It is lump sum payment made by an employer to an employee in consideration of his past service when the employment is terminated. It is paid for long and meritorious services rendered by an employee. With enactment of Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972, gratuity payment has become mandatory and in case of non application of gratuity Act, the employee can claim gratuity under terms of contract of employment.

The Payment of Gratuity Act 1972:- Gratuity is a voluntary Payment made by the employer to the employee in recognition of continuous, meritorious services and sincere efforts by the employee towards the organization.It is governed under the Payment of Gratuity Act 1972.It is an Act to provide for a scheme for the payment of gratuity to employees engaged in factories, mines, Oilfields, plantations, ports, railway companies, and shops or other establishments.

Salary is chargeable to tax on due or receipt basis whichever is earlier and includes wages, annuity or pension, gratuity, fees, commission, perquisites or profits in lieu of salary, advance salary, leave encashment, etc.

1. What is Pension? Pension is described in Section 60 of the CPC and Section 11 of the Pension Act as a periodical allowance or stipend granted on account of past service, particular merits, etc. It involves three essential features. Firstly, pension is a compensation for the past service, secondly, it owes its relationship to a past employer-employee relationship or master servant relationship. Lastly, it is paid on the basis of earlier relationship of agreement of services as opposed to an agreement for service.

On retirement, an employee normally receives certain retirement benefits namely Gratuity, Commutation of Pension, Leave Encashment, Retrenchment Compensation, Compensation on Voluntary Retirement, Payment from Provident Fund, Payment from Superannuation Fund etc. Such benefits are taxable under the head ‘Salaries’ as ‘profits in lieu of Salaries’ as provided in section 17(3). However, in respect of some of them, exemption from taxation is granted u/s 10 of the Income Tax Act, either wholly or partly. These exemptions are described below:-

The first respondent filed a claim petition before the second respondent seeking payment of gratuity for the period, which he has rendered services to the petitioner’s lorry transport, from 01.04.1991 to 19.04.2007, on which date he had voluntarily stopped himself from services. He claimed gratuity for a period of 10 years and a monthly salary of Rs.3,600/-. The total gratuity claim was Rs.28,800/-. The said application filed by the first respondent was taken on file by the second respondent as P.G.No.90 of 2007 and notice was issued to the petitioner.

Every employer other than an employer of an establishment belonging to, or under the control of, the Central Government or a State Government, shall subject to provisions of sub section (2) under section 4A of the Act, obtain an insurance in the manner prescribed under sub-section (4) of section 4A of the Act for his liability for payment towards the gratuity under this Act, from the Life Insurance Corporation of India or any other Insurance Company incorporated under the Company’s Act, 1950.

The Council of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India at its 304th meeting held on 23rd March 2011 considered the prudential regulatory treatment prescribed by the Reserve Bank of India vide its above mentioned circular vis a vis the impact thereof on the auditor’s report since the said treatment is a departure from the requirements of the Accounting Standard (AS) 15, Employee Benefits. 3. On a consideration of the matter, the Council of the Institute decided that since the accounting treatment for such expenditure is prescribed under the prudential regulatory framework of the Regulator, the auditors need not qualify their audit report on account of this. The matter should, however, be brought out by the auditors in the audit report by way of an “Emphasis of Matter Paragraph” in accordance with the Standard on Audit (SA) 706, “Emphasis of Matter Paragraphs and Other Matter Paragraphs in the Independent Auditor’s Report, provided the matter of departure from the requirements of AS 15 pursuant to the aforesaid circular of RBI is appropriately disclosed, with quantification, by the bank by way of the notes to the accounts in the financial statements.2

In its order, the Court, while dismissing the writ petitions filed by Indian Rare Earths Ltd, Manavalakurichi, Kanyakumari District, a Government of India undertaking, challenging, inter alia, the common order dated September 23, 2005 of the Regional

An employee becomes eligible for gratuity on the termination of his employment after he has rendered continuous service for not less than five years, according to Section 4(1) of the Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972. He is also entitled for interest on