Section 24Q: How To Download & Fill Form 24Q
What is Form 24Q?
While making salary payments to employees, an employer deducts TDS under Section 192 of the Income Tax Act, 1961. The employer needs to file a salary Tax Deducted at Source (TDS) return through Form 24Q. The form submission is mandatory for every quarter.
An employer will have to report the details related to the employees’ salary payments and the TDS deductions on those payments. 24Q comprises the following annexures:
- Annexure I
- Annexure II
You need to submit Annexure I for the 4 quarters in a financial year. However, you do not have to submit Annexure II for the first 3 quarters. Annexure II is only applicable for the last quarter (January-March).
As per an employee’s income tax bracket, TDS on salary will be deducted. An employer will have to take into account all investments (if investment proofs are applicable) and deductions of an employee.
Form 24Q: Annexure I
Annexure I of Form 24Q indicates TDS break-up (deductee wise) against every challan. You need to mention the following details of challan in Annexure I:
- Allocation of interest amount among deductees
- Allocation of TDS amount among deductees
- Total amount
- Challan serial number
- Deposition date of challan
- Branch’s BSR code
You should specify the following details related to deductees in Annexure I:
- Education cess
- TDS amount
- Amount credited or paid
- Date of credit/payment
- TDS section code
- An employee’s name
- An employee’s PAN (Permanent Account Number)
- Employee reference number (only if applicable)
In case an employer subtracts TDS (Tax Deducted at Source) at a lower rate or does not subtract TDS, the person will have to furnish a justification for such lower deduction or non-deduction.
TDS Section Code
- 192C: Salary payment towards Union Government employees
- 192B: Salary payment towards non-government employees
- 192A: Salary payment towards government employees except for Union Government employees
Form 24Q: Annexure II
Annexure II of Form 24Q comprises the following:
- Salary break-up
- Any deduction that an employee will claim
- Total tax liability
- Income from house property
- Other sources of income
Also Read: Form 26AS: How To Download, Submit And Review Details
How to Download Form 24Q?
The tax department has sub-divided TDS return forms into 4 categories (Form 27EQ, Form 27Q, Form 26Q and Form 24Q). Taxpayers will have to select the relevant form to file their TDS returns. Here are the steps to download a TDS return form:
- Step 1: Go to the official portal of NSDL.
- Step 2: Choose the ‘Downloads’ section and select E-TDS/E-TCS using the drop-down button.
- Step 3: Select ‘Quarterly Returns’ and opt for the ‘Regular’ option.
- Step 4: A new page will be displayed on your screen; select your TDS return form according to the requirements specified under ‘Form’.
After that, you can successfully download Form 24Q from the website.
Step-by-Step Guide to Fill out Form 24Q
The following steps will help you to fill out Form 24Q in the correct way:
- Step 1: The file will be applicable in ASCII format, and the filename extension will be ‘.txt’.
- Step 2: Every record that covers the previous record must start on a fresh line and end with a fresh line character. Here, the Hex values comprise OA & OD.
- Step 3: You should specify the constant values, namely ‘Upload Type’ and ‘Record Type’ in BLOCK letters. For ‘Record Type’, you will indicate ‘File header’ as ‘FH’ and not ‘fh’.
- Step 4: For amount fields, you can round off a decimal number up to 2 decimal places, for example, 9877.00 or 902.60. In specific amount fields for which fractional part is disallowed, the number must carry ‘.00’. For example, 2987 is disallowed, while 2987.00 is allowed.
- Step 5: While entering the TDS rate (DD), you have to round off a decimal number up to 4 decimal places. For instance, if 6 is the rate, then you’ll have to indicate it as 6.0000.
- Step 6: In this form, M denotes that it is mandatory to fill in a field, while O denotes that a field is optional.
- Step 7: The date format will be ‘DDMMYYYY’, and you shouldn’t enter a future date.
- Step 8: Transfer vouchers or nil challans should have deductee details with a flag B or A to be entered in the remarks for non-deduction or lower deduction.
- Step 9: You must submit Annexure II and Annexure I along with Form 24Q.
Due Dates to Submit Form 24Q
The following are the last dates of submitting Form 24Q:
| Quarter | Due Date |
| January – March | May 31 |
| October – December | January 31 |
| July – September | October 31 |
| April – June | July 31 |
The last date to file TDS return through Form 24Q for Q2 and Q1 of the financial year 2020-21 is March 31 2021.
Also Read: Section 194C Of The Income Tax Act
Final Word
It is mandatory for a taxpayer to file TDS returns for salary payments through Form 24Q. All firms and companies in India have to submit this form quarterly. TDS deduction helps to reduce tax evasion and increases the government’s revenue rapidly.
FAQs on Form 24Q
Yes, interests will be applicable in the following cases:
In case TDS isn’t deducted: 1% every month, from the last date of TDS deduction to the actual date of TDS deduction
In case TDS isn’t deposited: 1.5% every month, from the date of TDS deduction to the date of TDS payment
As per Section 234E of the Income Tax Act, 1961, a fee of Rs. 200 every day will be applicable until you file your TDS return. Such an amount is payable every day until the total fee turns equivalent to the amount of TDS.
Besides a fine under Section 234E, an assessing officer may levy a penalty amounting to Rs. 10,000 to Rs. 1,00,000 under Section 27IH. There will be no penalty in the following cases:
Return has been filed prior to the expiry of one year from the last date
Interest (if applicable) and late filing fine is deposited
TDS has been deposited with the government
You can submit Form 24Q along with the relevant documents online. It is mandatory to submit it online in the following cases:
If in a statement, records of tax deductees are 20 or above for a particular quarter of a fiscal year
In case a deductor’s books of accounts require auditing for the preceding year as per Section 44AB
If a deductor is the principal officer of a company
In case a government office is the deductor
The Income Tax Act, 1961 directs the tax collection procedure, and the CBDT (Central Board for Direct Taxes) manages the collection and processing of taxes. CBDT is a part of the Department of Revenue, Government of India.
A taxpayer who needs to declare TDS on salary will submit Form 24Q, while Form 26Q is applicable for declaring TDS on other income sources. The Sections 194LA, 194J, 194I, 194H, 194G, 194F, 194EE, 194D, 194C, 194BB, 194A, 194, and 193 along with rule 31A define income sources under Form 26Q.
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