Delhi Shops and Establishments (Amendment) Act, 2026

The Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi, vide notification No. F.14 (104)/LA/2026/jtsecylaw/374-385, dated 11th March 2026, has enacted the Delhi Shops and Establishments (Amendment) Act, 2026, which amends the Delhi Shops and Establishments Act of 1954. Below are the principal features of the amendment:

Applicability

After this amendment, provisions of the Delhi Shops and Establishments Act, 1954, will apply to shops and establishments that employ twenty or more individuals.

Changes in working hours

1. The total daily working hours have been extended from nine hours to ten hours, which includes rest intervals and lunch breaks. However, the total weekly hours will remain at forty-eight.

2. The maximum allowable overtime hours per week have been adjusted to sixty hours, and the quarterly limit has been set at one hundred and forty-four hours.

3. The continuous working hours without a break have been increased to six hours from the previous five hours.

4. The spread-over hours have been raised from ten hours to twelve hours.

Permission to employ women during the night shift

Women are permitted to be employed in all establishments, and they may also work, with their consent, between 9:00 PM and 7:00 AM during the summer months and between 8:00 PM and 8:00 AM during the winter months, subject to the following conditions;

a) Written consent from female employees is required prior to their employment in night shifts.

b) Employers must provide adequate CCTV surveillance, security, and proper transportation facilities for female employees, including those of contractors, during night shifts.

c) No employer of any shop or establishment shall knowingly employ a woman during the six weeks following her confinement or miscarriage.

d) A minimum of two female employees must be present during the night shift.

e) Employers are required to comply with the provisions of the Prevention of Sexual Harassment of Women at Work Place (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013, as amended from time to time.

f) Any additional conditions that may be notified by the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi in this regard from time to time.

While reviewing the above provisions, it is important to highlight that, despite the government’s notification of the amendment, the effective date for the amended provisions has yet to be announced.