TDS (Tax Deducted at Source) is an indirect system of deduction of tax according to the Income Tax Act, 1961 at the point of generation of income. Tax is deducted by the payer and is remitted to the government by him on behalf of the payee.

A TDS Return is a quarterly statement which has to be submitted to the Income Tax Department of India. Submitting TDS Return is mandatory if you are a deductor. It has details of TDS deducted and deposited by you.

It is mandatory that the TDS returns are submitted on time by the deductors. Filing of TDS returns can be completed online. Once the TDS returns have been submitted online, the details will come up on the payee’s Form 26AS. The various details that are required when filing TDS returns are mentioned below:

• The deductee’s and deductor’s Permanent Account Number (PAN) details.
• Information on the TDS challan.
• The amount of tax that was paid to the government.
• Any other relevant information if needed.

Filing TDS Return

The step-by-step process to file TDS Returns online is mentioned below:

• Form 27A must be filled completely
• The tax deducted at source and the total amount that has been paid must be correctly filled and should be tallied in their respective forms.
• The TAN of the organization that is filing the TDS returns must be mentioned on Form 27A.
• The appropriate challan number, the mode of payment, and the tax details must be mentioned on the TDS returns.
• The basic form that is used for filing e-TDS must be used as it would bring consistency. The 7-digit BSR must be entered so that the tallying becomes easy.
• Physical TDS returns must be submitted at the TIN-FC. The NSDL manages all TIN-FCs. In case returns are filed online, they can be submitted on the official website of the NSDL TIN.
• A level 2 digital signature must be used by the deductor in case TDS returns are filed online.
• In case all the information that have been provided are correct, a token number or provisional receipt will be received. This acknowledgement works as a confirmation that the TDS Returns have been filed. In case the TDS Returns are rejected, a non-acceptance memo along with the reasons for the rejection is issued. In such cases, the TDS Returns must be filed again.

What are the eligibility criteria for filing TDS Return?

Organizations and employers who have a valid Tax Deduction and Collection Account Number (TAN) can file TDS returns. TDS must be filed for the below-mentioned payments that have been mentioned under the Income Tax Act:

• Salary payment
• Any gains that have been generated by winning puzzles, lotteries, and similar types of games.
• Insurance commission
• Any income that has been generated by Income on Securities.
• Income that has been generated by winning horse races.
• Payments that have been made towards National Savings Scheme and any other similar schemes.

Procedure for validation of TDS Returns?

The procedure for the validation of the TDS Returns is mentioned below:

• First, the relevant details must be mentioned in the file.
• Once the details have been filled, it must be updated on the validation utility tool that is available on the portal.
• The tool is available on the NSDL website and is available for free.
• In case there are any errors in the file, the File Validation Utility (FVU) will report the error.
• The required changes must be made on the file before sending it through the verification process again.