Under the new Labour Codes, an appointment letter is now mandatory for every employee in India — there is no minimum company size and no salary threshold. Five employees or five hundred, every worker is entitled to a written letter in the prescribed format, and that includes the field, shift, and contract staff who were often hired on a handshake.
This is the deep-dive on one line from our new labour codes compliance checklist: who needs a letter, exactly what it must carry, and how to issue them without drowning in paperwork.
Key takeaways
- Mandatory for everyone — no size or salary threshold, covering permanent, fixed-term, contract, and gig or platform workers.
- Existing staff are included — anyone without a letter must be issued one within the prescribed timeline.
- A prescribed format applies — the notified Central Rules list the particulars a compliant letter must carry.
- Wages must follow the new definition — the basic-plus-DA breakup in the letter should reflect the 50% wage rule.
- Field and non-desk teams are the hardest part — informal hiring across sites is where SMBs fall behind.
Are appointment letters really mandatory now?
Yes, and this is the single most important change for an SMB to get right.
- No threshold, no exemption. The requirement applies regardless of headcount or pay. There is no “we’re too small” carve-out.
- Every worker type is covered. Permanent, fixed-term, contract, and gig or platform workers all get a written letter.
- It formalises the relationship. The letter is the document that ties an employee to their wages, their role, and their social-security entitlements — which is exactly why it became mandatory.
Who must get an appointment letter?
Everyone on your payroll, and some people you might not think of as “on payroll.”
- Permanent employees — the obvious case, but long-tenure staff who never got a letter still need one now.
- Fixed-term employees — a fixed-term hire engaged directly by you is entitled to a letter, and under the codes earns gratuity after one year of continuous service.
- Contract and outsourced workers — covered, with the principal employer expected to ensure compliance across the chain.
- Field, shift, and gig staff — delivery riders, beat sales reps, security guards, shift trainers. They are often hired informally and spread across sites, which makes issuing and tracking a letter for each the real operational challenge.
What must an appointment letter include?
The notified Central Rules set out the particulars. Use this as a practical checklist for a compliant letter:
- Employer and employee details — legal name of the establishment, the employee’s name, and identifiers.
- Designation and category of skill — the role and its skill category (unskilled, semi-skilled, skilled, highly skilled).
- Date of joining — and, for fixed-term roles, the term.
- Wages with the full breakup — basic, DA, and allowances, structured so basic plus DA is at least 50% of total remuneration under the new wage definition.
- Hours and place of work — including multi-site or field assignment where relevant.
- Leave entitlement and notice period — the statutory and contractual terms.
- Social-security entitlements — PF, ESI, and other applicable benefits the employee is enrolled in.
Getting the wage breakup right matters twice over: the letter is a compliance document and the same basic-plus-DA figure drives PF, ESI, and gratuity. See how to calculate PF and ESI under the new wage code for the base that should appear on the letter.
What happens if you don’t issue one?
A missing appointment letter is no longer just untidy HR — it is a compliance gap.
- It is a statutory non-compliance. The letter is mandated, so not issuing it exposes you to penalties under the codes.
- It weakens your position in disputes. Without a written letter, the terms of employment — wages, role, notice — are harder to evidence, and ambiguity tends to run against the employer.
- It blocks clean social-security records. The letter anchors PF and ESI enrolment; without it, downstream records are easy to get wrong.
Common mistakes employers make with appointment letters
Even employers who issue letters often get the details wrong in ways that matter.
- Treating the offer letter as the appointment letter. An offer letter precedes joining; the appointment letter is the formal record of employment on the prescribed particulars. They are not interchangeable.
- A low-basic structure on the letter. If the wage breakup shows basic plus DA below 50% of total remuneration, the letter itself documents a non-compliant structure. Fix the structure first, then issue.
- Skipping existing and informal staff. The requirement is not just for new hires — long-tenure and informally hired workers without a letter must be issued one within the prescribed timeline.
- No version trail. When wages or role change, the letter should be updated and the change recorded. A single undated letter from years ago is weak evidence.
- Issuing on paper for a field team. A box of signed letters in a drawer is impossible to audit. For distributed teams, you need to know at a glance who has a current, compliant letter and who doesn’t.
How to issue appointment letters at scale
For a desk team of ten, letters are a templating exercise. For a field or shift workforce spread across sites, doing it on paper is where SMBs fall behind. This is exactly the churn Field HRMS is built for: appointment letters in the prescribed format with the correct wage breakup, issued and tracked per employee alongside the attendance and payroll records for non-desk teams, instead of re-keying across a register, a spreadsheet, and a portal.
It is the same idea behind everything we build — software that does the compliance grunt-work so your team doesn’t. If you manage a field or shift workforce and want the letters and the wage base right, join the Field HRMS waitlist or tell us your headcount and we’ll walk you through it.
Verified as of June 2026. The Labour Codes are in force but final rules and state-level timelines are still being notified. Confirm the prescribed format and your state’s position in the Ministry of Labour FAQ on labour.gov.in before acting, and check with your labour-law advisor where relevant.
Frequently asked questions
- Are appointment letters mandatory under the new labour codes in India?
- Yes. Under the new Labour Codes, every employer must issue a written appointment letter to every employee, with no minimum company size and no salary threshold. It covers all worker types — permanent, fixed-term, contract, and gig or platform workers — and existing staff who never received one are to be issued one within the prescribed timeline.
- What must an appointment letter include under the new labour codes?
- The notified Central Rules set out the particulars: the employer and employee details, designation and category of skill, date of joining, wages with the basic, DA, and allowance breakup, the place and hours of work, leave entitlement, notice period, and the employee's social-security entitlements such as PF and ESI.
- Do small businesses also have to issue appointment letters?
- Yes. There is no exemption for small employers. Whether you have five employees or five hundred, paying ₹12,000 a month or ₹2 lakh, every worker is entitled to a written appointment letter in the prescribed format.
- Do existing employees need a new appointment letter?
- Workers already with you who never received a letter are to be issued one within the timeline prescribed under the rules. Do not assume long-tenure staff are covered by default — the requirement applies to them too.
- When did the appointment letter requirement take effect?
- The four Labour Codes came into force on 21 November 2025, with the final Central Rules notified on 8 May 2026. State Rules are still being finalised, so confirm your state's position and timelines on labour.gov.in.