Career as Lawyer: In 1969, he enrolled as an Advocate in the Madras High Court and established a successful law practice. He was designated as a Senior Advocate in 1984. He has chambers in Delhi and Madras and practices in the Supreme Court and in various High Courts in India. He has also appeared in a number of arbitration proceedings in India and abroad.
Political career:

Beginning as a member of the Congress Party, PC first got elected to Parliament from the Sivaganga constituency in Tamil Nadu in 1984 and became a Deputy Minister under the then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.

Later, he held the Commerce & Finance portfolios in various governments.

In the elections held in 2004, United Progressive Alliance formed the Government and P Chidambaram once again became the Finance Minister.

In 2008 he moved to the Home portfolio. As the home minister he has initiated steps to bring various agencies that are responsible for law and order together and work in a cohesive manner.

Budget Initiative:

Economists acclaim his "dream-budget" for 1996-97, in which he brought discipline in government spending and launched an ambitious tax reform programme to tackle an unwieldy fiscal deficit.

His daring scheme to halt tax evasion, or Voluntary Income Disclosure Scheme, invited accolades.

In the Budget of 2008, his move to waive off Farmers’ debt has played a role in boosting aggregate demand in the Indian economy, thereby effectively insulating India from the impact of recession.