On August 28th, 2025 the Department of Legal and Legislative Affairs, Punjab (“DPLA Punjab”) has issued notification amending the Shops and Establishment Act, 1958 (“Act”) through Punjab Shops and Commercial Establishments (Amendment) Act, 2025 (“Amendment”). The Amendment intends to simplify compliance for businesses and clarify registration, working hours, and penalty provisions, bringing relief to shop owners and employers in the state.
The Following important changes has been introduced in the Amendment Act:
| Particulars | Pre Amendment | Post Amendment |
| Applicability of the Act | All the Shops and Establishment had to follow the entire Act | The entire Act is applicable to shops and establishments with 20 or more employees. |
| Registration |
Employers with 20 or more employees had to register within 30 days of opening their business. Employers with less than 20 employees are required to notify the Inspector of the start of their operations in prescribed way within 30 days of opening their business. Earlier, there was no deemed grant if there was delay in registration by designated Inspector. |
Employers with 20 or more employees are now required to register within 6 months of opening their business. Employers with less than 20 employees are required to notify the Inspector of the start of their operations in a prescribed way within 6 months of opening their business. Upon receiving the application, the designated Inspector must issue the registration within 24 hours. If not issued within this time frame it will deemed to have granted. |
| Working hours |
Working Hours (Section 7): 9 hours Total Spread of Work (Section 8): 10 Hours Overtime Threshold (Section 7(2)(a)): 50 Hours/month |
Working Hours (Section 7): 10 hours Total Spread of Work (Section 8): 12 Hours Overtime Threshold (Section 7(2)(a)): 144 Hours/month |
| Penalty | Earlier, the penalty ranged from INR 50 to INR 200 only |
Now, in case of any contravention or failure to comply with the provisions of Section 6 of the Act, the employer shall be liable as under: i. for the first offence, a fine of minimum INR 1,000, and maximum of INR 25,000; and ii. For the second offence, such fine may range between minimum INR 5,000 to maximum INR 50,000. For general contraventions under the Act, the employer shall be liable as under: i. First offence: Fine between INR 500 and INR 2,000; and ii. Subsequent offence: Fine between INR 3,000 and INR 30,000. |
| Note: A second offence is one committed within 3 months of the first. If over 1 year, it is treated as a new first offence. | ||
Source: The Punjab Shops and Commercial Establishments (Amendment) Act, 2025, Notification No. S.O. 282/C.A.1/1894/S.48/ C.A.30/ 2013/Ss.93 and 114/C.A.10/1897/ S.6/2025 dated 28.08.2025
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