Shop Act License in Maharashtra (2026): Registration, Intimation, Fees, Working Hours and Penalties

If you open a shop, office, salon, restaurant or any other commercial establishment in Maharashtra, the "shop act licence" (still widely called a gumasta licence) is usually the first document your bank, landlord or payment gateway asks for. The rules changed on 1 October 2025, and most pages online have not caught up. This guide is for shop owners, small-office employers and the accountants who set them up. It explains who now registers and who only files an intimation, what it costs, how to apply on the Labour Department's portal, the new working-hour limits, leave and penalties, with a worked example for a Pune store.

Quick answer

Under the Maharashtra Shops and Establishments (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 2017, as amended from 1 October 2025, an establishment with 20 or more workers must get a registration certificate (Form A); one with fewer than 20 workers only files an online intimation (Form F) and gets a receipt (Form G). Apply within 60 days of starting business. There is no government fee (only an e-service charge).

• Apply online through the Labour Department's Labour Management System (lms.mahaonline.gov.in)

• Registration certificate valid for the period you choose, up to 10 years

• Adults may now work 10 hours a day, still 48 a week; overtime up to 144 hours a quarter at double pay

• Fine up to ₹1 lakh, and ₹2 lakh on a repeat conviction

What the Maharashtra shop act licence is

The licence is a registration under the Maharashtra Shops and Establishments (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 2017 (Maharashtra Act LXI of 2017). It replaced the Bombay/Maharashtra Shops and Establishments Act, 1948 from 19 December 2017. The 1948 law required every shop to register and renew, with fees that rose with headcount; that is where the "gumasta" name and the old fee slabs that agents still quote come from. Under the 2017 law, larger establishments register and smaller ones simply intimate, and the Rules prescribe no fee.

"Establishment" is wide. It covers any business, trade, banking, insurance, broking or professional activity, including clinics and hospitals, architects, engineers, accountants and tax consultants, societies and trusts that run a business, and shops, residential hotels, restaurants, eating houses, theatres and other places of entertainment. A home-based business with staff, a consultancy office or an e-commerce warehouse can fall within it. Section 3 excludes Central and State Government and local-authority establishments, the Reserve Bank, railway administration and some others, and factories covered by the Factories Act are outside it.

The authority is the Labour Department, not your municipal corporation. Its officers under this Act are called Facilitators, headed by a Chief Facilitator. In Mumbai, Pune or Nagpur, you still apply through the same state portal. A municipal trade or health licence, where your corporation requires one, is a separate document.

The October 2025 change: 20 workers, not 10

When the 2017 Act began, the dividing line was ten workers. Establishments with ten or more registered in Form A; those with fewer filed an intimation in Form F. On 1 October 2025 the Governor promulgated the Maharashtra Shops and Establishments (Amendment) Ordinance, 2025, which replaced "ten" with "twenty" in section 1(3), section 6 and section 7. The State then introduced L.A. Bill No. LXXXIX of 2025 in the Legislative Assembly on 8 December 2025 to replace the Ordinance; the Assembly-passed text is published by the Legislature Secretariat, and the Bill says the Act is deemed to have come into force on 1 October 2025.

In practice this means three things. First, an establishment employing fewer than 20 workers no longer needs a registration certificate; it only gives an intimation. Second, an establishment that reaches 20 workers must register. Third, because section 1(3) now applies the Act's main provisions to establishments with 20 or more workers, the chapters on hours, leave and welfare now formally apply only to those larger establishments. Smaller ones are still bound by the intimation duty in section 7 and by every other labour law that applies to them, including minimum wages, payment of wages, ESIC and the POSH Act.

The same amendment loosened working-time limits: up to ten hours a day instead of nine (still 48 a week), a twelve-hour spread-over instead of ten and a half, six hours of continuous work before a break instead of five, and up to 144 hours of overtime in three months instead of 125. The Statement of Objects and Reasons says the aim is to cut the compliance load on small businesses while keeping the weekly limit fixed.

The Rules have lagged. Forms A and F in the 2018 Rules still refer to the ten-worker line. The State published draft amendments to the Rules in November 2025 and again in March 2026; according to compliance firms tracking them, the 2026 draft proposes simpler forms, more address-proof options and a one-working-day timeline. Until final rules are notified, follow the Act's 20-worker line and use whichever form the portal offers for your headcount.

Maharashtra Shops Act at a glance (2026)

20+

Workers that need Form A registration

from 1 Oct 2025

Nil

Government fee

rule 4, 2018 Rules

60 days

Time to register or intimate

from starting business

10 hours

Daily hours limit

48 a week; overtime at 2×

Registration or intimation: which one you need

Count workers, not just people on your own payroll. The Act defines a "worker" as any person, other than an apprentice, employed for hire or reward to do manual, skilled, technical, operational or clerical work, whether the terms are written or not. Form A asks you to list your own workers, contract labour and part-time workers separately, so the Labour Department expects agency guards, housekeeping staff and promoters to be shown. Counting them in is the safer reading when you are close to the line. Apprentices engaged under the Apprentices Act are excluded, and the owner or partners working in the business are employers, not workers.

Fewer than 20 workers — Form F intimation. Within 60 days of starting business, file Form F online. The Facilitator records it and the portal issues a receipt in Form G. The receipt has no fixed validity. The Rules themselves say it is only an acknowledgement and not proof that the business exists at that address. Many owners still use it as supporting evidence when opening a current account or applying for other registrations, so check what the bank or office actually accepts.

20 or more workers — Form A registration. Within 60 days of starting business (or of crossing 20 workers), apply online in Form A with the documents in Part A of the Schedule. The Facilitator verifies them and issues a digitally signed registration certificate in Form B, with a Labour Identification Number (LIN). Display it at the premises and produce it when a Facilitator asks.

Growing past 20. The proviso to section 7 says that once headcount reaches 20, every provision of the Act applies and you must register under section 6. Do not wait for the next financial year. File Form A as soon as you know you have crossed the line, and keep the intimation receipt on file.

Registered under the old law. Establishments that held a valid 1948-Act registration when the 2017 Act began were allowed to continue until it expired. Those certificates have now all lapsed or been renewed, so any business still relying on a 1948 certificate should re-check its status on the portal.

Shop act licence fees in Maharashtra

This is where most of the misinformation sits. Rule 4 of the 2018 Rules says plainly that no fee is prescribed under the Act or the Rules. The employer pays only the electronic transaction or service charge that the Government fixes for using its e-services, which appears at the payment step and is small.

The fee tables you see on agent websites, with amounts rising from a few hundred rupees to ₹10,000 or more depending on the number of employees, come from the 1948 Act and its 1961 Rules. They no longer apply. What agents charge is their own professional fee for filling the form. That can be worth paying if your documents are messy, but it is not a government charge, and the portal is simple enough that most owners can file Form F themselves in under an hour.

The Act still allows the Government to prescribe fees and a late fee for renewal (half the renewal fee, under section 6(4)). Since no fee is currently prescribed, the late fee is also nil in practice. If the Government notifies a fee in future, it will appear in the Rules and on the portal before you pay.

How to apply online

All applications are online. The Labour Department's Labour Management System (LMS) handles registration, intimation, changes and closure, and it links to the MAITRI single-window portal for the employer profile. If you prefer help, the LMS home page lists Common Service Centres that can file for you.

Shop act registration or intimation in Maharashtra

1. 1

   Create an employer profile

   On lms.mahaonline.gov.in choose Create Employer User Profile. This opens the MAITRI registration page; enter your details, verify mobile and email, and set a password.

   Open the Labour Management System
2. 2

   Pick the right service

   Choose Form F intimation if you have fewer than 20 workers, or Shop and Establishment Registration — Form A if you have 20 or more. For partnerships, list the partners with the employer first.

3. 3

   Fill in the establishment details

   Name and address of the establishment, nature of business, date of commencement, employer and manager details, and workers split by men, women and others, including agency staff.

4. 4

   Upload documents

   Aadhaar of the employer, a photo of the establishment showing the interior and the Marathi name board, and (for Form A) proof of the premises and any licence your business needs under another law.

   Tip: A name board only in English is the most common reason for a return. Rule 35 requires Marathi in Devanagari, written first and no smaller than any other language.

5. 5

   Pay the service charge and submit

   Pay the e-service charge shown at checkout. There is no government fee.

6. 6

   Download the receipt or certificate

   Form F returns a Form G receipt. Form A is scrutinised by the Facilitator, who signs a Form B certificate; the Labour Commissionerate's service list gives one day for this, and the Rules allow seven working days before an incomplete application must be rejected with reasons.

Documents to keep ready

The Schedule to the Rules lists the uploads. The intimation needs only two; registration needs proof of premises as well.

Before you apply

0/7

• Aadhaar of the employer (for a company or LLP, Aadhaar of the responsible person)
• Photo of the establishment showing the inside and the Marathi name board
• Owned premises: sale deed, current property tax receipt, current electricity bill or society maintenance receipt
• Rented premises: lease or leave-and-licence agreement plus one owner document from the list above
• No-objection letter if the premises belong to a relative, and society NOC if it is in a residential housing society
• Any licence your trade needs before starting (FSSAI, drug licence, excise licence, police or fire NOC)
• Headcount including agency and contract workers

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Validity, renewal, changes and closure

Validity. Section 6(3) says the certificate is valid for the period you ask for, up to ten years. The Rules provide for renewal in Form D at least 30 days before expiry, and the LMS portal still has an "Old User" renewal route for older certificates. Legal commentators reported in 2019 that the State had issued a government resolution dispensing with renewal, but the resolution is not on the department's website, and the Act has not been amended on this point. The safe course: look at the "valid up to" date on your Form B. If there is one, renew through the portal before it. An intimation receipt has no expiry.

Changes. Any change in the details on your certificate (new address, new partner, change of business, a bigger workforce) must be notified online in Form I within 30 days with supporting documents, after which the Facilitator issues a fresh certificate. A business on intimation should file a fresh intimation for a new address.

Closure. Tell the Facilitator within 30 days of closing permanently. The entry is removed from the register and the certificate cancelled. Skipping this step leaves an active record that can attract notices later.

Annual intimations. Registered employers must report the names and duties of persons exercising managerial functions in Form T, and of staff in confidential positions in Form U, every year and whenever they change. Few owners know about these, and they are an easy inspection finding.

Working hours, overtime, holidays and leave

These rules apply to establishments with 20 or more workers after the 2025 amendment. Smaller shops are wise to follow them too: they are close to what the Labour Codes and minimum-wage rules expect, and they make wage disputes easier to defend.

Hours. No adult worker may work more than 10 hours a day or 48 hours a week. After six hours of continuous work, the worker gets a break of at least half an hour. The spread-over, meaning the time from starting to finishing including breaks, cannot exceed 12 hours a day.

Overtime. Work beyond the daily or weekly limit is overtime, paid at twice the ordinary rate of wages, and total overtime cannot exceed 144 hours in any three months. The amendment's objects say overtime is not compulsory for workers.

Opening days and weekly off. The Act lets an establishment stay open all seven days, as long as every worker gets at least 24 consecutive hours of weekly rest. If a worker is denied the weekly holiday, compensatory leave must be given within two months, and work on a rest day is paid at double rate. Shift schedules and weekly offs must be notified to workers in advance and sent to the Facilitator. The State can still fix opening and closing hours for particular classes of establishment, such as permit rooms and bars.

Women workers. Women may work between 7 am and 9.30 pm. They may work between 9.30 pm and 7 am only with their consent and where the employer provides for their safety, protection from sexual harassment and transport to their doorstep. Section 13 also bans discrimination against women in recruitment, training, transfers, promotion or wages.

Leave and holidays. Every worker gets a weekly holiday with wages and 8 days of casual leave a year, credited quarterly and lapsing at year-end. A worker who has worked 240 days in a calendar year earns one day of leave for every 20 days worked, to be taken the next year; earned leave can be accumulated up to 45 days. There are also eight paid festival holidays: 26 January, 1 May, 15 August, 2 October and four others agreed with workers before the year starts.

Working-time limits before and after 1 October 2025

Rule	Before	From 1 Oct 2025
Applies to	10 or more workers	20 or more workers
Daily hours	9	10 hours
Weekly hours	48	48 (unchanged)
Work before a break	5 hours	6 hours
Spread-over	10½ hours	12 hours
Overtime cap	125 hours a quarter	144 hours a quarter

Applies to

Before

10 or more workers

From 1 Oct 2025

20 or more workers

Daily hours

Before

9

From 1 Oct 2025

10 hours

Weekly hours

Before

48

From 1 Oct 2025

48 (unchanged)

Work before a break

Before

5 hours

From 1 Oct 2025

6 hours

Spread-over

Before

10½ hours

From 1 Oct 2025

12 hours

Overtime cap

Before

125 hours a quarter

From 1 Oct 2025

144 hours a quarter

Worked example: a Pune home-décor store

Kulkarni Home Décor opens on Laxmi Road, Pune (a Zone 1 area for Maharashtra minimum wages) on 1 November with 14 sales and billing staff of its own and two security guards from an agency. Headcount is 16.

Which filing. Sixteen is below 20, so the owner files a Form F intimation on the LMS portal by 31 December (60 days), uploading her Aadhaar and a photo of the shop with the Marathi name board. She pays only the e-service charge and downloads the Form G receipt the same day.

Crossing 20. For the Diwali season the following year she adds five temporary staff, taking headcount to 21. The store must now register, so she files Form A with the leave-and-licence agreement and the owner's electricity bill, and receives a Form B certificate with a LIN, choosing ten-year validity. From then on the Act's hours, overtime and leave rules apply in full.

Overtime. A billing assistant on the Zone 1 shops minimum for unskilled work of ₹14,155 a month (current until 31 December 2026) works 52 hours in a festival week, 4 hours over the weekly limit. At 26 working days of 8 hours, her hourly rate is about ₹68, so overtime at double is about ₹136 an hour, or roughly ₹544 for that week. Over the season, her overtime stays well under the 144 hours quarterly cap.

Other compliance. With more than 10 employees the store registers for ESIC, deducts Maharashtra professional tax from salaries above the exemption limit, checks pay against the Maharashtra minimum wages every six months and sets up an Internal Committee under the POSH Act, because it has 10 or more employees.

Penalties, inspections and compounding

Fines. Under section 29, contravening the Act or Rules is punishable with a fine of up to ₹1 lakh, and up to ₹2,000 for each day a contravention continues, with the total capped at ₹2,000 per worker employed. A repeat conviction for the same provision can attract up to ₹2 lakh, within the same per-worker cap. Not giving the section 7 intimation is a separate offence with a fine of ₹1,000. If a breach causes an accident leading to serious injury or death, the employer faces up to six months' imprisonment or a fine of ₹2 lakh to ₹5 lakh, or both.

Inspections. Facilitators inspect under an online randomised system and issue an inspection memo listing what to fix. Their job, under rule 30, includes advising employers on compliance as well as enforcing it.

Compounding. Most offences can be settled before prosecution by applying in Form S to the Compounding Officer, who must pass an order within seven working days. The compounding fee depends on the seriousness of the breach and the evidence, and rule 32 links it to the maximum fine for the offence (at least half of it).

How the Maharashtra Shops Act got here

19 Dec 2017

2017 Act replaces the 1948 Act; registration for 10+ workers, intimation below that

23 Mar 2018

2018 Rules notified: Forms A, F and G, no prescribed fee, Marathi name boards

1 Oct 2025

Ordinance raises the line to 20 workers and allows a 10-hour day

21 Nov 2025

Four Labour Codes come into force nationally

8 Dec 2025

Bill LXXXIX of 2025 introduced to replace the Ordinance, deemed from 1 Oct 2025

Mar 2026

Draft amendments to the 2018 Rules published for comment

Common mistakes and how to fix them

Using the old 10-worker rule. Many agents still tell businesses with 10 to 19 workers to register. Registering does no harm, but you do not have to. If you have a Form B certificate and now have fewer than 20 workers, keep it valid; there is no need to cancel it.

Paying "government fees" to agents. There is no prescribed fee. Ask any agent for a breakdown; anything beyond the e-service charge is their fee.

Leaving out agency staff. Form A asks for contract and part-time workers separately, and the department reads them into the headcount. Undercounting can put you on the wrong side of the 20-worker line.

English-only name boards. Rule 35 requires the name in Marathi in Devanagari, written first and in letters no smaller than any other script; an establishment serving or selling liquor cannot carry a name board in the name of legends or forts. The portal photo shows the board, so fix it before you apply.

Not reporting changes. Moving premises or adding a partner without filing Form I within 30 days is a breach. Banks also reject certificates whose address no longer matches.

Ignoring the Labour Codes. The four Labour Codes came into force on 21 November 2025. The Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code has its own registration for establishments with 10 or more workers, and Maharashtra has published draft rules under it. Until the State aligns the two, keep your Shops Act filing current and watch the Labour Codes guide for the switch.

Official links

• Labour Management System (LMS) — login and new employer profileForm A, Form F, renewals, changes, closure
• Maharashtra Shops and Establishments Rules, 2018 (PDF)Forms, rule 4 on fees, document lists
• L.A. Bill No. LXXXIX of 2025 — 20-worker amendmentDeemed in force from 1 Oct 2025
• Labour Commissionerate service time limits (PDF)Right to Services timelines and appeals
• LMS FAQ (PDF)New registration, renewal and change steps
• Office of the Commissioner of Labour, MaharashtraActs, draft rules, minimum wages

What to do next

Count your workers, including agency staff. Under 20, file the Form F intimation today; at 20 or more, apply in Form A. Either way it costs only the portal's service charge. Then set up a weekly-off roster, an overtime register and leave records, and check pay against the Maharashtra minimum wages. Our salary slip generator shows overtime and deductions clearly, and the hourly rate calculator helps you price overtime hours. If you have not yet registered for GST or Udyam, your Form G receipt or Form B certificate works as address proof for both.

This is general information, not legal or tax advice — confirm on the official source or with a professional.

Frequently asked questions

Is a shop act licence mandatory in Maharashtra?

Every shop, office or other establishment in Maharashtra must tell the Labour Department it exists. Since 1 October 2025, establishments with 20 or more workers must obtain a registration certificate in Form A, while those with fewer than 20 workers only file an online intimation in Form F and receive a receipt in Form G. Both must be done within 60 days of starting business.

What is the shop act licence fee in Maharashtra?

Rule 4 of the Maharashtra Shops and Establishments Rules, 2018 says no fee is prescribed under the Act or the Rules, so there is no government fee (only an e-service charge). You pay only the small electronic transaction or service charge shown at the payment step on the portal. Amounts of ₹1,000 to ₹10,000 quoted by agents are their professional fees, not government charges.

Do shops with fewer than 20 workers need a shop act licence in Maharashtra?

They do not need a registration certificate, but they must file the online intimation in Form F within 60 days of starting business. The receipt (Form G) is what banks and other offices usually accept as proof. Not filing it is punishable with a fine of ₹1,000. Once headcount reaches 20, the full registration applies.

How long is a Maharashtra shop act licence valid?

Under section 6(3) of the 2017 Act, a registration certificate is valid for the period you request, up to 10 years. Legal commentators report a 2019 government resolution that dropped compulsory renewal, but the labour portal still offers a renewal service for older certificates. Check the validity date printed on your certificate and renew before it if one is shown. An intimation receipt has no expiry.

What are the working hours under the Maharashtra Shops Act now?

Since 1 October 2025, an adult worker may work up to 10 hours a day but no more than 48 hours a week, with a rest break of at least half an hour after six hours of continuous work. The spread-over is capped at 12 hours a day. Overtime is paid at twice the ordinary wage and is limited to 144 hours in any three months.

What is the penalty for not having a shop act licence in Maharashtra?

Contravening the Act or Rules can attract a fine of up to ₹1 lakh, plus up to ₹2,000 for each day the breach continues, capped at ₹2,000 per worker employed. A repeat conviction can attract up to ₹2 lakh. Most offences can be compounded before prosecution on payment of a compounding fee.

Sources & verification

Figures on this page were checked against the sources below when it was last reviewed on 9 October 2026. Each rate and limit is stored once with its own official source and review date, and official update channels are monitored daily so changes are picked up. How we verify

1. 1.L.A. Bill No. LXXXIX of 2025 — Maharashtra Shops and Establishments (Amendment) Bill, 2025 — Government of Maharashtra, Law and Judiciary Department (via PRS Legislative Research) · accessed 9 October 2026
2. 2.L.A. Bill No. 89 of 2025 — text as passed by the Legislative Assembly (Hindi) — Maharashtra Legislature Secretariat · accessed 9 October 2026
3. 3.Maharashtra Ordinance No. VIII of 2025 (1 October 2025) — Industries, Energy, Labour and Mining Department, Government of Maharashtra (via PRS) · accessed 9 October 2026
4. 4.Maharashtra Shops and Establishments (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 2017 — Bill No. 54 of 2017 as published — Government of Maharashtra (via PRS Legislative Research) · accessed 9 October 2026
5. 5.Maharashtra Shops and Establishments (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Rules, 2018 — Office of the Commissioner of Labour, Maharashtra · accessed 9 October 2026
6. 6.List of services provided by the Labour Commissionerate (time limits) — Labour Department, Government of Maharashtra (LMS portal) · accessed 9 October 2026
7. 7.Labour Management System — FAQ — Labour Department, Government of Maharashtra · accessed 9 October 2026
8. 8.Maharashtra promulgates key ordinance to amend shops and establishments law — Khaitan & Co · accessed 9 October 2026
9. 9.Maharashtra Shops and Establishments Amendment Rules 2026 (draft) — Karma Management Global Consulting Solutions · accessed 9 October 2026