As a citizen of India, you are required to pay taxes regularly. One such type of tax is known as Tax Deducted at Source (TDS). Essentially, TDS is the tax deducted from the payments such as interest, rent, commission, salary etc. The person who makes such payments (deductor) deducts on your behalf and deposits with the Government. The rate at which Tax is deducted at source depends on the type of income and amount of income. An essential component for proof of deduction of tax is the TDS certificate issued by the deductor. Continue reading to understand how to get your TDS certificate online.
Who can deduct TDS?
Since the deductor (the person who is deducting tax) is mandated to provide TDS certificates to the deductee (the person from whose payment the tax is deducted), you must know who is your deductor. The following list will provide you a few instances regarding when tax can be deducted at source and by whom:
If you are earning any interest income from Bank deposits, then the Bank shall deduct tax at source from the interest income, provided it exceeds the limit of ₹ 40,000 (₹ 50,000 for senior citizen).
If you a resident earning rental income from immovable property of more than ₹50,000 per month from an individual or HUF member, then a TDS of 5% shall be deducted from the rental income.
Your employer will deduct tax at source from your salary income according to the income tax slab rates.
You do not have to pay any tax if you provide investment proof to your employer and show that your total income is below the taxable threshold, that is ₹2,50,000. On the same grounds, you can submit Form 15G and 15H to your bank for TDS exemption on the interest income from bank deposits.
What is a TDS certificate?
TDS certificates are issued by deductor (the person who is deducting tax) to the deductee (the person from whose payment the tax is deducted). TDS certificates can be of two types; Form 16 (for TDS on Salary), and Form 16A (for TDS on non-Salary payments).
As per Section 203 of the Income Tax Act, 1961, you are entitled to receive a certificate whenever a tax is deducted at source on you income. This certificate must be provided to you by the deductor and must display the amount of TDS. Please find below the process for availing of a TDS certificate for salaried and non-salaried class:
Salaried class: If you are a salaried employee, your employer must provide you with Form 16. This form must have mentioned the amount that has been deducted from your salary as TDS. Further, Form 16 contains details like total TDS, details of the salary income including perquisites, deductions from total income (if any), and tax computation. Your employer has to issue this form before 15th June of the following financial year.
Non-salaried class: The deductor, whoever they may be, has to provide you with Form 16A. This form also contains details like amount of TDS, amount of payment made by such deductor, etc. Your deductor has to issue this form quarterly, within 15 days of the due date of furnishing the TDS return.
How to get a TDS certificate online?
If you are wondering how to get Form 16/16A, then follow the steps given below:
The deductor must log into the TDS Reconciliation Analysis and Correction Enabling System (TRACES) by clicking here.
Here, they have to go to the ‘downloads’ tab.
Next, they can select the Form the deductor wishes to download (Form 16/16A).
Thereafter, one have to select the financial year, quarter and Form type (Form 26Q/27Q) and the PAN of the deductee for whom the Form is required. The deductor can request for Form 16/16A using the option ‘Search PAN’ or ‘Bulk PAN’. Once, the details are selected, click on ‘Go’.
The details of the Authorised Person will appear on the screen. These details would be printed on Form 16/16A. Therafter click on ‘Submit’.
Thereafter, select ‘Digital Signature Support KYC validation’ if they want to use KYC validation using DSC or select ‘Normal KYC Validation (without Digital Signature)’ if they want to use KYC validation without using DSC.
Thereafter, enter the Token number of the TDS Return filed for the relevant quarter of the financial year, and form type selected in step above. Enter the challan details – BSR Code, challan serial number, challan amount, date on which tax is deposited. Enter unique PAN-Amount combination – Enter PAN as entered in TDS Return and amount deposited and thereafter, click on ‘Proceed’.
Thereafter, ‘Download Request Confirmation’ page shall appear which will give a request number for requested Form 16/16A.
Therafter, you can download a zip file from section ‘requested Downloads’ under tab ‘Downloads’ once it is available.
To obtain the requested Form 16/16A, enter the ‘request number’ or ‘request date’ or ‘view all’ option. Select the applicable row. If the status is ‘Available‘, click on the ‘HTTP download’. Thereafter, a zip file is downloaded. Do not extract the file. To generate Form 16A in PDF format, TRACES Generation Utility shall have to be downloaded.
In TRACES Generation Utility, select zip file of Form 16/16A and enter the TAN as the password for the input file. Then, select the folder to save the output pdf file. Select digital certificate to digitally sign the PDF files. This is not mandatory. Thereafter, click on the button ‘Proceed’ to save Form 16/16A.
That is it! In above easy steps, your deductor can download the TDS certificate that they have to provide to you. Now that you know more about how to get Form 16/16A online make sure your deductor furnishes the same.
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Read more about Form 16 by clicking here.
*Terms and conditions apply. The information provided in this article is generic in nature and for informational purposes only. It is not a substitute for specific advice in your own circumstances. You are recommended to obtain specific professional advice from before you take any/refrain from any action. Tax benefits are subject to changes in tax laws. Please contact your tax consultant for an exact calculation of your tax liabilities.