• Any shop, commercial establishment, residential hotel, restaurant, eating house, theatre
• Has at least one employee OR self-employed proprietor
• Operating within state where applying

1. Find your state Labour portal — MH: aaplesarkar.mahaonline.gov.in (Gumasta) · KA: labour.karnataka.gov.in · TN: labour.tn.gov.in · Delhi: labour.delhi.gov.in. Most states have Shram Suvidha integration.
2. Sign up + verify — Mobile + email OTP.
3. Fill Form A — Establishment name, owner name, address, nature of business, date of commencement, number of employees, weekly off, hours.
4. Upload documents — PAN, Aadhaar, premises proof, owner photo, list of employees with photo + ID (>0 employees).
5. Pay fee online — Free in some states. Rs 100-2,000 in others by employee count.
6. Submit + receive ARN — Track on portal.
7. Approval — Most states: auto-approval if all docs valid (no inspection needed). Issuance 7-15 days.
8. Display certificate — Mandatory at premises. Has unique establishment number.
9. Renewal — Annual or 5-year (state-specific). MH Gumasta: 5 years.

• Online portal: State Labour portal
• Offline: Labour Department office, CSC. Or CA / consultant (avoid agent fee).
• Fee: Free in KA, TN, Delhi (small estd) · Rs 100-2,000 in other states
• Timeline: 7-15 days for issuance (auto-approval in most states)

See our complete checklist: Documents required for shop establishment — covers mandatory + optional + size/format specs.

• Different state laws — what's called Shop Act in TN is Gumasta in MH. Same purpose; different forms.
• Owner photo missing — proprietor photo + signature mandatory; rejected without.
• Employee list incomplete — even if zero employees, declare “Nil”; do not skip the field.
• Renewal forgotten — penalty + may face inspection. Set reminder for renewal date.

Most “delays” or “rejections” clear within 7-15 days of an RTI being filed. Use this 5-question template:

1. Status of my application no. _____ dated _____ as on date.
2. The name + designation of the dealing officer assigned to my file.
3. The reasons for delay beyond the statutory timeline.
4. Copy of any noting / movement of my file in the past 30 days.
5. The likely date of issuance of my certificate / approval.

Auto-fill the PIO details + your case: Open the RTI Drafter →

Generally yes — Shop Act = labour department (worker welfare); Trade Licence = municipal (permission to operate).

If you have walk-in customers / employees / commercial signage: yes. Pure online (single proprietor): not always.

Free for establishments < 9 employees. Larger get standard fee.

MH Gumasta: 5 years. Most other states: annual or 3 years. Renew on time.

File RTI to State Labour Commissioner + RCT (Registering Authority).

• How to check status — 25 high-traffic services
• Documents required — 30 checklists
• All state RTI portals
• Full RTI Playbook — 100+ scenarios

• Official portal: https://aaplesarkar.mahaonline.gov.in
• Citizen feedback collected via AwaazRTI (composite, identifying details removed).
• Statutory references: see relevant Act sections.

Last reviewed: 25 April 2026.