employer, meaning you can hire in any state, instantly, without any separate government dealings.

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EOR Eliminates Salary-Structure Risks That Foreign Employers Commonly Misapply

Indian payroll is governed not just by salary numbers, but by how compensation is structured. Salary must be broken into statutory and non-statutory components that affect PF contributions, tax liability, gratuity eligibility, and take-home pay accuracy.

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Incorrect structuring can trigger:

• PF underpayment penalties
• Employee legal disputes
• Back-dated contributions owed with interest
• Challenges from PF officers over wage ceiling misuse

EOR systems are built on country-specific payroll logic, ensuring that every employee receives correct salary allocation while employers avoid retroactive penalties.

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EOR Reduces Legal Exposure During Hiring, Management, and Exit

Foreign companies often underestimate the employee-relations burden in India. Without at-will termination, all separations must be justifiable, documentable, and aligned with statutory notice requirements and category-based protections.

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An EOR safeguards employers by:

• Drafting enforceable contracts with cause-based clauses
• Guiding performance documentation for legal termination
• Managing severance and compliance-driven notice periods
• Taking responsibility for dispute resolution communication
• Protecting the company from direct litigation

The EOR provides legal insulation, allowing companies to make performance decisions quickly without navigating each state’s unique labor dispute mechanisms.

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EOR Saves Capital & Operating Cost Beyond Hiring

Even after a legal entity is set up, the cost of maintaining compliance never stops. Every year requires audits, payroll reconciliations, labor filings, tax submissions, HR reporting, inspector responses, and benefits administration updates.

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EOR transforms these fixed costs into variable, employee-linked costs, making expansion more financially flexible and reducing corporate overhead.

EOR is not simply faster or cheaper; it is structurally safer, operationally lighter, and legally protective in a market where compliance shifts across states, salary bands, tax regimes, and employment categories. It allows foreign companies to control work while insulating themselves from the employer risks they do not need to own. India rewards expansion, but penalizes non-compliance. EOR makes expansion possible without inheriting penalties.

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EOR vs. PEO in India: How to Decide the Right Hiring Model?

Many global HR teams assume that a Professional Employer Organization (PEO) and an Employer of Record (EOR) offer equivalent services. In India, however, the difference is legal liability and that changes everything.

->A PEO assists with HR support, payroll, and benefits but cannot legally employ workers on your behalf. A company must already have its own legal entity in India to use a PEO.

->An EOR becomes the legal employer in India, meaning you can hire without setting up an entity and without carrying statutory liability.

Here are the core differences of an EOR and PEO and their responsibilities:

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So, why does this difference matter in India? Foreign companies often think that hiring costs include only salary and service fees. The statutory contributions vary from state-to-state in India. It is important to be compliant. 

Here is a small statutory cost guide and how it applies:

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Put simply, India is one nation with 28 states and each state enforces its own version of:

• minimum wages
• professional tax slabs
• labour welfare contributions
• shops & establishments rules
• record-keeping and inspection protocols
• and, in some cases, employment cess.

What this means in practice is that the employer’s cost and risk is not tied to salary alone, it is tied to geography. Two employees earning the same ₹15 lakh salary can create very different obligations depending on whether they sit in Chennai, Bengaluru, Pune, or Kolkata. Here is a table showing the risk involved per city, state.

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So, how to make the decision. Most companies evaluate PEO vs. EOR from an HR perspective. In India, if you asked a simple question: Do you want to be the legal employer in India or not? and your answers are as follows:

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💡Note: You don’t choose EOR or PEO based on forms, payroll portals, or onboarding speed. You choose based on this single fact: In India, the company listed as “employer” is the one held responsible during audits, disputes, separations, wage miscalculations, and statutory filings. If you aren’t prepared to stand in that role, you shouldn’t be the employer. That is exactly what Bolto EOR is built for.

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Payroll, Taxes, and Monthly Compliance in India

Running payroll in India is not just a monthly accounting activity. It is a legal process that connects income tax, social security contributions, state-wise levies, and employment records into one compliance chain. Every payday, employers must ensure that salaries are structured correctly, taxes are withheld under the right regime, statutory contributions are calculated on compliant wage definitions, and all payments are deposited with the government on time.

For foreign employers, the challenge is that nothing works in isolation: TDS, PF, ESI, Professional Tax, and Labour Welfare Fund all interact with how you define “salary” and where the employee is based. A clean-looking payroll spreadsheet can still be non-compliant if even one threshold or rule is overlooked.

Core Components of Monthly Payroll Compliance

This is what a typical monthly compliance picture looks like for an employer hiring in India:

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In practice, this means payroll cannot be treated as a simple “net salary transfer.” Each run must be supported by challans, filings, and reports that match what has been deducted from employees and contributed by the employer. Any mismatch between internal records and statutory filings becomes visible in audits and inspections.

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Salary Structure: Where Most Compliance Issues Begin

India does not recognize a single, undifferentiated “cost to company” (CTC) as the legal basis for compliance. Laws look at components of salary, not the final number. The way you split compensation into Basic, allowances, HRA, bonuses, and reimbursements directly impacts PF, ESI, tax exemptions, and gratuity.

If Basic pay is set too low or allowances are inflated to reduce taxable income, authorities may treat those allowances as PF-applicable wages or disallow certain tax benefits. That is why having a compliant salary structure template for each role and band is critical.

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A foreign employer might see two offers of “₹15 lakh per year” as identical. Under Indian law, these can be completely different from a PF, tax, and compliance perspective depending on how that ₹15 lakh is broken down.

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What Monthly Payroll Operations Actually Involve

From an operational standpoint, a compliant monthly payroll in India typically includes:

• Collecting and validating employee investment declarations and tax regime choice (old vs new)
• Applying correct tax slabs and TDS calculation for each employee
• Splitting salary into PF-applicable and non-applicable portions based on Basic and allowances
• Calculating employer and employee PF/ESI contributions where thresholds apply
• Deducting Professional Tax and LWF where mandated by the state
• Generating payslips that clearly show earnings, deductions, and employer contributions
• Depositing TDS, PF, ESI, PT, and LWF within statutory timelines
• Filing returns and uploading required data to government portals (EPFO, ESIC, income tax, state PT/LWF portals)

Any delay, even by a few days, can result in automatic interest and late fees. Repeated inconsistencies can invite targeted inspections or inquiries, especially in high-compliance states.

For employers, the important mindset shift is this: payroll data is legal evidence. It is what labour inspectors, PF officers, and tax authorities use to decide whether an employer has followed the law.

• If salary components are poorly structured, PF may demand higher contributions retrospectively.
• If TDS is short-deducted, the employer—not the employee—faces interest and penalties.
• If statutory contributions are not aligned with salary thresholds, authorities can reopen past periods and raise backdated demands.

This is where Bolto EOR becomes valuable: instead of building an internal compliance engine to manage every rule, slab, portal, and filing schedule, the EOR operates as the legal employer in India and takes responsibility for the full payroll compliance lifecycle. Your teams receive a clean summary of payroll costs, while the EOR manages the complexity behind it.

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Mandatory Statutory Benefits for Employees in India

Statutory benefits are non-negotiable employer obligations in India. These benefits safeguard retirement savings, medical coverage, family security, and terminal payouts. Employers cannot bypass these benefits even if employees request higher cash salaries or agree verbally to opt out.

These benefits are determined by salary thresholds, tenure, and state regulations, making it important to track eligibility continuously especially when employees receive salary increments that change their statutory status.

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💡 Important Insight: Salary hikes don’t remove liability. If an employee becomes ineligible for PF or ESI due to a raise, the transition must be proactively recorded and filed to avoid government assumptions of evasion.

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Employee Rights and Protections Under Indian Labour Law

Unlike at-will employment systems, India enforces employee-centric labour protections that apply regardless of what is written in employment contracts. Employers must comply with statutory wage rules, due-process termination, documented work hours, and mandated leave. Even a single employee can trigger legal proceedings or an inspection if rights are violated

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💡 Key Takeaway: In India, employee rights override contract language. If there is a conflict between a contract and the law, the law always prevails. Employers must document performance issues, follow statutory notice norms, and calculate final settlements precisely to avoid disputes

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What an India-Compliant Employment Contract Must Include

In India, your employment contract is not just “HR paperwork.” It becomes evidence in audits, statutory inspections, and disputes. A well-drafted India contract should do two things at once:

1. Reflect real working conditions (so it holds up if challenged), and
   
2. Align with statutory protections (so your clauses don’t conflict with law).
   

Below is a practical “India-compliant contract blueprint” you can model (and what an EOR typically standardizes).

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A. Core identity + employment fundamentals

Include these as non-negotiables:

• Employer entity details (the local employer on record, e.g., EOR entity name, address, registrations)
  
• Employee identity (full name, address, PAN/Aadhaar reference where appropriate for payroll admin)
  
• Designation + job scope (title, department, reporting line, primary responsibilities)
  
• Work location (office/remote/hybrid + state/city; India is state-compliance driven)
  
• Start date + working hours + weekly rest day (tie to local Shops & Establishments norms)
  
• Confidentiality, IP, data protection (define work-product ownership and confidentiality clearly)
  

This “must include” list mirrors what leading EOR guides treat as standard contract essentials (role, compensation, probation, hours, location, and termination clauses). EPF India+2ROAP+2

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B. Compensation & payroll structure (India “CTC” reality)

Indian offers are typically built around CTC (Cost to Company), and your contract should show:

• Salary components: Basic pay, allowances (HRA/special/transport/other), reimbursements, variable pay
  
• Statutory deductions & employer contributions:
  
  • EPF: 12% employee + 12% employer on qualifying wages; employer split includes 8.33% to EPS (pension) and the remainder to EPF as per EPFO guidance EPF India+1
    
  • ESI: employer 3.25% and employee 0.75% (rates shown on ESIC portal) ROAP
    
• Pay cycle (most commonly monthly) + payslip format expectations
  
• Tax withholding (TDS) responsibilities: India places the obligation on the employer to deduct tax on salary at the time of payment under Section 192 (Income Tax “TDS on salaries” booklet) Income Tax India

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C. Benefits + statutory entitlements (don’t bury these)

Your contract should clearly reference:

• Leave entitlements (and confirm they align with the applicable Shops & Establishments rules for the employee’s state)
  
• Maternity benefits (26 weeks for eligible women—Maternity Benefit Act framework + 2017 amendment) Ministry of Labour & Employment+1
  
• Gratuity (Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972 applicability and entitlement after eligibility) Ministry of Labour & Employment
  
• Statutory bonus (where applicable under the Payment of Bonus Act) Ministry of Labour & Employment+1

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D. Termination, notice, and disciplinary process

India is not “at-will.” Your contract should be explicit on:

• Notice period (and pay in lieu, where allowed)
  
• Termination for misconduct vs performance vs redundancy
  
• Final settlement rules (leave encashment, gratuity eligibility, notice recovery, etc.)
  
• Dispute resolution / jurisdiction (while recognizing statutory forums may still apply)
  

A major risk is using a “one-size global contract” that conflicts with India’s statutory protections—especially for “workmen” under Industrial Disputes laws. Ministry of Labour & Employment+1

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Probation, Notice Period & Termination Rules in India

Termination risk in India is rarely about “payroll.” It’s about process + documentation + statutory thresholds.

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A. Probation: how it’s used in practice

Many employers in India use probation to evaluate fit before confirmation. During probation, companies often apply:

• shorter notice requirements (contractually defined),
  
• clearer performance checkpoints,
  
• and simplified confirmation outcomes (confirm / extend / exit).
  

While “probation” is widely practiced, the enforceability depends on what your contract says and whether your internal process matches actual treatment.

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B. Termination categories that behave differently

India termination obligations change based on:

• employee category (e.g., “workman” vs “non-workman” under Industrial Disputes framework),
  
• reason (misconduct vs performance vs redundancy),
  
• establishment size / state rules / standing orders.
  

Retrenchment (redundancy) for workmen has strict prerequisites:

• notice requirement and
  
• compensation equivalent to 15 days’ average pay for every completed year of continuous service (Section 25F). Ministry of Labour & Employment+1
  

This is exactly why foreign employers get exposed: using “simple termination” language when the law expects retrenchment process.

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C. Notice pay, final settlement, and evidence trail

A compliant exit in India usually requires:

• written notice (or pay in lieu, where permitted),
  
• documented rationale (especially for performance-linked exits),
  
• computation of:
  
  • unpaid wages,
    
  • leave encashment,
    
  • statutory bonus eligibility (if applicable),
    
  • gratuity (if eligible).
    

Gratuity is governed by the Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972 and can become a dispute trigger if not tracked from day one. Ministry of Labour & Employment+1

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D. Why EOR helps specifically in terminations

An India-specialized EOR reduces risk by:

• contract clauses mapped to the right employee category,
  
• state-aligned notice + exit rules,
  
• documentation templates for performance exits,
  

correct severance computation where retrenchment is implicated.

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Leave Policies and Public Holidays in India

India leave is state-influenced (Shops & Establishments Acts), while certain benefits like maternity are centrally governed.

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A. Leave entitlements: don’t generalize “India leave”

Your policy must match the state where the employee is “situated.”

Example (Delhi): The Delhi Shops and Establishments Act provides:

• Privilege (earned) leave: not less than 15 days after 12 months of continuous employment
  
• Sickness or casual leave: not less than 12 days per year India Code
  

Example (Karnataka): Karnataka’s Shops & Commercial Establishments framework includes “Annual Leave with Wages” provisions (see the Karnataka Act PDF). Dpal Karnataka

If you hire across multiple states, your leave framework must be “core policy + state addendum,” not one generic policy.

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B. Maternity leave is a national standard

The Maternity Benefit Act provides maternity benefit entitlements and obligations on employers. The amendment increased paid maternity leave (commonly referenced as 26 weeks in the amended framework). Ministry of Labour & Employment+1

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C. Public holidays: national vs state vs company policy

India has a mix of:

• national holidays (commonly observed across India),
  
• festival holidays (state and religion dependent),
  
• employer declared holidays.
  

If you want an “official calendar anchor,” the Government of India (DoPT) publishes the Central Government Offices holiday list (useful for baseline planning, even though private sector/state practice will differ). Department of Personnel and Training

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D. Compliance mindset for leave (what causes disputes)

Leave disputes usually happen when:

• accrual/carry-forward is not defined,
  
• policies conflict with state rules,
  
• leave encashment at exit isn’t documented,
  
• holidays are applied inconsistently across locations.
  

An EOR typically operationalizes this through state-mapped leave rules and auditable registers.

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Contractors vs Employees in India: Correct Classification Matters

Misclassification is one of the fastest ways to create backdated liability (PF/ESI/bonus/gratuity) and disputes.

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A. The practical difference: control + integration

A legitimate contractor relationship usually has:

• autonomy over hours and method,
  
• ability to work for multiple clients,
  
• output-based deliverables,
  
• contract invoices rather than payroll.
  

Where companies get into trouble is when contractors are treated like employees (fixed hours, direct supervision, internal hierarchy, company tools, continuous role).

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B. Contract labour vs independent contractor (don’t mix them up)

India also regulates “contract labour” arrangements under the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act framework in applicable contexts. India Code+1

This is different from a pure independent contractor arrangement used for specialized consulting.

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C. Why classification affects your cost and legal burden

If a contractor is reclassified as an employee, the employer may face:

• unpaid PF/ESI contributions (with interest/penalties),
  
• statutory bonus/gratuity exposure,
  
• wage and overtime claims under applicable state rules.
  

An EOR model typically avoids this by hiring workers as employees when the relationship is functionally employment, while offering compliant contractor engagement only when the relationship truly supports it.

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Step-by-Step Onboarding Process With an EOR in India

Use this 7-step checklist to hire a great Indian employee through Bolto’s Employer of Record (EOR) services, ensuring full compliance with local labor laws and regulations.

1. Choose an EOR with a Fully-Owned India Entity
   Start by confirming that your EOR, Bolto, directly owns a legal entity in India. This ownership allows Bolto to sign employment contracts, pay statutory benefits, and store data locally without relying on third-party aggregators. Bolto operates its own legal entity in India, giving you complete control and a clear audit trail.
   

Tip: Request Bolto’s Corporate Identification Number (CIN) to verify their legal presence on the Ministry of Corporate Affairs portal.

2. Book a Demo and Verify Social Proof
   Next, book a live demo to see how Bolto’s platform manages local compliance for things like Provident Fund (PF) numbers, multi-state minimum wages, and variable bonuses under the Payment of Bonus Act. Check for case studies of other companies hiring in cities like Hyderabad or Chennai to ensure Bolto’s services are a good fit for your industry.
   

Tip: Look for reviews and ratings—Bolto’s platform consistently receives high marks for its user-friendly interface and reliable customer support.

3. Request a Transparent EOR Quote
   Request a detailed quote from Bolto that breaks down the costs of hiring in India, including the gross salary, statutory on-costs (PF, ESI, gratuity, bonus), and a flat management fee. Bolto’s quoting tool uses real-time tax tables to show the total “cost to company,” ensuring you can budget accurately.
   

Tip: Compare quotes from different EOR providers to understand how Bolto’s pricing stacks up. Check out our article on EOR vs. Entity Costs for more insights.

4. Submit a 12–24-Month Hiring Plan
   Provide Bolto with your headcount forecast for the next 12–24 months so they can pre-register any additional Professional Tax (PT) locations and scale employee benefits packages. Bolto’s AI-driven workforce planning software allows you to adjust your hiring plans as needed, ensuring you stay cost-effective as your team grows.
   

Tip: Use Bolto’s software to dynamically adjust your hiring strategy and keep track of evolving business needs.

5. Create the Employment Contract in the Platform
   Indian labor laws require a written employment contract outlining job title, duties, salary breakdown, probation period, leave entitlements, and notice period. Bolto’s platform automatically generates a contract that complies with the latest Indian labor laws. Once drafted, in-country experts review the contract to ensure it meets all legal requirements.
   

Tip: When creating the contract, select India as the country, toggle the IP assignment option, and set the probation period (0–6 months). Bolto’s system auto-inserts the necessary legal references, such as the Shops and Establishments Act citation for the employee’s state.

6. Confirm the Candidate’s Right to Work
   Indian nationals need only a Permanent Account Number (PAN). For foreign nationals, an Employment Visa and FRRO registration are required. Bolto makes it easy to verify and manage the candidate’s right to work through its platform.
   

Tip: If hiring foreign nationals, use Bolto’s immigration services to handle the visa and work permit process.

7. Run the Onboarding Workflow
   Begin the onboarding process by running background checks, uploading KYC documents, and having the employee digitally sign their Provident Fund enrollment (Form 11). Bolto ensures all compliance documents, including ESI Form 1, are filed promptly, and generates the Universal Account Number (UAN) for the employee.
   

Tip: Leverage Bolto’s onboarding tools to provide employee training, set performance goals, and provision IT equipment to new hires through the platform.

8. Maintain Ongoing Compliance
   Each month, Bolto’s payroll engine automatically withholds TDS (tax deducted at source), generates the PF Electronic Challan Cum Return, and files ESI contributions by the 15th of each month. The Compliance Hub sends you alerts if there are any changes to legislation, such as new amendments to state-specific labor laws in Karnataka.

Tip: Stay up-to-date with regulatory changes by subscribing to Bolto’s compliance newsletter, which offers clear, concise summaries of relevant changes to Indian labor laws.

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Build Your India Team with Bolto EOR

Scaling into India shouldn’t mean battling complex regulations, multi-state labor rules, or lengthy entity setup. Bolto’s Employer of Record (EOR) model simplifies hiring so you can focus on building teams, not navigating compliance.

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Local Compliance, Done For You
Bolto manages India’s statutory requirements end-to-end — from salary structuring and TDS filing to PF, ESI, gratuity, maternity benefits, state-by-state registrations, and full employment documentation. Your teams operate seamlessly while Bolto carries the legal responsibility as the employer in India.

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Hire in Days, Not Months
Entity setup in India can take months due to multi-layer registrations. With Bolto, you can onboard fully compliant employees in as little as a few days, giving you immediate access to India’s highly skilled talent market.

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Clear, Predictable Pricing
Bolto offers upfront, transparent pricing with no hidden compliance charges, penalty pass-throughs, or unexpected statutory costs. You get complete cost visibility before making a hire.

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Employee Experience, Fully Managed
From locally compliant contracts to payroll, taxes, benefits, and dispute handling, Bolto supports employees throughout their lifecycle — while you retain full control over work, output, and team culture.

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Built for Compliance-Driven Growth
Bolto combines India-specific legal expertise with operational support that scales across states, business functions, and compensation models. Whether hiring one person or building a distributed hub, you stay protected from misclassification, payroll errors, or labor disputes.

Start building your India workforce with Bolto EOR — and expand without taking on employer risk.Book a call to get started.