A compliance calendar template is the single most effective tool for an Indian business to avoid penalties that can exceed ₹5 lakh per violation. Yet most SMEs track deadlines on sticky notes, WhatsApp reminders, or a CA's memory - and then pay ₹100 per day per form when ROC filings are late, ₹50 per day when GST returns are late, and 25% damages on delayed PF contributions.
This article gives you a ready-to-use compliance calendar template for FY 2026-27, organized by law and deadline frequency. You will find every major statutory due date, the penalty for missing it, and a framework for building a calendar that scales as your business grows across states and regulators.
What Is a Compliance Calendar and Why Every Indian Business Needs One
A compliance calendar is a date-wise record of every statutory filing, payment, and renewal your business owes under Indian law. It covers central laws (GST, Income Tax, Companies Act, EPF, ESI), state laws (Professional Tax, Shops and Establishments, Labour Welfare Fund), and sector-specific regulations (FSSAI, Pollution Board consents, Factory Act).
Without one, you are relying on your CA or HR manager to remember 30+ deadlines across the year. Here is what that costs:
- ROC filing late penalty: ₹100 per day per form under Section 403 of the Companies Act, 2013 - with no cap. A 60-day delay on AOC-4 and MGT-7 alone costs ₹12,000.
- GST late fee: ₹50 per day (₹25 CGST + ₹25 SGST) for taxable returns under Section 47 of the CGST Act. Even nil returns carry ₹20 per day.
- PF damages: 5% to 25% of arrears plus 12% per annum interest under the EPF Act, 1952. A 4-month delay on a 50-employee payroll can cost ₹1.48 lakh in penalties alone.
- TDS late filing: ₹200 per day under Section 234E of the Income Tax Act, capped at the TDS amount. Incorrect returns attract ₹10,000 to ₹1,00,000 under Section 271H.
A compliance calendar template turns these scattered obligations into a single, predictable schedule. You see what is due, when, and what happens if you miss it - before the notice arrives.
Compliance Calendar Template: FY 2026-27 Deadlines by Law
Below is a structured template you can copy into a spreadsheet or compliance tool. Each section lists the law, the filing or payment, the due date, and the penalty for non-compliance.
GST Filings (Monthly and Annual)
Return | Frequency | Due Date | Late Penalty
GSTR-1 | Monthly | 11th of following month | ₹50/day (taxable), ₹20/day (nil)
GSTR-1 | Quarterly (QRMP) | 13th of month after quarter end | Same as above
GSTR-3B | Monthly | 20th of following month | ₹50/day (taxable), ₹20/day (nil)
GSTR-3B | Quarterly (Category X states) | 22nd of month after quarter end | Same as above
GSTR-3B | Quarterly (Category Y states) | 24th of month after quarter end | Same as above
GSTR-9/9C | Annual | 31st December of following FY | ₹200/day (₹100 CGST + ₹100 SGST)
Category X states (22nd deadline): Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka, Goa, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh. Category Y states (24th deadline): Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, and all Northeast states.
Interest under Section 50 of the GST Act applies separately from the late fee: 18% per annum on tax paid after the due date, 24% on excess ITC claimed or wrongful refund.
PF and ESI (Monthly Labour Compliance)
Obligation | Due Date | Late Penalty
PF ECR (Electronic Challan-cum-Return) | 15th of following month | Damages 5%-25% + 12% p.a. interest
ESI Contribution | 15th of following month | 12% p.a. interest + 5%-25% damages
PF annual return (Form 3A/6A) | 30th April | ₹5,000 per month of default
PF applies once you have 20 or more employees under the Employees' Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952. The contribution rate is 12% of basic wages from the employer and 12% from the employee (24% total). ESI applies at 10 or more employees in most states (20 in Maharashtra), with employer contribution at 3.25% and employee at 0.75% (4% total).
ROC and Companies Act Filings (Annual)
Form | Purpose | Due Date | Late Penalty
AOC-4 | Financial statements | 30 days post-AGM | ₹100/day, no cap
MGT-7/MGT-7A | Annual return | 60 days post-AGM | ₹100/day, no cap
DIR-3 KYC | Director verification | As per MCA notification | ₹5,000 fixed
DPT-3 | Deposit/loan returns | 30th June | Additional fees apply
The AGM must be held within 6 months of financial year end (by 30th September for companies with a 31st March year-end). AOC-4 is then due by 30th October, MGT-7 by 29th November.
Beyond the daily fee, Section 92(5) imposes a minimum fine of ₹50,000 (up to ₹5,00,000) for non-filing of the annual return. Section 137 allows fines up to ₹10,00,000 for non-filing of financial statements. Directors face disqualification under Section 164(2) and the ROC can initiate strike-off under Section 248.
Income Tax and TDS (Quarterly and Annual)
Obligation | Due Date | Late Penalty
TDS deposit | 7th of following month (7th of next month for March) | 1% per month interest (Sec 201)
TDS return (Form 24Q/26Q) | Quarterly: 31st July, 31st Oct, 31st Jan, 31st May | ₹200/day (Sec 234E), max = TDS amount
Advance tax | 15% by 15th June, 45% by 15th Sep, 75% by 15th Dec, 100% by 15th March | Interest under Sections 234B/234C
ITR filing (companies) | 31st October | ₹100/day under Section 234F
Form 16 issuance | 15th June | ₹100/day per employee (Sec 272A)
State-Level Compliance (Varies by State)
Obligation | Typical Due Date | Late Penalty
Professional Tax registration | Within 30 days of crossing threshold | ₹1,000-₹5,000 (state-specific)
Professional Tax return | Annual or half-yearly (state-specific) | 1.25%-2% per month interest
Shops and Establishments registration | Before commencing business | ₹1,000-₹25,000 (state-specific)
Labour Welfare Fund contribution | Half-yearly (June and December) | Varies by state
Pollution Board consent renewal (CTO) | Annually or every 5 years | ₹1,000-₹10,000 + prosecution risk
Sector-Specific Deadlines
- FSSAI: Licence renewal 30 days before expiry. Late renewal attracts a 2x fee. Operating without a valid licence invites penalties up to ₹5 lakh under Section 63 of the FSS Act, 2006.
- Factory Act: Annual return (Form 27) due by 31st January. Half-yearly return due by 31st July. Non-filing attracts ₹1,000-₹5,000 under the Factories Act, 1948.
- E-invoice: Mandatory for businesses with turnover above ₹5 crore (threshold revised by CBIC). Non-compliance attracts ₹10,000 per invoice plus 100% penalty on the tax amount.
How to Build Your Own Compliance Calendar: A Step-by-Step Framework
A template is only useful if it reflects your business. Here is a framework to build one that fits your specific obligations.
Step 1: List Every Law That Applies to Your Business
Start with your business profile - entity type, industry, number of employees, states of operation, and turnover. Each attribute triggers different laws:
- Entity type: Private limited company → Companies Act (ROC) filings. LLP → LLP Act filings. Partnership → Income Tax only.
- Turnover: GST registration mandatory above ₹20 lakh (services) or ₹40 lakh (goods). E-invoice above ₹5 crore.
- Employee count: PF at 20+, ESI at 10+ (20 in Maharashtra), Gratuity at 10+, PT from employee 1.
- Industry: Food business → FSSAI. Manufacturing → Factory Act + Pollution Board. E-commerce → Legal Metrology + Consumer Protection.
- State: Professional Tax, Shops and Establishments, Labour Welfare Fund rates and deadlines vary by state.
Step 2: Map Each Obligation to a Due Date and Owner
For every law you identified, record the specific form, the due date, the frequency, and the person responsible. Assign ownership - your CA, your HR manager, your finance team, or yourself. A deadline without an owner is a missed deadline.
Step 3: Set Reminders 7 and 3 Days Before Each Deadline
Filing on the due date is risky - portals go down, documents are incomplete, signatories are unavailable. Build a 7-day and 3-day pre-deadline reminder into your calendar. This buffer is the difference between filing on time and paying ₹100 per day per form.
Step 4: Review Quarterly for Regulatory Changes
Indian regulations change silently. A new notification can shift a due date, introduce a new form, or change a threshold. Review your calendar every quarter against official sources - the CBIC website for GST, the MCA portal for company law, the EPFO portal for PF, and your state labour department for Professional Tax and Shops and Establishments.
Step 5: Track Filing Confirmations and Acknowledgement Numbers
Every filing generates an acknowledgement number or receipt. Store these in your calendar alongside the deadline. If a notice arrives 18 months later questioning a filing, the acknowledgement number is your proof of compliance.
Where a Static Calendar Template Breaks Down
A spreadsheet or PDF calendar works for a business with 5-10 obligations in one state. But as you grow, the cracks appear:
- Multi-state operations: Professional Tax deadlines differ across states. A factory in Maharashtra, an office in Karnataka, and a warehouse in Gujarat means three PT registrations, three return cycles, and three penalty structures.
- Threshold crossings: The day you hire your 20th employee, PF becomes mandatory - retroactively. Your calendar needs to flag this automatically, not wait for your CA to notice.
- Regulatory changes: When the CBIC extends a GST due date by notification, or the EPFO revises the damage structure, a static calendar goes stale. You are now tracking the wrong deadline.
- Sector-specific additions: If you add a new product line that requires BIS certification, or expand into food processing triggering FSSAI, your calendar must absorb the new obligations without you rebuilding it.
This is where a compliance calendar template meets its limit. A template tells you what is due. It does not tell you what is newly applicable, what changed last week, or what your business qualifies for that you have not claimed.
How Compliance Radar Replaces Your Static Calendar
Compliance Radar takes the compliance calendar concept and makes it dynamic. Instead of maintaining a spreadsheet that goes stale, you describe your business once - entity type, industry, employee count, states, turnover - and Compliance Radar generates a complete timeline of every applicable compliance, every government scheme you qualify for, and real-time alerts when a regulation changes.
The difference is this: a template asks you to know your obligations in advance. Compliance Radar tells you what applies to you, even the ones you did not know about. It reconciles centre, state, municipal, and sector regulators into one timeline, so you are not cross-referencing four government portals to figure out what is due next week.
Check your compliance posture free at complianceradar.in - describe your business and get your complete compliance timeline in minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a compliance calendar?
A compliance calendar is a date-wise schedule of every statutory filing, payment, and renewal your business owes under Indian law. It covers GST, Income Tax, TDS, PF, ESI, ROC, Professional Tax, and sector-specific obligations like FSSAI and Pollution Board consents.
Is a compliance calendar mandatory for Indian businesses?
While no single law requires you to maintain a compliance calendar, every law it tracks is mandatory. The Companies Act, GST Act, EPF Act, and ESI Act all impose penalties for late filings. A compliance calendar is the practical tool that helps you meet these obligations on time.
How often should I update my compliance calendar?
Review your calendar quarterly at minimum. Indian regulations change through notifications and circulars that may not reach you directly. Also update whenever your business crosses a threshold - new employees, new state, new product line, or turnover change.
What is the penalty for late GST filing in 2026?
₹50 per day for taxable returns (₹25 CGST + ₹25 SGST) and ₹20 per day for nil returns, under Section 47 of the CGST Act. Interest at 18% per annum applies separately on unpaid tax under Section 50.
What is the penalty for late ROC filing?
₹100 per day per form under Section 403 of the Companies Act, 2013, with no maximum cap. Additional penalties under Section 92(5) range from ₹50,000 to ₹5,00,000 for non-filing of annual returns. Directors risk disqualification under Section 164(2).
When does PF registration become mandatory?
PF registration is mandatory when your business reaches 20 or more employees under the Employees' Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952. The threshold is 10 employees for ESI in most states (20 in Maharashtra).
Can I use a compliance calendar template for multiple states?
Yes, but you must account for state-specific variations. Professional Tax rates, Shops and Establishments deadlines, and Labour Welfare Fund contributions differ by state. A template covering one state will not capture obligations in another without manual updates.
How is Compliance Radar different from a compliance calendar template?
A template is static - you must know your obligations and update it manually. Compliance Radar generates your compliance timeline automatically based on your business profile, tracks regulatory changes in real time, and alerts you when a new rule applies to you. It also identifies government schemes you qualify for but may not know about.
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Build your compliance calendar once and keep it current - or let Compliance Radar do it for you. Describe your business at complianceradar.in and get your complete compliance timeline, including every scheme you qualify for, in minutes.