If your business deducts tax - on rent, contractor payments, professional fees, salaries - you have three kinds of TDS deadlines.
1. Deposit TDS
- 7th of the next month for tax deducted in a month (e.g. October's TDS by 7 November).
- March: by 30 April.
- Government offices paying without a challan deposit the same day.
Pay through challan on the income tax portal using the new payment codes (they replaced section numbers on challans from April 2026).
2. Quarterly returns
| Quarter | Due date |
|---|---|
| April - June | 31 July |
| July - September | 31 October |
| October - December | 31 January |
| January - March | 31 May |
Returns: Form 138 for salary TDS (earlier 24Q), Form 140 for other resident TDS (earlier 26Q), Form 143 for TCS (earlier 27EQ), plus the non-resident return (earlier 27Q). One-off property, rent and contract payments by individuals go through Form 141 (earlier 26QB/QC/QD/QE).
3. Certificates
- Form 131 (earlier 16A) for non-salary TDS: within 15 days of the return due date - 15 August, 15 November, 15 February, 15 June.
- Form 130 (earlier Form 16) for salaries: by 15 June after the tax year.
- Form 133 (earlier 27D) for TCS.
What delays cost
| Default | Cost |
|---|---|
| Tax not deducted on time | Interest 1% a month or part |
| Deducted but deposited late | Interest 1.5% a month or part, from the date of deduction |
| Return filed late | ₹200 a day until filed, up to the TDS amount |
| Return over a year late or wrong | Penalty ₹10,000 to ₹1 lakh |
"Month or part" means 1 day late into a new month counts as a full month. Deposit on 8 November instead of 7 November and you pay 1.5% for one month, plus potentially a second month depending on the deduction date.
Practical calendar for a small business
- 7th: deposit last month's TDS
- 15th: PF and ESI (if registered)
- 20th / 22nd / 24th: GSTR-3B
- Last day of Jul, Oct, Jan and May: TDS returns