Services we provide under the Act
With regard to “The Karnataka Shops and Commercial Establishments Act, 1961” we provide the following services:
- Applying for Shops and Establishment Registration and obtaining the Registration Certificate
- Renewal of Shops and Establishment Registration License
- Amendment in Shops and Establishment Registration
- Filing of Shops and Establishment Form U — Annual Returns
- Applying for exemption on weekly holiday for Shops and Establishments
- Applying for exemption for women working in night shift
Who must register, and how
Objective of the Karnataka Shops and Commercial Establishments Act, 1961: Every shop or establishment (whether a Proprietorship, Firm, Private Limited Company, OPC, etc.) carrying on trade, business or services within the notified areas of the State of Karnataka shall compulsorily register its establishment under this Act within 30 days from the commencement of business.
Mode of applying for registration: The State Government has made it mandatory to use “e-Karmika” to obtain a new registration certificate and seek renewal of the existing ones. Applications and the stipulated fee for new registration and renewal shall be made through the e-Karmika portal. Once the necessary fee payment is made, the verification process will commence, and the certificate will typically be issued within 15 working days, subject to verification by the Labour Inspector.
Shop, Commercial Establishment & Employee
How do I decide whether my premises is a Shop or a Commercial Establishment? And who is an Employee?
Shop
A Shop shall mean any premises where any trade or business is carried on or where services are rendered to customers, and includes offices, storerooms, godowns, or warehouses, whether in the same premises or otherwise, used in connection with such trade or business, but does not include a commercial establishment or a shop attached to a factory where the persons employed in the shop fall within the scope of the Factories Act, 1948.
Commercial Establishment
A Commercial Establishment shall mean a commercial or trading or banking or insurance establishment, an establishment or administrative service in which the persons employed are mainly engaged in office work, a hotel, restaurant, boarding or eating house, a café or any other refreshment house, a theatre or any other place of public amusement or entertainment, and includes such establishments as the State Government may by notification declare to be a commercial establishment for the purpose of this Act.
Employee
Employee means a person wholly or principally employed in or in connection with any establishment, whether working on permanent, periodical, contract or piece-rate wages or on commission basis, even though he receives no reward for his labour, and includes an apprentice.
Documents & information for registration
Documents required for Shops & Establishment Registration:
- Business Constitution Document (for example Partnership Deed / Incorporation Certificate, MoA / AoA)
- Identity proof of the Proprietor / Partner / Director / Authorised Signatory — Passport / Voter's ID / Aadhaar Card / Driving Licence
- PAN Card copy
- Authorisation letter
- Declaration of non-appointment of child labour
- Address proof of the entity — rental agreement along with electricity bill (or property tax paid receipt if the property is owned)
- Duly filled registration form signed by owner / authorised signatory
Apart from the above documents, the following information is required:
- Mobile number
- E-mail ID
- Total number of employees, with separate male and female counts
- Nature of business
- Date of commencement of business
Organisations exempted from registration
The following organisations are exempted from registration:
- Offices of, or under, the Central or State Government, or local authorities, except commercial undertakings.
- Any railway service, water transport service, postal, telegraph or telephone service, any system of public conservation or sanitation, or any industry or services like water, power, light to the public.
- Railway dining cars.
- Establishments for the treatment or care of the sick, infirm, or persons with disabilities (as per Section 3(d) of the Act).
- Establishments of the Food Corporation of India.
- Offices of legal practitioners and medical practitioners in which not more than 3 persons are employed.
- Offices of a banking company (as defined under the Banking Regulation Act, 1949), as per Section 3(f) of the Act.
Fee schedule by employee count
| No. of Employees | Fees (Rs.) |
|---|---|
| No Employees | 300/- |
| 1 to 9 Employees | 600/- |
| 10 to 19 Employees | 4,000/- |
| 20 to 49 Employees | 10,000/- |
| 50 to 99 Employees | 20,000/- |
| 100 to 250 Employees | 40,000/- |
| 251 to 500 Employees | 70,000/- |
| 501 to 1000 Employees | 70,000/- |
| Above 1000 Employees | 75,000/- |
Duties of the shop / establishment
Other Relevant and Important Provisions of The Karnataka Shops and Commercial Establishments Act, 1961.
- The registration certificate must be displayed in a visible place inside the office premises.
- Display of Name Board in Kannada along with English.
- Registration certificate is valid for 5 years. The renewal application must be submitted at least 90 days before the date of expiry through the e-Karmika portal, failing which penalties may apply.
- It shall be the duty of an employer to notify the registration authority, in the prescribed form, any change with respect to any information contained in his statement during registration / renewal within 15 days after the change — e.g. change in address, change in ownership, change in number of employees, etc.
- After closing the business of his establishment, the employer should surrender the registration certificate to the registration authority.
- Weekly holiday: Every establishment shall remain closed for one day of the week. The employer shall fix such a day at the beginning of the year and notify it to the registration authority, and specify it in a notice prominently displayed in a conspicuous place inside the establishment.
Instruction: Any employer claiming exemption from the weekly holiday shall fix different days as a holiday for his establishment and shall obtain the weekly-holiday relaxation by submitting a report to the Deputy Labour Commissioner.
The following establishments are exempted from weekly holiday:
- Medicine and Medical equipment sale.
- Club, Lodging and Hotel, Hostel, Hostel attached to school or college, Residential schools.
- Shops, Stalls and refreshment rooms at the bus stand and railway station.
- Haircutting salon.
- Shops dealing mainly in Meat, Fish, Egg, Milk and Dairy product (except ghee), Bread, Chocolate, Fresh ingredients, Confectionery, Ice cream and cooked food for sale, Fruits, Vegetables, Flowers, raw fodder sales.
- Pan Masala, Beedi, Cigarette, Soft drink sales shop.
- Daily newspaper and weekly magazine sales shops and related offices.
- Cinema, Theatre, and other public recreation centers.
- Petrol, Diesel for sale.
- Tanneries.
- Exhibition Shops and Museum.
- Oil, Flour mill, Brick and Lime manufacturing industries.
- Copper, Brass, Container, Manufacturing firms.
- Information / Biotechnology information / Biological engineering related service.
- Organisations conducting research on infectious diseases.
- Annual report for the year ending 31st December shall be submitted before 31st January of the following year in Form ‘U’.
- Maintenance of relevant registers, records and documents as required by the Act and the rules made thereunder.
- Adherence to working hours: Any establishment shall not run its business before and after the following hours.
- In Bangalore city — morning before 6 am and night after 9 pm.
- Other places — morning before 8 am and night after 8 pm.
Note: These restrictions apply to establishments not covered under the Karnataka Government Notification dated 27th September 2024. Establishments employing 10 or more persons may operate 24×7 for a period of 3 years subject to the prescribed conditions in the said Notification.
- Prohibitions and exemptions of work: No child under 14 years shall be required or allowed to work in any establishment. As per the Karnataka Government Notification dated 27th September 2024, women employees in any establishment employing 10 or more persons may now work between 8 PM and 6 AM with their written consent, provided the employer ensures adequate safety measures and transportation. IT / BT establishments not covered by the 2024 Notification continue to obtain permission via Form ‘R’ under the earlier framework.
- Shops and establishments shall adhere to the employees’ rights granted under this statute or any other applicable labour laws.
Talk to a partner.
A 30-minute call with a partner — no deck, no follow-up email blasts. Just a read on whether we’re the right team to handle your Karnataka Shops & Establishment registration.