// build_guide
// How to build HR, Payroll & Attendance Management for Indian SMEs
India has 63M+ SMEs, most running payroll on Excel. A SaaS at ₹199/employee/month that handles PF, ESI, PT, TDS and generates Form 16 automatically has an instant ROI story. NestJS cleanly separates payroll computation (deterministic, testable) from the API layer. PostgreSQL handles the relational structure of employees, components and pay periods well. PDF generation is server-side to avoid browser print inconsistencies.
Complexity 7/10SaaS
// recommended_stack
FrontendNext.js (App Router)
BackendNestJS
DatabasePostgreSQL
AuthSupabase Auth (SSO optional)
HostingVercel + Railway
ExtraRazorpay Subscriptions
ExtraResend (payslip emails)
ExtraPDFKit (payslip PDF)
ExtraBiometric API adapter
// cost_and_timeline
USD min
$14,000
USD max
$21,000
INR min
₹13.1L
INR max
₹19.6L
Typical SaaS projects cost $1,800–$5,000 USD and take 6–8 weeks with an Indian dev team. See the full cost guide →
// timeline_breakdown
2 weeksEmployee master, CTC structure & auth
4 weeksPayroll computation engine (PF, ESI, TDS)
2 weeksAttendance, leave & payslip PDF
2 weeksForm 16, reports & billing
// mvp_features[]
## What to build in the MVP
—Employee master with department, designation and CTC structure
—Monthly payroll run with auto-computed PF, ESI, PT and TDS
—Attendance and leave management (manual + CSV import)
—Salary slip PDF generation and bulk email dispatch
—Form 16 Part-A and Part-B generation for each employee
—Admin reports: headcount, payroll cost by month, statutory compliance
// risk_flags[]
## Engineering risks to plan for
!Indian statutory rules (PF slabs, ESI threshold, PT state-wise) change yearly — externalise the tax rule engine so updates need no code deployment.
!Form 16 generation is legally sensitive; get a chartered accountant to review the computation logic before launch.
!Payroll is a zero-tolerance domain; write exhaustive unit tests for every computation path before going live.
✦ Get a scope tailored to your idea
This scope was auto-generated from a real founder's inputs. Run the estimator with your specific requirements — free, no sign-up, results in 2 minutes.
// related_resources