Gratuity not paid: the forms that are current, the interest that runs, and the authority that decides
The procedure changed in May 2026 and most guidance still describes the old one. This page is enforcement only — whether you qualify and how much you are owed are answered elsewhere on the hub.
Most gratuity guidance online is now out of date
If a page tells you to file Form I with your employer and Form N with the controlling authority, it is describing a procedure that no longer exists. The Payment of Gratuity (Central) Rules, 1972 were repealed by the Social Security (Central) Rules, 2026, notified as G.S.R. 344(E) on 8 May 2026. The employee's application is now Form IV, the employer's notice is Form V, and the forum for an exit on or after 21 November 2025 is the competent authorityappointed under section 58 of the Code on Social Security, 2020 — not the controlling authority. Those form numbers are the Central rules' procedure; a State-sphere employer follows its State's rules, as the next panel explains.
Central or State sphere? Check before you use any form
What applies to everyone. Under section 56 of the Code on Social Security 2020 your employer must determine your gratuity and notify it, pay within 30 days of it becoming payable, pay simple interest on any delay, and deposit any amount it admits while disputing the rest — and a dispute goes to the competent authority.
What depends on your employer.The forms and procedural deadlines on this page — Form IV, the employer's Form V within 15 days, Form VI to the competent authority within 180 days, and Form IX for recovery — are the Social Security (Central) Rules 2026 procedure. They apply where the Central Government is the appropriate government: establishments run by or under it, railways and metro railways, mines, oil fields, major ports, air transport, telecom, banking and insurance companies, central public sector undertakings and their subsidiaries, companies at least 51% owned by it, contractors for those establishments, and any establishment with departments or branches in more than one State (section 2(3)). For every other establishment the State Government is the appropriate government.
In the State sphere,check your State's rules under the Code, its notified forms and who its competent authority is. Where the State has not yet notified replacement rules, its rules made under the Payment of Gratuity Act 1972 continue to the extent they are consistent with the Code (section 164(2)(a)). Do not file the Central Form VI unless the Central Government is your appropriate government.
My employer will not pay my gratuity. What do I do?
Apply to your employer in writing, by speed post as well as email, and keep the receipt — in Form IVif the Central Government is its appropriate government, or the form your State's rules prescribe if not. Under the Central rules the employer must respond in Form V within fifteen days; under the Code every employer must pay within 30 days of the gratuity becoming payable. After that, simple interest runs at the rate the Central Government notifies for long-term deposits.
If the claim is refused or ignored, the dispute goes to the competent authority, which inquires with the powers of a civil court and can direct payment. One provision worth knowing before you write: where the employer disputes part of the claim, it must deposit the part it admits with the competent authority — so a disagreement about one component is not a reason to hold all of it.
- Estimated time
- Twenty minutes to file, then thirty days
- Cost / impact
- Free · no signup · runs in your browser
- What you need
- Joining date, last working day, employee ID, your gratuity figure
This page does not calculate anything
Whether you qualify at all, and what the amount comes to, are separate questions with their own pages — including the contested four-years-and-a-bit cases and the way the labour codes changed the wage definition the formula runs on. Settle those first; a claim with a figure in it is worth several without one.
How overdue is it? Your escalation clock
Stays on this device. Nothing is sent to us.
Enter your last working day and each deadline below will show how far past it you are — with the section it comes from, so you can quote it directly in your next email.
Check which rules apply to your employer.Forms IV, V, VI and IX and their 15-day and 180-day deadlines are the procedure under the Social Security (Central) Rules 2026, for establishments where the Central Government is the appropriate government. In the State sphere, use your State's rules, notified forms and competent authority — do not file Central Form VI by default. The Code's duties to determine the amount, pay within 30 days and pay interest apply either way.
The procedure, as it stands now
Two sets of rules changed within six months of each other, which is why so much guidance is stale. The four labour codes came into force on 21 November 2025, moving gratuity from the Payment of Gratuity Act 1972 to Chapter V of the Code on Social Security 2020. The subordinate rules followed on 8 May 2026, when the Social Security (Central) Rules 2026 were notified and repealed twelve older sets of Central rules, the 1972 Central gratuity rules among them. Everything below reflects the position after both. The section 56 duties apply to every employer; the form numbers and the 15-day and 180-day limits are the Central rules' procedure, for Central-sphere establishments.
- 1The employer's duty arises without you doing anythingSection 56(2) requires the employer, as soon as gratuity becomes payable, to determine the amount and give written notice of it to the person to whom it is payable and to the competent authority — whether or not any application has been made. An employer that has done nothing has already missed a duty of its own, and it is worth saying so.
- 2You apply in Form IVOrdinarily within thirty days of the gratuity becoming payable, by personal service or speed post. A legal heir has one year. A late application must still be considered where sufficient cause for the delay is shown, so a missed thirty days is not the end of a claim — but do not test it if you can avoid it.
- 3The employer responds in Form V within fifteen daysAccepting the claim and specifying the amount and the date of payment, or rejecting it with reasons. A written rejection is more useful to you than silence: it fixes the employer's case at a point where you can answer it, and it is the document the competent authority will want to see.
- 4Payment is due within thirty days, and interest runs after thatSection 56(3) sets the thirty days. Section 56(4) requires simple interest on any delay, from the date the gratuity became payable to the date it is paid, at a rate not exceeding the notified long-term deposit rate. The only exception is where the delay is the employee's own fault AND the employer has the competent authority's written permission on that ground — both limbs.
- 5A disputed claim goes to the competent authority — in Form VI, within 180 daysWhere the employer refuses your application, states an amount you say is too low, rejects eligibility, or simply lets the fifteen days pass, you apply in Form VI for a direction under s.56(5) — within 180 days of that cause, with a copy to the employer. Where the amount is disputed the employer must also deposit what it admits. The authority then issues Form VII calling both sides to a hearing, inquires with the powers of a civil court, and may decide ex parte if the employer does not appear.
- 6The direction to pay comes in Form VIIIIf the authority finds you entitled, it issues a notice in Form VIII to the employer specifying the amount and directing payment within thirty days of receipt, with a copy to you. Disposal is directed within six months, extendable by three for reasons recorded in writing.
- 7Then an appeal, within sixty daysAn appeal against the authority's order lies to the appropriate Government or the appellate authority it notifies, within sixty days of receipt, extendable by a further sixty for sufficient cause. An employer appealing must first deposit the amount or produce the authority's certificate that it has been deposited — which materially reduces the incentive to appeal simply for delay. Where an appeal changes the amount, a fresh Form VIII issues and the employer has fifteen days.
- 8And if the employer still does not pay: Form IXWhere the employer ignores the Form VIII direction, you apply to the competent authority in duplicate in Form IX for recovery under section 129 of the Code. This is the end of the road that most guidance never mentions exists, and it is the step that turns an order into money.
The complete form chain, end to end — Central-sphere establishments
Check which rules apply to your employer.Forms IV, V, VI and IX and their 15-day and 180-day deadlines are the procedure under the Social Security (Central) Rules 2026, for establishments where the Central Government is the appropriate government. In the State sphere, use your State's rules, notified forms and competent authority — do not file Central Form VI by default. The Code's duties to determine the amount, pay within 30 days and pay interest apply either way.
Almost every page on this subject stops at “apply to your employer, then go to the authority”. The rules actually prescribe seven numbered forms, and each one is triggered by a specific failure of the one before it. Knowing which form you are owed next is the difference between a claim that moves and one that sits.
Rule 33 sets out the whole sequence for establishments where the Central Government is the appropriate government. Forms IV, VI and IX are yours to file; V, VII and VIII come to you. State-sphere employers follow their State's rules.
- You fileForm IV — your application to the employerWithin 30 days of gratuity becoming payable (legal heir: one year). By hand, speed post with registration, or electronically.
A late application must still be entertained if you show sufficient cause — and under s.56(2) the employer must determine the amount and notify it whether or not you apply at all.
- Employer sendsForm V — the employer's answerWithin 15 days. Either admits the claim, stating the amount and a payment date no later than the 30th day after receipt, or rejects it with reasons — copy to the competent authority.
- Employer refuses your applicationOr refuses to accept a nomination.Form V under-states or rejectsThe amount is less than you say is payable, or eligibility is denied.No Form V at allThe 15 days passed in silence.
Any one of these three opens the next step. Silence counts — you do not have to wait for a refusal.
- You file · 180 daysForm VI — application for direction to the competent authorityWithin 180 days of that cause arising, with a copy to the employer. This is the deadline that decides whether the claim survives.
- Authority sendsForm VII — notice to appearBoth sides called to a hearing with documents and witnesses. Attendance may be in person, by representative, or virtual.
If the employer does not turn up without sufficient cause, the authority may decide the matter ex parte. Disposal is directed within six months, extendable by three.
- Authority sendsForm VIII — the direction to paySpecifies the amount and orders the employer to pay within 30 days of receiving it (15 days where an appeal has modified the amount).
- You fileForm IX — application for recoveryFiled in duplicate where the employer ignores the Form VIII direction. Recovery then proceeds under section 129 of the Code.
Read from the Gazette text of G.S.R. 344(E) itself. Several widely-shared summaries get this wrong — one has the employee applying in Form VI, another has Form VII going to the authority. Rule 33 is set out above as it reads.
| Your situation | Form | Filed by | Filed with | When | What happens next |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| You are leaving, or have left, and want your gratuity | Form IV | You / nominee / legal heir | Your employer | 30 days from it becoming payable; legal heir 1 year; late allowed for sufficient cause | Employer must answer in Form V within 15 days |
| You want to record who receives it if you die | Form III | You | Your employer, in duplicate | On completing one year of service | Held on your record; can be modified later |
| Employer ignored your application, underpaid, or rejected it | Form VI | You / nominee / legal heir | The competent authority, copy to the employer | Within 180 days of that refusal, under-payment or silence | Authority issues Form VII calling both sides to a hearing |
| The authority has ordered payment and the employer still has not paid | Form IX | You / nominee / legal heir | The competent authority, in duplicate | After the 30 days in the Form VIII direction expire | Recovery proceeds under section 129 of the Code |
In the Central sphere, the 180 days is the one to diarise. It does not run from your last working day. It runs from the moment the employer refused, under-stated the amount, or let the fifteen days for Form V pass in silence. People spend six months exchanging emails with HR and discover the window closed while they were being polite. The authority can accept a late application on sufficient cause shown, but that is a discretion to ask for, not a right to rely on.
What changed, so you can spot outdated advice
| Item | Before | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Governing statute | Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972 | Code on Social Security, 2020 (from 21 Nov 2025) |
| Subordinate rules (Central sphere) | Payment of Gratuity (Central) Rules, 1972 | Social Security (Central) Rules, 2026 (from 8 May 2026); State-sphere establishments follow State rules, with State rules under the 1972 Act continuing until replaced (s.164) |
| Employee's application | Form I | Form IV |
| Employer's notice | Form L | Form V |
| Nomination | Form F | Form III |
| The forum | Controlling authority | Competent authority (s.58) |
| Application to the forum | Form N | Form VI (rule 33(4)), within 180 days |
| Authority's notice to appear | — | Form VII |
| Authority's direction to pay | — | Form VIII — employer pays within 30 days |
| Recovery when the direction is ignored | — | Form IX, in duplicate (s.129) |
Which framework governs your claim is decided by your exit date, not by when you file. An exit before 21 November 2025 ran under the Payment of Gratuity Act and the controlling authority; an exit on or after it runs wholly under the Code. If you left before that date and are only now claiming, take advice on which route and which form applies to you, because the transition is exactly the kind of thing an employer will use to send you to the wrong place. A dash in the “before” column means we have not restated the repealed rules' form number for that step rather than that none existed — the current column is what you need, and it is the column we have verified against the notification.
Interest on late gratuity
Interest is not discretionary
Where gratuity is not paid within the thirty days, section 56 requires the employer to pay simple intereston it, from the date it became payable until the date it is paid, at a rate “not exceeding the rate notified by the Central Government from time to time for repayment of long term deposits” (section 56(4)). The single exception is where the delay is due to the employee's own fault andthe employer has obtained the competent authority's written permission on that ground. Both limbs have to be satisfied, and the second one almost never is.
The ten per cent per annum quoted across the internet was notified in 1987 under section 7(3A) of the Payment of Gratuity Act 1972. Notifications made under that Act continue under the Code until they are replaced, to the extent they are consistent with it (section 164(2)(a)) — and the Code now frames the notified rate as a ceiling.
So claim interest in the section's own words: simple interest from the date the gratuity became payable, at the rate notified under section 56(4). The letters in the generator above do exactly that. When you are quantifying a claim rather than making a demand, ask the competent authority's office for the rate it applies, and put that figure in your application — Form VI in the Central sphere.
The provision employers do not expect you to know
The most common shape of a gratuity dispute is not outright refusal. It is a partial disagreement — about the wage figure used, about whether a part-year counts, about whether the establishment is covered — followed by the whole amount being held while the disagreement is unresolved.
Section 56(5) does not permit that. Where there is a dispute as to the amount payable or as to the admissibility of a claim, the employer shall deposit with the competent authority such amount as it admits to be payable. The disputed portion goes to the authority to determine; the admitted portion is deposited rather than sat on.
Use it in the reminder, not in the application.Asking “what amount has been deposited with the competent authority, and with which authority?” is a question with only two answers, and one of them is an admission. It is in the reminder letter in the generator above for that reason.
Where this sits in your exit
Seven things happen when you leave a job in India, and they fall due in this order — not the order most people expect. Your final wages are due before your relieving letter, and both are due before the rest of the settlement.
- Already due
Resignation submitted
Day 0Contract / policy
The day your letter is delivered and acknowledged
- Already due
Last working day
End of noticeContract / policy
Notice period in your appointment letter, less any waiver
- Already due
Final wages paid
2 working daysStatutory
Your last working day
- Already due
Relieving and experience letters
10 daysConditional
Your last working day
- This page
Gratuity paid
30 daysStatutory
The date the gratuity becomes payable
- Still ahead
Rest of the settlement
Policy, often 30–45 daysContract / policy
Your last working day
- Still ahead
PF withdrawn or transferred
Your own timingYou control this
Your exit date being reported — by the employer, or by you after two months
- Already due
Resignation submitted
Day 0Contract / policy
An acknowledgement proves the letter was received and fixes when notice started. It is not itself the trigger for the statutory payment deadlines — those run from your last working day.
From: The day your letter is delivered and acknowledged
Write my resignation letter - Already due
Last working day
End of noticeContract / policy
Your notice period comes from your contract, not from statute. The date it lands on decides your service length, your final month's salary and your leave balance.
From: Notice period in your appointment letter, less any waiver
Work out my last working day - Already due
Final wages paid
2 working daysStatutory
Wages for the days you actually worked. This is the shortest deadline in the whole exit and the one employers most often miss.
From: Your last working day
Chase unpaid wages - Already due
Relieving and experience letters
10 daysConditional
A service certificate is due within ten days where the Model Standing Orders apply to your establishment and you are a worker rather than a manager or a supervisor on more than ₹18,000 a month. Outside that, the relieving letter is a contract and policy question, not a statutory one.
From: Your last working day
Request my relieving letter - This page
Gratuity paid
30 daysStatutory
The employer must determine the amount, notify you and the competent authority, and pay within thirty days — with simple interest running if it is late.
From: The date the gratuity becomes payable
Gratuity not paid - Still ahead
Rest of the settlement
Policy, often 30–45 daysContract / policy
Leave encashment, bonus, reimbursements and any notice adjustment. These run on your contract and your employer's policy, which is why a blanket “two working days” demand for the whole settlement is easy to deflect.
From: Your last working day
Settlement not received - Still ahead
PF withdrawn or transferred
Your own timingYou control this
Your PF sits with the EPFO, not your employer, so it is never part of the settlement. Your employer should report your date of exit, but if it does not, you can mark it yourself on the member portal once two months have passed since the last contribution.
From: Your exit date being reported — by the employer, or by you after two months
PF claim stuck or rejected
- Resignation submitted
- An acknowledgement proves the letter was received and fixes when notice started. It is not itself the trigger for the statutory payment deadlines — those run from your last working day. Write my resignation letter →
- Last working day
- Your notice period comes from your contract, not from statute. The date it lands on decides your service length, your final month's salary and your leave balance. Work out my last working day →
- Final wages paid
- Wages for the days you actually worked. This is the shortest deadline in the whole exit and the one employers most often miss. Chase unpaid wages →
- Relieving and experience letters
- A service certificate is due within ten days where the Model Standing Orders apply to your establishment and you are a worker rather than a manager or a supervisor on more than ₹18,000 a month. Outside that, the relieving letter is a contract and policy question, not a statutory one. Request my relieving letter →
- Gratuity paidThis page
- The employer must determine the amount, notify you and the competent authority, and pay within thirty days — with simple interest running if it is late. Gratuity not paid →
- Rest of the settlement
- Leave encashment, bonus, reimbursements and any notice adjustment. These run on your contract and your employer's policy, which is why a blanket “two working days” demand for the whole settlement is easy to deflect. Settlement not received →
- PF withdrawn or transferred
- Your PF sits with the EPFO, not your employer, so it is never part of the settlement. Your employer should report your date of exit, but if it does not, you can mark it yourself on the member portal once two months have passed since the last contribution. PF claim stuck or rejected →
Reading the badges. A statutory deadline is written into the Code and applies whatever your contract says. A conditional one applies only where your establishment meets a threshold — the ten-day service certificate, for instance, comes from standing orders that reach establishments of three hundred or more workers. A contract / policydeadline exists only because your appointment letter or your employer's policy created it, which is where most of the exit actually lives. And you control this marks the step nobody else has to take for you — the provident fund, where you can mark your own date of exit if your employer has not.
Frequently asked questions
My employer has not paid my gratuity. What is the deadline they have missed?+
Do I have to apply for gratuity, or does the employer have to pay it automatically?+
Is Form I still the form for claiming gratuity?+
Which form do I file if my employer has ignored my gratuity request?+
What is the deadline to take a gratuity claim to the authority?+
The authority ordered my employer to pay and they still have not. Now what?+
Do I complain to the controlling authority or the competent authority?+
Does interest run on gratuity that is paid late?+
What if my employer disputes part of my gratuity but not all of it?+
How long does a gratuity claim before the competent authority take?+
My employer says gratuity is not payable because I resigned. Is that right?+
Next
What to do next
- 1
Settle eligibility and the amount before you write
A claim with a figure and a basis behind it is answered; a claim without one becomes a conversation about whether gratuity is due at all.
Gratuity eligibility checker - 2
Send the written application — Form IV in the Central sphere, your State's form otherwise — by speed post as well as email
The postal receipt is a third-party record of the date. Email alone is fine until the employer says it never arrived.
- 3
Chase the rest of the settlement separately
Gratuity has its own deadline, its own forum and its own interest provision. Bundling it into a general settlement chase throws all three away.
Settlement not received - 4
If it goes to the authority, get the forum right first
Gratuity, wages and termination disputes go to three different places with three different limitation periods.
Which forum, and what it can do
Sources for the figures on this page
Whether the Central or a State Government's gratuity rules, forms and competent authority apply to an establishment
Code on Social Security 2020, s.2(3) — the Central Government is the appropriate Government for an establishment carried on by or under its authority; railways (including metro railways), mines, oil fields, major ports, air transport services, telecommunication, banking and insurance companies; corporations or authorities established by a Central Act; central public sector undertakings and their subsidiaries; autonomous bodies owned or controlled by it; companies in which it holds at least 51% of the paid-up share capital; contractors for those establishments; and an establishment having departments or branches in more than one State. For any other establishment it is the State Government. s.164(2)(a) — rules, notifications and forms made under the repealed enactments, including the Payment of Gratuity Act 1972, are deemed made under the corresponding provisions of the Code and continue in force to the extent they are not contrary to it, until repealed. The Social Security (Central) Rules 2026 (G.S.R. 344(E)) are made by the Central Government.
View sourceChecked 2026-09-14
Rules that now govern gratuity procedure — they repealed the Payment of Gratuity (Central) Rules, 1972
Ministry of Labour & Employment, Social Security (Central) Rules, 2026, notification G.S.R. 344(E) dated 8 May 2026, made under the Code on Social Security 2020. The notification repealed twelve sets of subordinate rules under the previous regime, including the Payment of Gratuity (Central) Rules, 1972.
View sourceChecked 2026-09-01
Nomination, fresh nomination or modification of nomination
Social Security (Central) Rules, 2026, notified as G.S.R. 344(E) on 8 May 2026 — read from the Gazette of India text of the notification itself. Rule 32(1) — a nomination shall be in Form III, submitted in duplicate to the employer by personal service against receipt, by speed post (with registration), or electronically.
View sourceChecked 2026-09-01
Form an employee uses to apply to the employer for gratuity, and the thirty days allowed to send it
Social Security (Central) Rules, 2026 — Form IV is the application for gratuity by an employee, nominee or legal heir, ordinarily sent within thirty days from the date the gratuity becomes payable, by personal service or speed post. A legal heir has one year. An application sent late must still be considered where sufficient cause for the delay is shown, and under section 56(2) of the Code the employer's duty to determine the amount and give notice of it arises whether or not any application is made. This replaces Form I under the repealed Payment of Gratuity (Central) Rules, 1972.
View sourceChecked 2026-09-01
Form in which the employer must admit or reject a gratuity claim, and the fifteen days allowed to issue it
Social Security (Central) Rules, 2026 — the employer issues a notice in Form V within fifteen days of receiving an application for gratuity, either accepting the claim and specifying the amount and the date of payment, or rejecting it with reasons. This replaces Form L under the repealed Payment of Gratuity (Central) Rules, 1972. A written rejection is the document a competent authority will want to see.
View sourceChecked 2026-09-01
Application for direction before the competent authority — the form to file when the employer refuses, underpays or goes silent
Social Security (Central) Rules, 2026, notified as G.S.R. 344(E) on 8 May 2026 — read from the Gazette of India text of the notification itself. Rule 33(4)(a) — where the employer (i) refuses to accept a nomination or to entertain an application for gratuity, or (ii) issues a Form V notice specifying an amount the applicant considers less than what is payable, or rejecting eligibility, or (iii) having received an application, fails to issue the Form V notice within the time allowed, the claimant may apply in Form VI to the competent authority for a direction under section 56(5) of the Code, with a copy to the opposite party. Rule 33(4)(b): presented in person, by speed post (with registration), or electronically. Printed title: "Application for Direction Before the Competent Authority for Chapter V under the Code on Social Security, 2020".
View sourceChecked 2026-09-01
Days within which the Form VI application to the competent authority must be filed
Social Security (Central) Rules, 2026, notified as G.S.R. 344(E) on 8 May 2026 — read from the Gazette of India text of the notification itself. Rule 33(4)(a) — within one hundred eighty days of the occurrence of the cause for the application. The proviso allows the competent authority to accept a later application on sufficient cause being shown. This is the deadline that decides whether a gratuity claim survives, and it runs from the employer's refusal, under-payment or failure to respond — not from your last working day.
View sourceChecked 2026-09-01
Notice for appearance before the competent authority (issued to you, not by you)
Social Security (Central) Rules, 2026, notified as G.S.R. 344(E) on 8 May 2026 — read from the Gazette of India text of the notification itself. Rule 33(5)(a) — on receiving a Form VI application the competent authority issues a notice in Form VII, electronically, by speed post with acknowledgment due, or in person, calling both the applicant and the employer to appear on a specified date with all relevant documents and witnesses. Appearance may be in person, through an authorised representative, or by virtual mode.
View sourceChecked 2026-09-01
The competent authority's direction to the employer to pay
Social Security (Central) Rules, 2026, notified as G.S.R. 344(E) on 8 May 2026 — read from the Gazette of India text of the notification itself. Rule 33(11) — where the authority finds the applicant entitled, it issues a notice in Form VIII to the employer specifying the amount payable and directing payment within thirty days of the employer receiving it, with a copy endorsed to the applicant. Rule 33(12)(h): where an appeal changes the amount, a fresh Form VIII issues and the employer must pay within fifteen days.
View sourceChecked 2026-09-01
Application for recovery, where the employer ignores the authority's direction
Social Security (Central) Rules, 2026, notified as G.S.R. 344(E) on 8 May 2026 — read from the Gazette of India text of the notification itself. Rule 33(13) — where an employer fails to pay the gratuity due in accordance with the competent authority's notice under rule 33(11) or 33(12), the employee, nominee or legal heir may apply to the competent authority in duplicate in Form IX for recovery under section 129 of the Code on Social Security, 2020. Printed title: "Application for Recovery of Gratuity".
View sourceChecked 2026-09-01
Can the competent authority decide without the employer, if the employer does not turn up?
Social Security (Central) Rules, 2026, notified as G.S.R. 344(E) on 8 May 2026 — read from the Gazette of India text of the notification itself. Rule 33(5)(e) — if the employer fails to appear on the specified hearing date after due service of notice, without sufficient cause, the competent authority may proceed to hear and determine the application ex parte. If the applicant fails to appear without sufficient cause the application may be dismissed, though such an order may be reviewed on good cause shown within thirty days.
View sourceChecked 2026-09-01
Who the competent authority for gratuity actually is
Social Security (Central) Rules, 2026, notified as G.S.R. 344(E) on 8 May 2026 — read from the Gazette of India text of the notification itself. Rule 34 — the competent authority shall be appointed by the Central Government, by notification, from its gazetted officers having experience in labour matters.
View sourceChecked 2026-09-01
Days within which an employer must pay gratuity once it becomes payable
Code on Social Security 2020, s.56(3) — the employer shall arrange to pay the amount of gratuity within thirty days from the date it becomes payable to the person to whom it is payable.
View sourceChecked 2026-09-01
Interest an employer owes on gratuity paid after the thirty days
Code on Social Security 2020, s.56(4) — where gratuity is not paid within the thirty days, the employer shall pay simple interest on it from the date it became payable to the date it is paid, "at such rate, not exceeding the rate notified by the Central Government from time to time for repayment of long term deposits". No interest is payable where the delay is due to the employee's own fault AND the employer has obtained the competent authority's written permission on that ground. NOT VERIFIED: whether a fresh rate has been notified under the Code. The 10% per annum figure widely quoted online comes from a 1987 notification under the now-repealed Payment of Gratuity Act 1972, so these pages do not state a rate.
View sourceChecked 2026-09-01
What an employer must do with the part of a gratuity claim it does not dispute
Code on Social Security 2020, s.56(5) — where there is a dispute as to the amount of gratuity payable, or as to the admissibility of any claim, the employer shall deposit with the competent authority such amount as he admits to be payable. Either party may then apply to the competent authority for the dispute to be determined; the authority inquires with the powers of a civil court under the Code of Civil Procedure 1908 and, after finding the amount, directs the employer to pay it.
View sourceChecked 2026-09-01
Days to appeal a competent authority's gratuity order, extendable by a further sixty
Code on Social Security 2020, s.56 — an appeal against an order of the competent authority lies to the appropriate Government or the appellate authority it notifies, within sixty days of receipt of the order, extendable by a further sixty days for sufficient cause. An employer appealing must first deposit the amount, or produce the competent authority's certificate that it has been deposited.
View sourceChecked 2026-09-01
Forum for a gratuity dispute, for an exit on or after 21 November 2025 — the competent authority, not the controlling authority
Code on Social Security 2020, s.56 (determination of amount of gratuity: employer must determine and notify the employee and the competent authority, pay within thirty days, pay simple interest on delay; disputes determined by the competent authority; appeal within sixty days, extendable by sixty) read with s.58 (appointment of the competent authority by the appropriate Government). For exits before 21 November 2025 the equivalent route was the controlling authority under the Payment of Gratuity Act 1972.
View sourceChecked 2026-08-14
Written and reviewed by Deepak Middha, Chartered Accountant (ICAI, India) and founder of LayoffNext.
Deepak Middha is the founder of LayoffNext and a Chartered Accountant (ICAI, India). A U.S. immigrant with nearly 20 years of experience — and 17 years in hedge fund and private equity administration, including as Vice President of Fund Accounting at NAV Fund Administration Group and Associate Director of Private Equity and Real Estate at SS&C Technologies — he builds free, plain-language layoff tools and guides for employees, H-1B workers, and immigrant families.