What Is Form 24Q — and Why Does It Matter Every Quarter?
Form 24Q is the quarterly TDS return that every employer must file for salary payments made under Section 192 of the Income Tax Act, 1961. Every time you deduct TDS from an employee’s salary — whether ₹500 or ₹50,000 — that deduction has to be reported to the government within 31 days of the quarter’s end.
For Q1 of FY 2026-27, that means you’re reporting every salary TDS deduction made between April 1 and June 30, 2026. The filing deadline is July 31, 2026.
Miss it, and Section 234E kicks in: ₹200 per day in late fees, capped at the total TDS amount. That’s not a warning — it’s a hard provision with no waiver unless you take it to a tribunal.
- Covers TDS on salary deducted between April 1 – June 30, 2026
- Deadline: July 31, 2026 — no extension announced
- Late filing penalty: ₹200/day under Section 234E
- New for FY 2026-27: New Tax Regime is the default for all employees who haven’t submitted a declaration
- File via TRACES using RPU (Return Preparation Utility) + FVU (File Validation Utility)
Who Must File Form 24Q?
Any person or entity responsible for deducting TDS on salary under Section 192 must file Form 24Q. This includes:
- Private limited companies and LLPs (even if you have only 5 salaried employees)
- Partnership firms and proprietorships paying salary above the basic exemption limit
- Trusts, NGOs, and educational institutions with salaried staff
- Factories, manufacturing units, and retail establishments
There is no turnover threshold. If you’re deducting TDS from even one employee’s salary, you must file Form 24Q every quarter — even if the deduction is zero for that quarter (you still need to file a nil return).
Q1 FY 2026-27: What Goes Into This Return?
Form 24Q has two annexures:
- Annexure I: Filed for Q1, Q2, and Q3. Contains deductor details, deductee (employee) details, and TDS challan information for the quarter.
- Annexure II: Filed only with the Q4 return. This is the comprehensive annual salary statement — it’s the data that ultimately generates Form 16 for your employees.
For Q1, you’re filing Annexure I only. You need to report:
- Salary paid to each employee in April, May, and June
- TDS deducted from each employee each month
- TDS challans paid via Challan ITNS 281 (BSR code, challan serial number, date, amount)
- PAN of each employee (mandatory — missing PAN attracts TDS at 20% under Section 206AA)
Step-by-Step: How to File Form 24Q Q1
Step 1 — Pay the TDS challan (if not done monthly)
Before you file the return, the TDS deducted must be deposited to the government. TDS on salary is due by the 7th of the following month (April TDS → May 7, May TDS → June 7, June TDS → July 7). If you’ve missed any payment, pay immediately via Challan ITNS 281 on the TIN-NSDL online payment portal — interest under Section 234A at 1.5% per month on late payment will apply, but filing is still necessary.
Step 2 — Download the Return Preparation Utility (RPU)
Go to TIN-NSDL’s e-TDS/TCS page and download the latest version of the RPU (Java-based). As of FY 2026-27, check for RPU version 5.x or higher — NSDL updates this periodically and using an outdated version leads to FVU validation errors.
Step 3 — Fill in the return in RPU
Open the RPU and select Form 24Q → Regular → Quarter Q1. Fill in:
- Deductor tab: Your company TAN, PAN, name, address, category (company/individual/etc.), assessment year (2026-27)
- Challan tab: One row per challan paid — BSR code of your bank branch, date of deposit, challan serial number, total TDS amount in that challan
- Deductee tab: One row per employee — PAN, name, salary paid in the quarter, TDS deducted, and the challan it maps to
Key tip: the sum of TDS in the deductee tab must exactly match the total across your challan entries. Even a ₹1 mismatch will cause the FVU to throw an error.
Step 4 — Validate with FVU
Once the RPU generates a .txt file, run it through the File Validation Utility (FVU) — also downloaded from TIN-NSDL. The FVU checks structural integrity, PAN validity, and challan-deductee mapping. Fix any errors flagged before proceeding. Common FVU errors: invalid PAN format (all caps, 10 characters required), challan amount mismatch, and wrong quarter code.
Step 5 — Upload to TRACES / TIN-NSDL portal
Log in at TRACES (tdscpc.gov.in) using your TAN credentials. Go to Statements / Payments → Upload TDS. Upload the validated .fvu file. You’ll receive a provisional receipt immediately and a final acceptance receipt within 24–48 hours via email and your TRACES inbox.
Keep the acknowledgement number safe — you’ll need it for any future rectification.
What’s New for FY 2026-27 That Affects Form 24Q
New Tax Regime is now the default. From FY 2025-26 onwards, the New Tax Regime is the default for all salaried employees. If an employee hasn’t submitted a declaration (Form 10-IEA) to opt for the Old Regime, you must compute and deduct TDS under the New Regime slabs. This directly affects how you calculate Q1 TDS.
New Tax Regime slabs for FY 2026-27:
| Annual Taxable Income | Tax Rate |
|---|---|
| Up to ₹3,00,000 | NIL |
| ₹3,00,001 – ₹7,00,000 | 5% |
| ₹7,00,001 – ₹10,00,000 | 10% |
| ₹10,00,001 – ₹12,00,000 | 15% |
| ₹12,00,001 – ₹15,00,000 | 20% |
| Above ₹15,00,000 | 30% |
The Section 87A rebate of ₹60,000 means employees with taxable income up to ₹12 lakh effectively pay zero tax under the New Regime (₹12 lakh + ₹75,000 standard deduction = ₹12.75 lakh gross salary before zero-tax threshold). Factor this into your projected annual TDS calculation for Q1.
Standard deduction of ₹75,000 is available under the New Regime. Ensure this is applied before computing TDS for each employee.
Common Mistakes HR Managers Make in Form 24Q — and How to Avoid Them
1. Mapping deductees to the wrong challan. If you paid TDS in two challans in Q1 (say, separately for April-May and June), each deductee entry must be linked to the right challan. Mixing them up doesn’t affect the total but causes a mismatched audit trail and can trigger a demand notice.
2. Using employee’s old PAN after marriage/name change. PAN is permanent and doesn’t change with name changes — but sometimes HR teams update PAN incorrectly in their systems. Verify PAN on the Income Tax portal before filing.
3. Not filing if TDS deducted was zero. If no employee crossed the TDS threshold in Q1, you still need to file a nil return. Skipping it means your TAN becomes marked as non-compliant, which creates problems during audits and loan applications.
4. Forgetting employees who left during the quarter. Any employee on your payroll even for a single day in April-June must be included in the Q1 return if salary was paid. A common miss is employees who resigned in April with F&F settlement — include them.
5. Not collecting Form 12BB from new joiners before deducting TDS. If a new hire joined in April and hasn’t submitted Form 12BB with their tax regime preference and investment declarations, you must default to the New Regime — don’t assume they’ll choose Old Regime just because their previous employer did.
6. Ignoring the challan deadline. Some HR teams assume they can pay TDS and file the return together before July 31. Wrong. TDS must be deposited by the 7th of the following month. Delayed payment attracts interest under Section 201(1A) at 1.5% per month — independent of the filing penalty under 234E.
Penalties: What You’re Looking At If You Miss July 31
| Default Type | Section | Penalty |
|---|---|---|
| Late filing of TDS return | Section 234E | ₹200 per day (max = TDS amount) |
| Non-filing / incorrect filing | Section 271H | ₹10,000 to ₹1,00,000 |
| Late payment of TDS challan | Section 201(1A) | 1.5% per month on TDS amount |
| Missing/invalid PAN of deductee | Section 206AA | TDS at higher of 20% or applicable rate |
Section 271H penalties (up to ₹1 lakh) are at the assessing officer’s discretion and typically triggered for repeated non-compliance or filing with deliberately wrong data. The ₹200/day under 234E, however, is automatic and non-negotiable.
FAQ: Form 24Q Q1 FY 2026-27
Q: Is there an online way to file Form 24Q without downloading RPU?
A: As of now, the RPU + FVU method via TRACES upload is the standard route. Some payroll software like EZHRM auto-generates the validated .fvu file directly, eliminating the manual RPU step and reducing errors significantly.
Q: What if I made a mistake in my Q1 return after filing?
A: You can file a correction statement on TRACES. Go to Statements / Payments → Request for Conso File → download the consolidated file → make corrections in RPU → re-upload. There’s no penalty for corrections if done before assessment.
Q: Do I need to file Form 24Q if I have only one employee?
A: Yes. The filing obligation applies from the first salaried employee onwards, irrespective of company size. Even a 3-person startup paying one employee a taxable salary must file quarterly.
Q: Can I file Form 24Q on my own or do I need a CA?
A: You can file it yourself using the RPU and FVU tools — both are free downloads. Most HR managers at SMEs do this in-house. A CA adds value only when there are complex situations like perquisites, ESOPs, or multiple TDS challans with partial payments.
Q: What is Form 26AS and how does it connect to Form 24Q?
A: Form 26AS is the annual tax statement for employees — it shows all TDS deducted on their behalf. Once you file your Form 24Q, the TDS entries appear in your employees’ Form 26AS within 3–5 working days. Employees use this to file their own ITR. If you file late, their Form 26AS won’t reflect the credits, and they’ll face issues at their end — which means angry employees coming to HR asking why their tax credit isn’t showing.
Q: What happens if an employee switches regimes mid-year?
A: An employee can switch between New and Old Regime only once per financial year, and only at the time of filing their ITR (not mid-year via employer). However, they can ask you to recompute TDS during the year by submitting a revised Form 12BB. Adjust the Q2 deduction accordingly; don’t revise Q1 just for this.
If you’re managing TDS for 20+ employees, manually filling the RPU each quarter is a time-sink — and one wrong PAN or challan mapping can land you in a mess. EZHRM’s TDS & Form 16 module auto-generates your Form 24Q-ready file each quarter, pulls challan data from your payroll runs, and validates everything before you upload. Worth a look if you’re spending more than an hour on this every quarter.