Professional Tax Due Dates (2026): State-by-State Payment and Return Deadlines

Professional tax is a small bill — never more than ₹2,500 a year per person per year — but every state that levies it sets its own calendar, and a missed date brings interest, late fees and notices. If you run payroll in more than one state, the deadlines are easy to mix up: Maharashtra moved to the 15th in 2026, Tamil Nadu and Kerala work in half-years, Bihar collects once a year, and Odisha stopped levying PT altogether in April 2026. This page puts every state's employer deposit date, return date and annual date for businesses in one table, with the official source we checked for each.

Quick answer

There is no single professional tax due date in India. Employers deposit PT deducted from salaries monthly in most states — by the 10th of the following month in Telangana, the 15th of the month in Maharashtra, within 20 days of the month's end in Karnataka and by the 21st of the following month in West Bengal. Businesses and professionals pay their own annual PT once a year, by 30 April, 30 June or 30 September depending on the state.

• Half-yearly states: Tamil Nadu (before 30 September and 31 March in Chennai) and Kerala (end of August and February)

• Annual returns: West Bengal Form III by 30 April (one month after the year ends), Karnataka by 30 May, Bihar by 30 November

• Odisha: no PT from 1 April 2026; West Bengal: new slabs from 1 October 2026

• Late payment always carries interest — pay tax and interest together

How professional tax deadlines work

Article 276 of the Constitution lets states (and, through them, local bodies) tax professions, trades, callings and employments up to ₹2,500 a year per person a year. Each state's Act then sets two kinds of deadline.

Employer deadlines. An employer deducts PT from each salary above the state's threshold and deposits it with the state — usually monthly, sometimes quarterly or once a year — and files a return showing the salaries paid and the tax deducted. The return may go with each payment (Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka's Form 5-A statement) or once a year (West Bengal, Tripura). In most states the employer is liable for the tax whether or not it actually deducted it.

Own-account deadlines. Companies, firms, directors, partners, professionals and traders pay PT on their own behalf through an enrolment certificate (Maharashtra calls it PTEC). This is almost always a single annual payment. The common pattern is "before 30 June if you were enrolled by 31 May, otherwise within a month of enrolment", or the same with 30 September and 31 August.

PT follows the place of work, not the head office. A Mumbai company with staff in Kolkata, Bengaluru and Chennai runs four different calendars.

State-by-state professional tax due dates for 2026

Every row was checked against the source named in the last column in October 2026. Where we could confirm a date only from payroll reference sites, the row says so.

Three of these rows deserve a warning. In Assam, most payroll sites say "the 28th", but rule 12 of the official Assam Rules says the last day of the following month — paying by the 28th is still safe. In Jharkhand, rule 12(1) as printed gives dates a month later than the Act's "within 15 days after the quarter", which looks like a drafting slip; pay by the Act's date. And in Meghalaya and Mizoram, the 2022 changes have not been followed by easily available official rate or date notices, so confirm with the state taxation department before relying on any third-party calendar.

The big states in detail

Maharashtra. The amendment to Rule 11(3) notified on 28 February 2026 moved monthly PTRC returns and payments from the last day of the month to the 15th of the month, and annual returns from 31 March to 15 March. Monthly filing applies if your previous year's PT liability was ₹1,00,000 or more. The return follows the month salary is paid: April salaries paid on 5 May go into the May return, due 15 May. Late returns cost ₹200 per return within 30 days and ₹1,000 per return after. Full details: professional tax in Maharashtra.

Karnataka. Section 6A requires the monthly statement in Form 5-A and the tax within 20 days after the month ends — so September PT is due by 20 October. If the tax deducted in a month is ₹5,000 or less, the employer may pay quarterly instead. The annual return is due within 60 days of the year's end, and enrolled persons pay before 30 April; the portal extended the 2026-27 date to 5 May 2026. A 2026 amendment treats an enrolled person who has paid as having filed the return.

Employer deposit days at a glance

10th of the following month

Telangana

Form V with payment

15th of the month

Maharashtra

monthly PTRC filers

20 days

Karnataka

after the month ends

21st of the following month

West Bengal

through GRIPS

West Bengal. Employers deposit each month's deduction through GRIPS — payroll references consistently give the 21st of the following month — and file the annual Form III within one month of the year's end. The return for 2025-26 was extended to 30 June 2026 (e-filing) and 15 July 2026 (signed copy). The new salary slabs apply from October 2026 payroll, so the first deposit on the new slabs is due in November 2026. See professional tax in West Bengal.

Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. Both still use the Andhra Pradesh Act of 1987 framework: Form V each month with payment — by the 10th of the following month in Telangana — and enrolled persons' tax before 30 June. Interest in Telangana is 2% a month (₹2 per ₹100 per month or part). Guides: Telangana, Andhra Pradesh.

Tamil Nadu. Local bodies levy PT per half-year. In Chennai, employers deduct the April–September tax from August salary and remit it before 30 September, and deduct the October–March tax by January and remit it before 31 March, after uploading Forms 14 and 15. See Tamil Nadu professional tax.

Gujarat. Collected mainly by municipal corporations, municipalities and district panchayats. Employers with 20 or more employees deposit monthly, others quarterly, within 15 days of the period's end; late payment carries interest at 12% a year. Enrolled persons pay by 30 September.

PT on September salaries — a multi-state calendar

10 Oct

Telangana and Andhra Pradesh — Form V and payment

15 Oct

Gujarat (20+ staff) monthly deposit; Jharkhand quarterly deposit for Jul–Sep

20 Oct

Karnataka — Form 5-A and payment for September

21 Oct

West Bengal — September deduction through GRIPS (old slabs)

31 Oct

Assam — Form III and payment; Sikkim — quarterly return for Jul–Sep

15 Nov

Bihar — annual tax deducted from September salary

Worked example: one company, four states

Take a software services company headquartered in Pune with 40 staff in Pune, 25 in Bengaluru, 15 in Kolkata and 10 in Chennai, all earning ₹40,000 to ₹90,000 a month. September salaries are paid on 30 September.

In Maharashtra, the 40 Pune employees each have ₹200 deducted, so ₹8,000 is due. The company's PT liability last year was well above ₹1,00,000, so it is a monthly filer. Maharashtra ties the PTRC return to the month in which salary is paid, and since March 2026 that month's return and payment are due by the 15th — so a company paying on the last day of the month should map its pay dates to return periods carefully, ideally with its consultant, and never let a deposit slip past the 15th of the following month.

In Karnataka, 25 × ₹200 = ₹5,000 is deducted. That is exactly the ₹5,000 limit, so the company may pay quarterly; most employers pay monthly anyway, by 20 October with the Form 5-A statement.

In West Bengal, the 15 Kolkata staff are still on the old slabs for September: those above ₹40,000 pay ₹200 each, so ₹3,000 goes through GRIPS by 21 October. From October payroll the same people pay ₹140 a month or ₹170 a month depending on salary.

In Tamil Nadu, nothing is due in September for the Chennai staff unless the company forgot August: the April–September tax of ₹1,250 per half-year each (₹12,500 in all) should already have been deducted from August salaries and must reach the corporation before 30 September.

The company itself also owes its own PT: ₹2,500 a year in Maharashtra under its PTEC, and the enrolment amounts in Karnataka and West Bengal for its branches there — each on that state's annual date.

The annual dates for businesses and professionals

If you own a company, run a firm, sit on a board or practise a profession, you probably owe your own PT once a year in addition to what you deduct from staff. The amounts are usually flat — ₹2,500 a year for most companies — but the dates differ.

• By 30 April: Karnataka (5 May for 2026-27).
• By 30 June: Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Jharkhand, Maharashtra (PTEC; 15 June is the cautious date after the 2026 rule change).
• By 31 July: West Bengal (enrolment certificate holders).
• By 30 September: Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Sikkim, Tripura.
• By 30 November: Bihar (with the annual return).

Almost every Act adds the same rider: if you enrol after the cut-off date (31 May or 31 August), you pay within one month of enrolment. A new company incorporated in December pays within a month of enrolling, not the following June.

Monthly, quarterly, half-yearly or annual — how states collect from employers

Collection cycle	States	What to watch
Monthly	Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra (large employers), Telangana, West Bengal, Gujarat (20+ staff)	Different day each state: 10th, 15th, 20th, 21st or month-end
Quarterly	Jharkhand, Sikkim, Gujarat (under 20 staff), Karnataka (small deductors)	Quarter ends vary — Karnataka's quarters end 31 May, 31 Aug, 30 Nov and February
Half-yearly	Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Puducherry (local bodies)	Tax is on half-yearly income, deducted once per half
Annual	Bihar, Maharashtra (small employers), Manipur	One large deduction — plan cash flow

Monthly

States

Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra (large employers), Telangana, West Bengal, Gujarat (20+ staff)

What to watch

Different day each state: 10th, 15th, 20th, 21st or month-end

Quarterly

States

Jharkhand, Sikkim, Gujarat (under 20 staff), Karnataka (small deductors)

What to watch

Quarter ends vary — Karnataka's quarters end 31 May, 31 Aug, 30 Nov and February

Half-yearly

States

Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Puducherry (local bodies)

What to watch

Tax is on half-yearly income, deducted once per half

Annual

States

Bihar, Maharashtra (small employers), Manipur

What to watch

One large deduction — plan cash flow

Interest, late fees and penalties

Every state treats late payment and late returns separately, and waivers for late returns rarely cover interest.

• Interest on late payment: 2% a month (₹2 per ₹100 per month or part) in Telangana; 2% a month or part of a month in Andhra Pradesh; 12% a year in Gujarat and Meghalaya; 2% a month in Bihar (simple); 2% a month, capped at two-thirds of the tax, as a penalty in Madhya Pradesh; 1% a month in West Bengal as payroll references report; monthly slabs of 1.25% to 2% in Maharashtra.
• Late returns: Maharashtra charges ₹200 per return within 30 days and ₹1,000 per return after; Telangana ₹5 to ₹100 a day; West Bengal a late fee under section 6(2), waived for 2025-26 returns filed within the extended dates.
• Not registering or enrolling: Maharashtra ₹5 a day (PTRC) and ₹2 a day (PTEC); Telangana ₹10 to ₹20 a day.
• West Bengal decriminalised its offences in 2026: fines now replace imprisonment, up to up to ₹2,000 (plus up to ₹100 a day if continuing) under section 19(1).

When you are late, pay the tax and interest together first — interest usually runs per month or part of a month, so a payment on the 2nd of the next month costs a full extra month — then file the return.

Common mistakes with professional tax deadlines

Using one company-wide date. A payroll calendar that says "PT: 15th" for every state is wrong for Karnataka, West Bengal, Assam, Tamil Nadu and Bihar. Build the reminder per state.

Confusing the salary month with the payment month. Several states, Maharashtra included, attach the tax to the month in which salary is paid. If you pay salaries in the first week of the next month, your returns shift by a month; keep that consistent, or you will show a gap in one return and a double payment in the next.

Paying without filing, or filing without paying. In Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Tripura the return is not treated as filed without proof of full payment, and in Chennai the corporation wants Forms 14 and 15 uploaded before it accepts payment. A challan alone rarely completes compliance.

Forgetting the company's own PT. Employers who are careful about staff deductions often miss their own enrolment payment, because it falls once a year at a quiet time. Arrears for several years, with interest, are a common finding when a company applies for a licence or tender that asks for a PT clearance.

Carrying on in Odisha. Some payroll systems kept deducting Odisha PT for April and May 2026. Those amounts belong to the employees and should be refunded through payroll.

What changed in 2025 and 2026

• Odisha — PT abolished from 1 April 2026. Ordinance 02 of 2026, published on 21 April 2026, repealed the Odisha State Tax on Professions Act, 2000 with retrospective effect from 1 April. Stop deductions for Odisha staff; returns and dues up to March 2026 remain payable. Pair this with the latest Odisha minimum wages when you redo the payroll.
• Maharashtra — due dates moved to the 15th from March 2026.
• West Bengal — new salary slabs from 1 October 2026 (nil up to ₹20,000, top rate ₹208 a month); new rates for professionals, traders and companies from 1 April 2027; Form III for 2025-26 extended to 30 June 2026.
• Karnataka — ₹300 in February from April 2025, and from April 2026 an enrolled person who pays is treated as having filed the return.
• Nagaland — online registration and e-challan from 1 October 2025.
• Assam — revised salary slabs from 1 April 2025, according to payroll references (nil up to ₹15,000 a month); confirm the notification on tax.assam.gov.in.
• Punjab — Punjab Act 10 of 2025 and the PSDT (First Amendment) Rules 2025 (gazetted 7 November 2025) added a ₹2,200-a-year lump-sum option: opt in on Form PSDT-17 by 31 March and pay by 30 April. The annual return has been due by 31 August since the 2022 rule change. See our Punjab professional tax guide.

How to keep a multi-state PT calendar

The simplest way to stay on time is to make the payroll month-end checklist state-specific, not company-wide. For each state where you have staff, record the registration number, the collection cycle, the deposit day, the return form, the annual date for your own enrolment, and the portal login. Set the reminder five working days before the deadline, because bank-gateway failures on the last day are common and most states treat a payment as made only when it reaches the treasury.

Reconcile every quarter: total PT deducted per payslips should equal total PT paid per challans, state by state. Differences usually come from joiners and leavers, salary revisions that cross a slab, February's higher deduction in Maharashtra and Karnataka, or a challan paid under the wrong period. Fixing them within the quarter keeps interest small.

Finally, watch the state notices around April and October. That is when rate changes (West Bengal in October 2026), due-date changes (Maharashtra in March 2026) and abolitions (Odisha in April 2026) tend to land.

Multi-state professional tax checklist

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• List every work location and the PT state (or local body) for each employee
• Record each state's deposit day, return form and portal
• Diary your own enrolment payment: 30 April, 30 June, 31 July or 30 September
• Move Maharashtra payments to the 15th and West Bengal slabs to the October 2026 table
• Stop Odisha PT deductions for 2026-27
• Set reminders five working days before each deadline
• Reconcile payslip PT with challans every quarter

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Official PT portals

• Maharashtra — mahagst.gov.in PT e-Payment
• Karnataka — ptax.karnataka.gov.in
• West Bengal — professiontax.wb.gov.in
• Telangana — ptax.tgct.gov.in
• Andhra Pradesh — myprofessiontax.apct.gov.in
• Madhya Pradesh — mptax.mp.gov.in
• Assam — tax.assam.gov.in
• Greater Chennai Corporation — Revenue (PT)
• Jharkhand — ctax.jharkhand.gov.in
• Sikkim — sikkimtax.gov.in

What to do next

Copy the rows for your states into your payroll calendar and check the portal of each state once before the first payment. For slabs rather than dates, see the state-wise professional tax guide. To put the right PT line on every payslip, use our free salary slip generator, and use the TDS calculator for the rest of the salary deductions.

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

Frequently asked questions

What is the due date for payment of professional tax?

It depends on the state. Employers deposit PT deducted from salaries by the 10th of the following month in Telangana, the 15th of the month in Maharashtra (monthly filers), within 20 days of the month's end in Karnataka and by the 21st of the following month in West Bengal. Tamil Nadu and Kerala are half-yearly. Businesses and professionals pay their own annual PT once a year, usually by 30 April, 30 June or 30 September.

What is the professional tax return due date?

Monthly-return states such as Telangana and Andhra Pradesh file with each payment. Annual-return states include West Bengal (Form III, 30 April (one month after the year ends)), Karnataka (by 30 May), Tripura (Form VII, 30 April) and Bihar (30 November). Maharashtra's annual PTRC filers file and pay by 15 March.

Is there professional tax in Odisha in 2026?

No. Odisha repealed its professional tax law with effect from 1 April 2026 by Ordinance 02 of 2026. Employers must not deduct PT from Odisha salaries for 2026-27, but returns, tax and arrears for periods up to March 2026 remain recoverable under the savings clause.

What happens if I miss the professional tax due date?

Every state charges interest on late payment — for example 2% a month (₹2 per ₹100 per month or part) in Telangana and 12% a year in Gujarat — and most add a late fee for late returns, such as ₹200 per return within 30 days and ₹1,000 per return after in Maharashtra. Penalties for not registering apply separately. Pay the tax and interest together, then file the return.

When do companies and professionals pay their own professional tax?

Once a year: by 30 April in Karnataka, by 30 June in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Jharkhand and (as a safe date) 15 June in Maharashtra, by 31 July in West Bengal, and by 30 September in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Sikkim and Tripura. Later enrolments usually get one month from enrolment.

Which states do not have professional tax?

Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Goa, Chhattisgarh and Jammu & Kashmir levy no professional tax on salaries. Odisha joined that list from April 2026. Punjab levies a separate State Development Tax of ₹200 a month instead.

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.Maharashtra State Tax on Professions … (Amendment) Rules, 2026 and Trade Circular 2T of 2026 — Maharashtra State Tax Department · accessed 9 October 2026
2. 2.Karnataka Tax on Professions, Trades, Callings and Employments Act, 1976 (as amended) — Government of Karnataka (text via PRS Legislative Research) · accessed 9 October 2026
3. 3.Order Memo No. I/774943/2026 dated 29.05.2026 — Form III return extension — Commissioner of Commercial Taxes and Profession Tax, West Bengal (copy hosted by Simpliance) · accessed 9 October 2026
4. 4.Telangana Tax on Professions Act and Rules; PT returns help — Commercial Taxes Department, Telangana · accessed 9 October 2026
5. 5.My Profession Tax — Andhra Pradesh: Act — Commercial Taxes Department, Andhra Pradesh · accessed 9 October 2026
6. 6.Profession Tax FAQ — Surat Municipal Corporation — Surat Municipal Corporation · accessed 9 October 2026
7. 7.Professional Tax FAQ — Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation — Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation · accessed 9 October 2026
8. 8.Madhya Pradesh Vritti Kar Adhiniyam, 1995 — Government of Madhya Pradesh (text via PRS Legislative Research) · accessed 9 October 2026
9. 9.Assam Professions, Trades, Callings and Employments Taxation Rules, 1947 and Act Chapter V — Commissionerate of Taxes, Assam · accessed 9 October 2026
10. 10.Bihar Tax on Professions, Trades, Callings and Employments Rules, 2011 (gazette copy) — Government of Bihar (gazette copy hosted by greytHR) · accessed 9 October 2026
11. 11.Jharkhand Tax on Profession, Trades, Callings and Employments Act, 2011 and Rules, 2012 — Commercial Taxes Department, Jharkhand · accessed 9 October 2026
12. 12.Kerala Panchayat Raj Act, 1994 — section 205F (LSGD Law Manual) — Local Self Government Department, Kerala · accessed 9 October 2026
13. 13.Sikkim Tax on Professions, Trades, Callings and Employments Act, 2006 — Government of Sikkim (gazette copy via PRS) · accessed 9 October 2026
14. 14.Tripura Professions … Taxation (Amendment) Rules, 2021 — Taxes Department, Tripura · accessed 9 October 2026
15. 15.Public notice on Profession Tax (25.09.2025) — Commissioner of Taxes, Nagaland · accessed 9 October 2026
16. 16.Odisha Ordinance 02 of 2026 — PT Repeal Ordinance — Law Department, Government of Odisha · accessed 9 October 2026
17. 17.Revenue Department — Profession Tax; GCC notice dated 06.03.2025 — Greater Chennai Corporation · accessed 9 October 2026