SALARY & PF FROM 17 SEP 2026

New PF limit: how much your take-home changes

The EPF wage ceiling went from ₹15,000 to ₹25,000 a month on 17 Sep 2026. If your PF was capped, your own PF deduction and your employer's PF can each rise from ₹1,800 to ₹3,000 a month. That trims monthly take-home by up to about ₹2,400 and adds up to ₹2,400 a month to your PF account. The tables below come from the same engine as our reverse CTC calculator.

Official sources

Gazette of India S.O. 5109(E), 17 Sep 2026: ₹25,000 per month as the wage ceiling for Chapter III of the Code on Social Security, 2020, from the date of publication.
EPFO FAQs on revision of the statutory wage ceiling: contribution table at ₹25,000 (employee ₹3,000; employer EPS ₹2,083 + EPF ₹917), September pro-rating, and contributions above the ceiling.
Ministry of Labour & Employment, gazette notifications

What changed

PF is 12% of your PF wages from you and 12% from your employer. Most private employers stop at the statutory wage ceiling. The ceiling moved up, and the rates did not.

Per month, at the cap	Before 17 Sep 2026	From 17 Sep 2026
Wage ceiling	₹15,000	₹25,000
Employee PF (12%)	₹1,800	₹3,000
Employer PF + EPS (12%)	₹1,800	₹3,000
of which EPS (8.33%)	₹1,250	₹2,083

The employer's share sits inside your CTC. So for the same CTC, a bigger employer PF means a smaller cash salary, and a bigger employee PF means a bigger deduction from that cash salary.

Take-home: before vs after, same CTC

Monthly take-home after PF, professional tax and income tax. Assumptions: basic 40% of CTC, PF 12% of basic capped, gratuity 4.81% of basic, professional tax ₹200 a month, no rent or deductions, age below 60.

Annual CTC	New regime @₹1,800	New regime @₹3,000	Change / month	Old regime @₹3,000	Extra into PF / month
₹6L	₹45,238	₹44,038	−₹1,200	₹42,829	+₹1,200
₹7.5L	₹57,498	₹55,098	−₹2,400	₹51,463	+₹2,400
₹10L	₹77,930	₹75,530	−₹2,400	₹67,646	+₹2,400
₹12L	₹94,276	₹91,876	−₹2,400	₹79,825	+₹2,400
₹15L	₹1,11,326	₹1,09,113	−₹2,213	₹96,694	+₹2,400
₹20L	₹1,44,668	₹1,42,518	−₹2,150	₹1,24,809	+₹2,400
₹30L	₹2,03,802	₹2,01,777	−₹2,026	₹1,81,039	+₹2,400

At 40% basic, the old cap started to bite around ₹4.5L CTC and the new cap bites around ₹7.5L. Between the two, PF is simply 12% of basic. Above about ₹12 lakh the drop is a little smaller than ₹2,400, because a lower cash salary also means slightly less income tax.

CTC you now need for the same in-hand

Negotiating an offer? Work backwards from the monthly in-hand you want. Same assumptions as above.

Monthly in-hand	New regime @₹1,800	New regime @₹3,000	Extra CTC	Old regime @₹3,000
₹50,000	₹6,58,266	₹6,80,863	+₹22,597	₹7,24,581
₹75,000	₹9,64,151	₹9,93,516	+₹29,365	₹11,14,198
₹1,00,000	₹12,70,036	₹12,99,401	+₹29,365	₹15,58,799
₹1,50,000	₹20,82,372	₹21,15,593	+₹33,221	₹24,48,000
₹2,00,000	₹29,32,380	₹29,68,403	+₹36,023	₹33,37,201

Try your own basic %, PF method and deductions in the reverse CTC calculator or the income tax calculator.

Who is affected

→ Basic at or below ₹15,000 a month: no change. PF was already 12% of basic.
→ Basic between ₹15,000 and ₹25,000, PF capped: PF rises to 12% of basic on each side.
→ Basic above ₹25,000, PF capped: PF rises from ₹1,800 to ₹3,000 on each side.
→ PF already on full basic: usually no change.

Not modelled here

The Code on Social Security's definition of wages can treat allowances above 50% of pay as wages, which may raise PF wages for structures with a low basic. EPS membership rules and the government's 1.16% EPS share are also outside these tables. Old-regime figures do not add employee PF to Section 80C automatically.

What to ask HR

Is my PF capped at the wage ceiling, or charged on full basic?
From which payroll month did you apply the ₹25,000 ceiling, and how was September 2026 handled?
Does my CTC stay the same, with the extra employer PF taken out of cash salary, or is it added on top?

For a line-by-line view of where PF and gratuity sit, see CTC breakup explained.

FAQ

What is the new EPF wage ceiling?

₹25,000 a month from 17 Sep 2026, notified by Gazette S.O. 5109(E) under the Code on Social Security, 2020. It was ₹15,000. Contribution rates are unchanged at 12% employee and 12% employer, so the capped PF is now ₹3,000 a month each side instead of ₹1,800.

Will my take-home salary go down?

Only if your PF was capped and your basic is above ₹15,000 a month. With our calculator defaults (basic 40% of CTC, PF capped), a ₹10 lakh CTC drops from about ₹77,930 to about ₹75,530 a month in the new regime. The difference is not lost: it goes into your PF account, and the employer side of PF also rises.

My employer already deducts 12% of my full basic. Does anything change?

Usually no. If PF was already charged on full basic (uncapped), the ceiling did not limit you before and does not now. Check your payslip: if employee PF was exactly ₹1,800 a month, you were on the cap.

Is the ₹3,000 cap compulsory for salaries above ₹25,000 basic?

No. ₹25,000 is the statutory wage ceiling. The EPFO FAQ says contributions on wages above it may generally be restricted to the ceiling, but employers and employees can contribute on higher wages. Ask HR which method your offer uses.

What about September 2026 payroll?

The EPFO FAQ says September 2026 is pro-rated: ₹15,000 for 1–16 Sep and ₹25,000 for 17–30 Sep. FY 2026-27 totals therefore mix both caps. The tables on this page show the monthly position from 17 Sep 2026 onwards.

Estimates at FY 2026-27 rates for comparing salary structures. Not tax, legal or financial advice. Your payslip depends on your employer's PF method and salary structure.