Whether you're opening a single-chair parlour in a residential lane or a multi-staff salon on a commercial high street, a beauty business in Maharashtra needs Gumasta Licence — the popular name for registration under the Maharashtra Shops and Establishments Act, 2017 — before you legally open your doors. This guide covers exactly who needs it, what it costs based on staff count, the documents and step-by-step Aaplesarkar process, and the beauty-parlour-specific extras — BMC health licensing, Fire NOC, GST on beauty services, and waste-handling questions — that generic Shop Act guides skip.
Get Gumasta Licence — ₹300 Udyam RegistrationGumasta Licence is the everyday Marathi/Hindi name for registration under the Maharashtra Shops and Establishments (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 2017. The Act applies to any premises where trade, business, or a service is carried out — retail shops, restaurants, offices, gyms, and salons alike — and a beauty parlour or salon fits squarely inside that definition the moment it starts taking walk-in clients, whether or not it employs anyone besides the owner.
Unlike a purely optional business registration, this one is a legal precondition. It's the document Labour Department inspectors check for first, it's usually asked for when opening a current bank account in the business's name, and — because it's issued by a state authority against a specific address — it's frequently the first proof of a "real, registered" business that landlords, GST officers, and franchise or booking-platform partners want to see before dealing with a new salon.
A solo beautician working alone, with no staff at all, is not exempt — Maharashtra's Act requires registration at the lowest fee slab (₹60) even for a one-person establishment. The only common exemptions are factories governed by the Factories Act, 1948, and purely agricultural operations — a beauty parlour of any size is neither.
If any of the following describes your beauty business, you need to register:
A shop-front salon, spa, or beauty clinic in a commercial or mixed-use building — the most common case.
Operating out of a residential flat or house and taking walk-in clients or home-visit appointments still counts as an establishment.
Branch outlets of a salon chain each need their own Gumasta registration for their specific address — one head-office registration doesn't cover every branch.
Any specialised beauty-service business — not just full-service salons — falls under the same Shops and Establishments definition.
No separate cosmetology certificate, beautician diploma, or trade qualification is required for the Gumasta application itself — the registration is about the establishment, not the individual practitioner's training.
The government fee follows the same slab used for every Maharashtra shop or establishment — it scales with the number of employees, not the type of business:
| Employees | Government Fee | Typical Business |
|---|---|---|
| 0 (proprietor only) | ₹60 | Solo beautician / home-based parlour |
| 1 to 9 | ₹370 | Typical neighbourhood salon or parlour |
| 10 to 19 | ₹570 | Mid-size salon/spa with multiple stylists |
| 20 to 49 | ₹1,450 | Larger multi-service salon or day spa |
| 50 to 99 | ₹2,890 | Salon chain outlet with full staff |
| 100 to 249 | ₹4,830 | Large flagship salon/spa |
| 250 to 500 | ₹7,250 | Multi-branch chain (aggregated) |
| Above 500 | ₹9,775 | Large chain operator |
Most independent beauty parlours and salons fall in the ₹60-₹370 bracket. This fee is paid directly to the government on the Aaplesarkar portal at the time of application. eUdyamAadhaar's assisted registration — document review, form filling, submission, and follow-up until the certificate arrives — is a separate ₹300 service fee.
Create a citizen login at aaplesarkar.mahaonline.gov.in, Maharashtra's official government-services portal, using a valid mobile number and email.
Under the Labour Department's services, choose the Shops and Establishments Act registration (Gumasta) application — the intimation form for smaller establishments or the full registration form for 10+ employees.
Enter the trade name, business address, nature of activity (beauty parlour/salon/spa), proposed number of employees, and working hours.
Attach ID proof, address proof of the premises, photograph, and (if applicable) partnership/incorporation documents in the specified format.
Pay the fee corresponding to your employee slab online through the portal's payment gateway.
Small establishments are typically approved within 7 working days without inspection; larger premises may see a Labour Inspector visit, extending the timeline to 10-15 working days. Once approved, download and display the certificate at the salon as required by law.
This is where a salon differs from a plain retail shop — Gumasta is the mandatory baseline, but a beauty business layers a few sector-specific approvals on top of it depending on city, size, and services offered.
In Mumbai, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's Health Department licenses trades connected to public health under Sections 394/412 of the BMC Act, and beauty parlours are treated as a distinct category within this scheme — the BMC publishes a specific "Self-Certificate for Beauty Parlour" form for lower-risk premises, applied for through the ward's Citizen Facilitation Centre (CFC) using Form-C, generally ahead of commencing operations. Other Maharashtra municipal corporations (Pune, Thane, Nagpur, Pimpri-Chinchwad, and others) run an equivalent trade or health licence under their own local body Acts — the exact form and fee vary by corporation, so confirm with your specific municipal ward office.
Whether a Fire NOC is needed depends on the size and layout of the premises rather than the fact that it's a salon. Larger parlours and spas — particularly those in multi-storey buildings, malls, or above the local fire department's built-up-area exemption threshold — need a No Objection Certificate from the Chief Fire Officer before opening, which requires submitting building plans, an architect's certificate, and a declaration of electrical equipment used (hair dryers, steamers, straighteners, autoclaves). Small single-room, ground-floor parlours often fall under a lighter self-certification norm; check the specific threshold with your local fire department since it isn't uniform across municipal corporations.
GST registration itself is mandatory only once annual turnover crosses ₹20 lakh (₹10 lakh in special-category states) — many single-outlet parlours stay below this threshold, especially in their first year. Once registered, beauty and salon services attract 5% GST without input tax credit (ITC), down from 18%, as part of the GST 2.0 reforms covering "beauty and well-being services" effective 22 September 2025. This 5% rate is mandatory once GST-registered — there's no option to opt back into the 18% slab with ITC.
Salons that generate sharp or contaminated waste — used blades, threading/piercing needles, or chemical treatment waste — should check with their local Pollution Control Board or Pollution Control Committee about authorisation requirements under the Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules, 2016. These rules were written primarily around healthcare establishments, and how strictly they're applied to salons varies by state and by the specific services offered, so it isn't a blanket, uniform requirement in the way Gumasta is — but larger parlours offering piercing or more invasive treatments shouldn't simply assume it doesn't apply to them; confirm locally rather than guess.
If a salon stores or sells cosmetic products in bulk beyond ordinary in-house use — for retail sale to customers, for instance — it may need to register with the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for cosmetic storage/sale, separate from Gumasta. This typically applies to larger salons and spas with a retail product counter rather than a small parlour using products only during treatments.
Many first-time salon owners register for Gumasta, assume they're fully compliant, and stop there. In practice, a beauty business in a city like Mumbai or Pune commonly needs Gumasta plus a municipal health/trade licence, and — depending on size — a Fire NOC and GST registration on top. Budget time for all of these before your opening date, not just the one that's easiest to apply for online.
Under the 2017 Act, you choose the validity period at the time of registration — 1, 2, 3, 5, or 10 years — with the fee scaled accordingly. Most salon and parlour owners choose 5 years to balance the renewal fee against the effort of renewing more frequently. Start your renewal at least 30 days before the current validity period ends on the Aaplesarkar portal; don't rely solely on the portal's automated reminder, since these notifications are commonly missed. For the full renewal process, documents, and late-renewal penalties, see our detailed Shop Act Licence Renewal guide.
Operating a beauty parlour or salon without Gumasta registration is an offence under the Shops and Establishments Act, 2017. A first offence can attract a fine of up to ₹5,000; repeated violations can lead to fines up to ₹10,000 and imprisonment up to 3 months. Maharashtra Labour Department inspectors routinely check salons and similar walk-in-customer establishments — alongside restaurants, retail shops, and gyms — in cities including Mumbai, Pune, Thane, and Nagpur, so the certificate needs to be both obtained and displayed at the premises.
Banks typically ask for Gumasta/Shop Act proof to open a current account in the salon's business name, separate from personal accounts.
A state-issued registration certificate is commonly the first document landlords, suppliers, and GST officers ask for as evidence the business is genuine and registered.
GST registration, the BMC health licence, and most vendor/franchise agreements typically expect Gumasta registration to already be in place as the base-level proof of a legitimate establishment.
The Act sets baseline working-hour, leave, and workplace-condition rules — registration formally brings a salon's staff under this legal protection.
Yes, every beauty parlour or salon is a commercial establishment under the 2017 Act and needs registration, even a solo beautician with zero staff (at the ₹60 fee slab).
₹60 for zero employees, ₹370 for 1-9, ₹570 for 10-19, scaling up to ₹9,775 for 500+ — paid on Aaplesarkar. eUdyamAadhaar charges a separate ₹300 service fee for assisted registration.
Owner's ID proof (Aadhaar/PAN), address proof of the premises, a passport photo, and basic business details. No cosmetology qualification certificate is required for the Gumasta application.
Yes — taking walk-in clients or employing an assistant from a home address still makes it a commercial establishment under the Act.
Yes, separately. The BMC Health Department licenses beauty parlours under Sections 394/412 of the BMC Act, including a self-certification form for lower-risk premises, applied through the ward CFC.
Depends on premises size — larger parlours in multi-storey buildings or malls typically need one from the Chief Fire Officer; small ground-floor shops may fall under a lighter self-certification norm.
5% without input tax credit, since 22 September 2025 (down from 18%), mandatory once GST-registered. Registration itself is required only above ₹20 lakh/year turnover.
Possibly, for sharp/contaminated waste under the Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules, 2016 — applicability to salons varies by state and services offered, so confirm with your local Pollution Control Board rather than assume either way.
Typically 7 working days for small parlours without inspection; 10-15 working days if a Labour Department inspection is triggered.
You choose 1, 2, 3, 5, or 10 years at registration — most choose 5. Start renewal at least 30 days before expiry on Aaplesarkar.
eUdyamAadhaar handles document checklist, form filling, Aaplesarkar submission, and follow-up for your beauty parlour's Gumasta Licence — ₹300 service fee, government fee separate.
Apply for Gumasta Licence — ₹300