45, When hiring an employee what kind of information is required to be collected (joining documents)
When a new employee joins an organisation, one of the first responsibilities of the HR function is to ensure that the right information and documents are collected. Some of these requirements are governed by law, while others are considered good governance and best practice.
Legal Documents That Must Be Collected
Certain documents are mandatory from a legal standpoint. These typically relate to statutory compliances such as Provident Fund, Gratuity, and Employee State Insurance. These forms need to be completed accurately and filed with the relevant authorities, with proper records maintained by the organisation.
Ensuring that these statutory documents are in place protects both the employee and the organisation and forms the foundation of legal compliance.
The Importance of Employee Records
Apart from statutory forms, organisations should maintain a comprehensive employee record document. This is an internal document that captures the employee’s demographic and professional details, including name, date of birth, gender, address, educational qualifications, work history, and family details.
These records become important for future career decisions, development planning, benefit administration, and emergency communication.
Identity and Educational Proofs
Organisations should collect valid identity proofs such as Aadhaar or PAN card. PAN details are particularly important for tax and financial compliance.
Educational documents should be collected at least for the highest qualification on the basis of which the hiring decision was made. While some organisations choose to collect documents from earlier academic stages, collecting the highest qualification is generally considered sufficient.
Employment History Verification
Salary slips from the previous employer and the relieving letter are important documents to collect. These help validate the information shared by the employee and confirm that the employee has formally exited their previous organisation.
A relieving letter is especially important to avoid issues related to dual employment, which is generally not permitted in India unless explicitly allowed by both employment contracts.
Balancing Compliance and Practicality
Whether an organisation chooses to collect documents covering the last one employer or a longer employment history is a matter of internal policy. Both approaches are acceptable as long as due diligence is demonstrated.
Broadly, if an organisation collects identity proof, educational proof, statutory forms, salary slips, and relieving letters, it can be confident that it has met both legal and governance expectations during the joining process.
Related Podcast Episode
https://www.youtube.com/embed/Oun2O-JcnMs?si=JMlzoaY6b8oLn1Bs
This article is based on the transcript of the original podcast of the same name featured in India HR Guide.
The transcript has been translated into this article with the support of AI and a human‑in‑the‑loop process.
