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Uttar Pradesh minimum wages are fixed under the Minimum Wages Act, 1948, read with the Uttar Pradesh Minimum Wages Rules, 1952. Rates comprise basic wage plus VDA linked to the All-India Consumer Price Index, generally revised every six months, effective from 01 April and 01 October.
The short answer For the period 01 April 2026 to 30 September 2026, UP minimum wages across 74 scheduled employments are ₹11,313.65 a month (₹435.14 per day) for unskilled work, ₹12,445.00 a month (₹478.65 per day) for semi-skilled and ₹13,940.37 a month (₹536.16 per day) for skilled. The notification is dated 18 February 2026. Uttar Pradesh uses three skill categories rather than four, and the 74-employment schedule applies statewide without zone differentiation – though a separate order issued in April 2026 introduced a district-category structure that employers should check against their location.
The monthly minimum is the notified basic plus the current VDA – for unskilled work that is ₹5,750 plus ₹5,563.65, or ₹11,313.65 a month. The daily rate is the monthly figure divided by 26, giving ₹435.14. The hourly rate on an eight-hour day is ₹54.39, and overtime is twice that at ₹108.78 an hour. Note that the VDA is close to the basic in size, so both components must be applied together.
The mistake to avoid: setting a low basic salary to reduce EPF liability. The PF contribution base for a worker must be at least the notified basic plus DA, so structuring a basic below the minimum wage basic breaches the Minimum Wages Act and simultaneously creates an EPF deficiency — two liabilities from one decision, and the EPF side carries its own interest and damages.
Worked example — unskilled, 74 scheduled employments
Basic = ₹5,750.00 / month · VDA = ₹5,563.65 / month
Total per month = 5,750.00 + 5,563.65 = ₹11,313.65
Per day = 11,313.65 ÷ 26 = ₹435.14
Per hour at an 8-hour day = 435.14 ÷ 8 = ₹54.39
One overtime hour = 54.39 × 2 = ₹108.78
Uttar Pradesh notifies three skill categories rather than the four most states use — there is no separate highly skilled band in the general schedule. Classification follows the nature of the work actually performed, not the payroll designation. A production helper may qualify as unskilled or semi-skilled depending on what the role involves in practice, and the designation on the appointment letter does not settle it.
No separate highly skilled band
The general 74-employment schedule stops at skilled. Where a role would be highly skilled in another state, it maps to skilled here, and supervisory staff remain within the schedule rather than outside it.
Act on this: review the skill classification of every worker against the definitions in your scheduled employment, not against the job title. UP’s three-band structure means a role that would sit in a fourth band elsewhere has to land in one of these three, and the choice between semi-skilled and skilled is worth ₹1,495 a month.
Uttar Pradesh minimum wages apply across 74 scheduled employments, covering shops and commercial establishments, factories across many trades, construction, agriculture, hotels and restaurants, security services, brick kilns, hosiery and textiles, transport, loading and unloading, private hospitals, educational institutions, plastic products, dairy, plywood and more. Coverage does not depend on headcount. A separate notification governs engineering factories employing 50 or more workers, where the VDA is calculated on the All-India CPI and revised independently of the general schedule.
The applicable notification – general schedule or engineering factories – on file for each unit.
Paying below the notified rate exposes an employer to recovery of the shortfall for the whole affected period, compensation on top, and prosecution. Under the Code on Wages, 2019 a first offence attracts a fine of up to ₹50,000, and a repeat offence within five years can mean up to three months imprisonment and a fine of up to ₹1 lakh. Where a low basic has also depressed EPF contributions, the provident fund shortfall is recoverable separately with interest and damages.
Act on this: if April 2026 payroll was processed at the old rates, you are already in arrears. Compute the difference per worker from 01 April, pay it as a labelled arrears line, and file revised PF returns for the affected months rather than leaving the contribution short.
Uttar Pradesh fixes minimum wages under the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 and the Uttar Pradesh Minimum Wages Rules, 1952. The basic rates are reviewed at intervals of a few years; the Variable Dearness Allowance is revised roughly every six months, commonly effective from 01 April and 01 October, based on movement in the All-India Consumer Price Index. The notification dated 18 February 2026 revised the VDA for 74 scheduled employments for the period 01 April 2026 to 30 September 2026. A separate order for engineering factories was issued the same day, effective 01 February 2026.
Act on this: track two notifications, not one. If you operate an engineering factory with 50 or more workers alongside other establishments, the engineering schedule runs on its own effective dates and its own VDA calculation – the general 74-employment revision does not cover it.
Revision history for the 74 scheduled employments in Uttar Pradesh.
| Effective Period | Notified On | Unskilled / Month | Unskilled / Day | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 Apr 2026 – 30 Sep 2026 | 18 Feb 2026 | ₹11,313.65 | ₹435.14 | Current VDA revision, 74 scheduled employments |
| 01 Oct 2025 – 31 Mar 2026 | – | – | – | Preceding half-year |
| Engineering factories | 18 Feb 2026 | – | – | Separate schedule, effective 01 Feb 2026 |
Figures marked – are to be filled from the corresponding notification. A further order dated 17 April 2026 has been reported introducing a district-category structure with different totals – see the section on zones below, and verify the current position with the Labour Department, Uttar Pradesh before finalizing payroll.
Uttar Pradesh notifies among the lower wage floors among the large states, and it is one of the few that uses three skill bands rather than four. The VDA is unusually large relative to the basic – close to half the total – which makes each half-yearly revision move the payable figure more than in states where the allowance is a modest top-up.
Unskilled minimum wage per day, compared with other states. Comparison figures are to be filled from each state’s own notification.
| State / Benchmark | Unskilled / Day | Structure |
|---|---|---|
| Uttar Pradesh | ₹435.14 | Basic ₹5,750 + VDA ₹5,563.65 a month, 74 scheduled employments |
| Uttarakhand – Pop. > 1 Lakh | ₹502.19 | Basic ₹12,539 + VDA ₹518 a month |
| Goa – Zone A | ₹561.00 | Basic ₹412.00 + VDA ₹149.00 a day |
| West Bengal – Zone A | ₹406 | Consolidated monthly rate ₹10,558 |
| Bihar | – | Basic + VDA across roughly 89 scheduled employments |
| National Floor Wage | – | Advisory floor, not directly enforceable on employers |
Act on this: if you run establishments in both Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, hold them as separate rate masters. The states share a pre-2000 history and the schedules look familiar, but UP uses three skill bands and a statewide rate while Uttarakhand uses five categories split by population band.
The table below sets out UP minimum wages for the 74 scheduled employments, effective 01 April 2026 to 30 September 2026. Daily figures are the notified monthly total divided by 26; annual figures are monthly multiplied by twelve.
| Skill Category | Basic / Month | VDA / Month | Total / Month | Total / Day | Per Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unskilled | ₹5,750.00 | ₹5,563.65 | ₹11,313.65 | ₹435.14 | ₹1,35,763.80 |
| Semi-Skilled | ₹6,325.00 | ₹6,120.00 | ₹12,445.00 | ₹478.65 | ₹1,49,340.00 |
| Skilled | ₹7,085.00 | ₹6,855.37 | ₹13,940.37 | ₹536.16 | ₹1,67,284.44 |
Source: Labour Department, Government of Uttar Pradesh – notification dated 18 February 2026 revising the VDA for 74 scheduled employments, effective 01 April 2026 to 30 September 2026. Engineering factories employing 50 or more workers are governed by a separate notification.
Does Uttar Pradesh Use Wage Zones?
The general 74-employment schedule applies statewide with no zone differentiation – but this is the part of UP compliance most likely to trip an employer up in 2026, because a separate order has been reported introducing a district-category split.
The 74-employment schedule is statewide
Under the 18 February 2026 notification, the same rate applies for a given skill category across all of Uttar Pradesh. The variation comes from the employment type and the skill band, not from geography.
A reported district-category structure
An order dated 17 April 2026 has been reported introducing three district categories – Category I covering Gautam Buddha Nagar and Ghaziabad, Category II covering Nagar Nigam cities such as Lucknow, Kanpur and Varanasi, and Category III covering the remaining districts – with higher totals than the general schedule. Confirm which framework applies to your establishment before running payroll.
Individual employments may sub-classify
Some scheduled employments carry their own sub-classifications within their specific notification. Read the notification matching your industry rather than working only from the general table.
Under the general 74-employment schedule, the rate is the same across Uttar Pradesh – an unskilled worker in Noida, Lucknow, Kanpur, Varanasi or a rural block all read ₹11,313.65 a month or ₹435.14 a day. However, the reported April 2026 district-category order would place Noida and Ghaziabad in the highest category and the Nagar Nigam cities in the second, with different figures. For multi-location businesses each site must be assessed independently, so confirm the applicable framework for each unit rather than applying one figure across the state.
For 01 April 2026 to 30 September 2026, minimum wages in Uttar Pradesh for the 74 scheduled employments are ₹11,313.65 a month or ₹435.14 a day for unskilled work, ₹12,445.00 a month or ₹478.65 a day for semi-skilled, and ₹13,940.37 a month or ₹536.16 a day for skilled. The notification is dated 18 February 2026.
Three — unskilled, semi-skilled and skilled. There is no separate highly skilled band in the general schedule, so a role that would fall in a fourth band elsewhere maps to skilled in UP. Classification follows the nature of the work performed, not the payroll designation.
The 74-employment schedule applies statewide with no zone split. However, an order dated 17 April 2026 has been reported introducing three district categories with different totals — Gautam Buddha Nagar and Ghaziabad in the first, Nagar Nigam cities in the second, remaining districts in the third. Confirm which framework applies to each of your locations.
The Variable Dearness Allowance is revised roughly every six months, commonly effective from 01 April and 01 October, based on movement in the All-India Consumer Price Index. The basic rates are reviewed less frequently. Engineering factories employing 50 or more workers run on a separate notification with its own dates.
Divide the notified monthly total by 26. Unskilled at ₹11,313.65 a month gives ₹435.14 a day and ₹54.39 an hour on an eight-hour day. Overtime is twice the ordinary hourly rate, so ₹108.78 an hour for an unskilled worker.
No, and doing so creates two liabilities. The notified basic plus DA is the floor for the PF contribution base, so a basic set below the minimum wage basic breaches the Minimum Wages Act and creates an EPF deficiency at the same time. The provident fund shortfall is recoverable separately with interest and damages.
Alpesh Vaghasiya (CEO)
Alpesh Vaghasiya is the Co-founder and CEO of Superworks, a smart business management solution that Indian SMBs and large enterprises use to run attendance, payroll, and statutory compliance from a single system. He has spent over 15 years building software out of Surat, founding Artoon Solutions, now a 350+ person product engineering firm serving clients across 30+ countries, in 2009, before launching Superworks in 2020.
His writing comes from the operator's side of compliance - what actually breaks when payroll has to absorb a minimum wage revision, reconcile attendance across multiple sites, or file returns under different state rules in the same month. A Charter Member of TiE Surat and an active angel investor in early-stage Indian startups, he holds a B.E. in Computer Engineering from Gujarat University.
Superworks keeps minimum wage slabs, zones, and statutory deductions correct across all your locations.
