What compliance obligations are triggered when a company crosses 20 employees in India?

Crossing certain headcount thresholds activates additional statutory obligations, and 20 employees is a key one: the Employees’ Provident Fund Act becomes applicable at 20 employees, as does the Payment of Bonus Act for establishments. Several obligations begin even earlier — ESI generally applies from 10 employees in covered areas, and the Gratuity Act, the Maternity Benefit Act, and the requirement for a POSH Internal Committee apply from 10 employees.

So as a company grows, compliance layers on in stages rather than all at once. By the time it reaches 20 employees, it typically needs PF registration and remittance, bonus compliance, ESI (if applicable), gratuity provisioning, maternity-benefit compliance, and a POSH committee, alongside state Shops and Establishments registration. Companies approaching these thresholds should prepare registrations in advance rather than scrambling after crossing them.