Payroll for startups
Payroll software for startups, set up right from the first hire
Early payroll decisions stick. The salary structure in your first offer letter becomes the template for the next fifty, and an increment recorded carelessly today is hard to explain in a due-diligence review later. Swastik Payroll gives a small team structure, history and access control from the start.
The problem
Payroll habits that cause trouble at 40 people
None of these hurt at five employees. All of them get expensive once the team, and the questions from investors and auditors, grow.
A different structure for every offer
One hire has a 40% basic, another 60%, a third a single "consolidated" figure. PF, gratuity and tax planning then work differently for people doing the same job.
Revisions with no trail
Increments are agreed on a call and typed into a sheet. Six months later nobody can say when a salary changed or what was paid before.
Salary data open to everyone in the founders' drive
When the first HR or operations hire joins, they need attendance and leave, not necessarily everyone's pay. A shared spreadsheet cannot tell the difference.
Data your internal tools can't reach
Headcount dashboards, finance models and in-house HR tools end up fed by manual exports that go stale the week after.
How Swastik Payroll handles it
Structure and control that grow with the team
Design the salary structure once
Build reusable components: HRA as a percentage of base salary, a fixed special allowance, PF as a deduction. Mark each as earning or deduction and taxable or not, then apply it to every new hire.
Record revisions as versions
A raise or promotion creates a new salary version with its effective month and year. Earlier versions never change, so payroll for past months stays accurate.
Put the leave policy in the system
Casual, sick, earned, maternity, paternity and unpaid leave. Casual leave accrues on the 1st of each month and carries forward. People apply online and managers approve.
Hand over access as HR grows
Super admin for founders, staff users for HR and managers with separate rights to view, manage or approve salary and attendance, and employee logins for payslips and leave.
REST API
JWT-secured endpoints for employees, salary, attendance and reports, for your own dashboards and tools.
Mobile punch for hybrid teams
Enable phone-browser punching per employee. GPS location is recorded and each punch waits for approval.
Audit log and locked months
Changes are logged with who made them, and approved months can be locked so they cannot be edited.
Example
A sample revision history, and why it matters
This illustration uses sample figures. The startup's structure is: base salary, HRA at 40% of base, and a special allowance at 20% of base (set up as a percentage, it scales with every revision).
When the September 2026 salary is calculated, version 2 applies, because version 3 only takes effect from October. Nothing about September has to be re-entered or protected by hand.
The same structure raises a PF decision. On a ₹36,000 base, 12% PF on the full base is ₹4,320 a month. Many employers restrict PF to the ₹15,000 wage ceiling instead, which gives 12% × ₹15,000 = ₹1,800; you can set this up as a fixed-amount component. Contributions above the ceiling are optional for the employer.
| Sample version | Base | HRA 40% | Special 20% | Monthly gross |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| v1 · Jan 2025 · joined | 30,000 | 12,000 | 6,000 | 48,000 |
| v2 · Apr 2026 · increment | 36,000 | 14,400 | 7,200 | 57,600 |
| v3 · Oct 2026 · promotion | 45,000 | 18,000 | 9,000 | 72,000 |
Compliance note
PF, ESIC, the labour codes and TDS for young companies
PF below 20 employees
EPF is mandatory once you employ 20 people. Below that, voluntary coverage is possible, and some startups choose it early because candidates expect PF. Once covered, you generally stay covered.
ESIC with higher salaries
ESIC applies to notified establishments with 10 or more employees (20 in some states), but only employees with gross wages up to ₹21,000 contribute. In a startup that may be a handful of support or junior roles.
The 50% wages rule
The labour codes came into force on 21 November 2025. Under the Code on Wages, if excluded allowances exceed 50% of total pay, the excess is added back to "wages", which affects PF and gratuity. Rules are still being notified, so review low-basic structures with your adviser.
TDS stays with you
Swastik Payroll records TDS as a deduction on the payslip and payroll report. It does not compute income tax or produce TDS returns. Estimate it with the free salary TDS calculator or your CA.
FAQ
Startup payroll questions
Is it overkill for a team of eight?
The set-up work is small at eight people: one salary structure, a leave policy and a few profiles. Doing it now means the fortieth hire gets the same structure as the first without anyone rebuilding a sheet.
Can a founder approve salaries while HR prepares them?
Yes. Salary moves from Draft to Calculated to Approved to Paid. HR users can calculate and manage salaries without approve rights, and the founder approves and locks the month.
Can we pull payroll data into our own tools?
Yes, through the REST API secured with JWT tokens. It covers employees, salary, attendance and reports. The payroll report also exports to Excel or CSV with PF, ESI and TDS columns.
What happens to an employee's history when they leave?
Record a date of leaving on the profile. Their salary versions, monthly salary records and payslips remain available for final settlement and later reference.
Related
Salary Management
Structures, revisions, bonuses, loans and advances.
HR & Payroll Software
Employee records, attendance and payroll in one system.
Leave Management
Online requests, approvals and monthly accrual.
CTC to In-Hand Calculator
Annual CTC to monthly in-hand salary.
CTC vs Gross vs Net Salary
What each number includes.
Salary TDS Calculator
Monthly TDS under both regimes.
Design your salary structure with us in the demo
Bring your offer letter template and current headcount plan. We will set up components, a revision and your leave policy so you can see how they hold up as you hire.