28 July 2025
Filing a **TDS Return for Salary** (under **Form 24Q**) involves a step-by-step process to ensure correct deduction, payment, and reporting of tax on salary payments. Below is the complete procedure for **filing Salary TDS Return**:
* TDS on salary must be **deducted monthly** under **Section 192** of the Income Tax Act. * Deduction is made **at the time of payment**, not accrual. * TDS amount is computed based on:
* Deposit TDS through **Challan No. ITNS 281** using:
* **Online** (via NSDL: [https://onlineservices.tin.egov-nsdl.com/etaxnew/tdsnontds.jsp](https://onlineservices.tin.egov-nsdl.com/etaxnew/tdsnontds.jsp)) * **Offline** at bank branches * **Due dates** for deposit:
* **7th of next month** for all months * **30th April** for March (TDS deducted in March)
---
### 📌 **Step 3: Prepare TDS Return – Form 24Q**
Form 24Q is filed **quarterly** and has two parts:
* **Annexure I** (Quarterly): Contains employee-wise challan and deduction details * **Annexure II** (Only Q4): Full breakup of salary, tax computation & declarations
You can use **TRACES RPU utility** or any authorized TDS software.
* Use **File Validation Utility (FVU)** provided by NSDL to validate the return.
* Download from [https://www.tin-nsdl.com/](https://www.tin-nsdl.com/) * Upload the **.fvu file** after successful validation.
---
### 📌 **Step 5: File the Return on TRACES / Income Tax Portal**
Two options:
1. **Upload through TIN-FC**: Submit .fvu file via TIN Facilitation Center 2. **Online Upload**: If you have a valid **Digital Signature Certificate (DSC)**, upload on [https://www.tdscpc.gov.in/](https://www.tdscpc.gov.in/) or [https://incometax.gov.in/](https://incometax.gov.in/)
---
### 📌 **Step 6: Download Form 16 (After Q4 Filing)**
* After **Q4 return**, download **Form 16** Part A & B from TRACES * Distribute to employees **by 15th June**
---
### 📌 **Quarterly Due Dates for Form 24Q**
| Quarter | Period | Due Date | | ------- | --------- | ---------- | | Q1 | Apr – Jun | 31 July | | Q2 | Jul – Sep | 31 October | | Q3 | Oct – Dec | 31 January | | Q4 | Jan – Mar | 31 May |
---
### ⚠️ Penalties & Interest
* **Late filing fee (Sec 234E)**: ₹200/day till return is filed (Max: TDS amount) * **Penalty (Sec 271H)**: ₹10,000 to ₹1,00,000 for incorrect filing * **Interest (Sec 201)**: 1%/1.5% per month for late deduction/payment
---
### 📂 Documents Needed
* PAN of deductor and employees * TAN registration * Salary breakup and declarations (Form 12BB) * Proof of TDS payment (Challan 281)
---
Would you like a sample Excel format or Form 24Q JSON structure? I can also guide you through using the latest RPU utility step-by-step if needed.