Form 24Q: quarterly TDS return on salaries

What is Form 24Q?

Form 24Q is the quarterly statement filed by every TDS deductor on salary payments under Section 192. It reports — for each employee — the salary paid, exemptions applied, deductions claimed, and tax deducted and deposited during the quarter. The return is filed electronically (e-TDS) through TIN-FCs or the Income Tax e-filing portal after validation through the File Validation Utility (FVU).

Annexure I and Annexure II

• Annexure I is filed in every quarter and contains challan details (BSR, date, amount) and deductee-wise TDS for the quarter.
• Annexure II is filed only in the fourth quarter (Q4) and contains the full salary, exemption, deduction and tax computation for each employee for the entire financial year. This is what powers Part A and Part B of Form 16.

Due dates

• Q1 (Apr–Jun): 31 July
• Q2 (Jul–Sep): 31 October
• Q3 (Oct–Dec): 31 January
• Q4 (Jan–Mar): 31 May

Late filing attracts a fee of ₹200 per day under Section 234E until the return is filed (capped at the TDS amount). Continued delay can also attract penalty under Section 271H of ₹10,000 to ₹1,00,000.

Filing process

1. Compile data: employee PAN, salary heads, exemptions, deductions, TDS deducted, challan details.
2. Generate text file from your payroll software in the prescribed file format (currently FVU 8.6).
3. Validate via FVU — the utility checks for structural errors and PAN syntax.
4. Generate the .fvu file (and Form 27A signed cover page).
5. Upload through the Income Tax e-filing portal (DSC/EVC), via a TIN-FC, or through ERIs.
6. Track status on TRACES — the return moves through Verified → Booked.

Common 24Q errors and how to avoid them

• PAN errors: any single invalid PAN flags the deductee as "PAN not available" and TDS is treated at 20% — high-risk for the employee.
• Challan mismatch: challan BSR or serial number entered wrong; the challan won't link, leading to TDS not reflecting in Form 26AS.
• Section code mismatch: using 92A vs 92B vs 92C incorrectly. 92B is the default for salaries to individuals.
• Annexure II missing in Q4: Form 16 cannot be generated until Q4 is correctly filed with Annexure II.
• Regime not declared correctly: the regime opted should match what was used in monthly computation.

Correction returns

Once a 24Q is processed, corrections (additions, deletions, modifications) require a correction statement using the conso file from TRACES. C1 (deductor details), C2 (challan details), C3 (deductee details), C4 (salary details), C5 (PAN updates) — each addresses a specific kind of fix. Correction statements have no due date but earlier is always better.

Form 24Q and Form 16 / 26AS

• Form 24Q Annexure I + Annexure II is what produces Form 16 (Parts A and B).
• Form 26AS picks up TDS only after the challan is matched and the return is processed.
• If an employee says "TDS shown in payslip but missing in 26AS", the root cause is almost always a 24Q error — wrong PAN, wrong challan, or unprocessed return.

How Texlaculture files 24Q

• Maintains all deductor and deductee master data with PAN validation.
• Tracks every monthly challan and links it back to the deductee-wise breakup.
• Generates the FVU-ready text file with Annexure I (Q1–Q4) and Annexure II (Q4).
• Surfaces PAN errors and challan mismatches before filing — not after.
• Maintains a correction-ready archive linked to the original returns.