TDS Return

TAN stands for Tax Deduction Account Number which is required to be obtained by all persons who are responsible for deducting or collecting tax. It is mandatorily required to be quoted on all the TDS Returns. Anyone can apply for TAN by filling up Form 49B online and paying the necessary fees.

Form 13 can be filed online to request the tax officers to allow lower or non-deduction of TDS as per Section 197 of the Income Tax Act, 1961. It can be submitted by any person who wants lower TDS deduction from his income.
However, Form 15G/15H can be submitted declaring that income earned during the financial year is below the basic exemption limit. It can be submitted only by individuals and has to be submitted every year as non-submission may lead to deduction of taxes.

Status of TDS Returns can be checked on www.tin-nsdl.com. At the home page, go to Services>e-TDS/e-TCS>Status of TDS/TCS Statements. The details which are required to be entered are TAN of deductor and Provisional Receipt Number (PRN) of the statement whose status is being checked.

TDS Certificates are issued by the deductors to the deductee as a proof to the fact that the TDS has been deposited and returns have been filed so as to let the deductee claim the necessary amount of TDS Credit. Two types of TDS Certificates include:

• Form 16 which is issued by the employer to the employee incorporating details of the taxes deducted by the employer on payments of salary throughout the year.
• Form 16A which is issued on payments other than salary.

A TDS Return which has been filed with some errors can be revised by filing the Correction Statements on www.tdscpc.gov.in. Correction can be done offline as well as online and can be done multiple times.

TDS Returns are compulsorily required to be filed by the deductors as non-filing or late filing will attract fees, penalties and interests and may also qualify the deductor as an ‘Assessee in default’. Non-Compliance of TDS Provisions can result in fees, interest and penalties for the deductors. Following are the penal consequences of TDS returns:

• Non-Deduction of TDS: As per Section 40(a)(i)/(ia) of the Income Tax Act, 1961, non-deduction of TDS on payments made to non-residents and residents can result in disallowance of expenditure to the tune of 100% and 30% respectively, by the Assessing Officer.
• Late Deduction of TDS: Taxes are required to be deducted at the time of payment/credit getting due or payment whichever is earlier. In case of late deduction of taxes, interest @1% per month of the TDS subject to maximum amount of TDS levied.
• Late Payment of TDS: Taxes are required to be deposited to the credit of Central Government on 7th day of the month succeeding the month in which taxes have been deducted except for the month of March which are required to be deposited until 30th April. If these deadlines are not met, interest @1.5% per month of the amount of TDS is required to be paid subject to maximum amount of TDS levied.
• Late filing of TDS Return: TDS Returns are required to be filed quarterly. If they are not filed until the due date of filing, fees under Section 234E of the Income Tax Act, 1961 @INR 200 per day subject to maximum amount of TDS is required to be paid until the return is filed.
• Penalty for Late Filing of TDS Return: If a person fails to file or incorrectly files the TDS Statement within the due dates prescribed, Assessing Officer may direct him to pay penalty to the tune of INR 10,000 which may extend to INR 100,000.