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ADVANCE TAX ESTIMATE · INSTALMENT REVIEW · E-PAY TAX SUPPORT
Advance tax is a pay-as-you-earn obligation, not a separate income tax return. Online Tax Filings helps individuals, professionals and businesses assess advance-tax liability, consider eligible tax credits, review statutory instalments and check payment records under the correct income-tax law. A reliable estimate can change when income changes—so each calculation must use the relevant tax year, actual facts and applicable provisions.
✓ Liability & credit review
✓ Instalment planning
✓ Challan support
ESTIMATE · VERIFY · PAY
Assess all expected sources and tax treatment.
Subtract eligible tax credits, not assumed credits.
Match cumulative payments and challan records.
✓ Correct tax-year selection
✓ Instalment shortfall review
✓ Payment record matching
INDIVIDUALS · PROFESSIONALS · BUSINESSES
Share your taxpayer category, applicable tax year and broad income types. We can explain the records needed to estimate liability, review applicable instalments and check the tax payment route. Please do not share passwords, OTPs or full identity numbers in an enquiry.
For your privacy, do not put PAN/Aadhaar numbers, passwords, OTPs, detailed salary slips, bank statements or investment account numbers in the public enquiry form. Discuss secure document sharing after initial contact.
Tell us which tax year you are paying for, your estimated income mix, existing TDS/TCS and any advance-tax payments already made.
IN-DEPTH ADVANCE TAX ASSISTANCE GUIDE
This guide focuses on estimating and paying advance tax rather than repeating ITR filing or tax-planning services. It explains the 1961/2025 Act transition, statutory instalment percentages, presumptive taxation, e-Pay Tax challans, interest considerations and documentation.
Advance tax is income tax paid during the year in which income is earned, based on an estimate of liability rather than waiting until the income-tax return is prepared. It is relevant where taxes deducted or collected at source do not sufficiently cover the estimated amount payable. It is not a second tax; properly recorded payments are generally taken into account against the year’s final liability.
The starting point is a defensible estimate of income, applicable rates, reliefs and eligible credits. The estimate may be revised as salary changes, business profits, investment receipts or property transactions become known. The objective is correct periodic compliance—not an artificial fixed monthly payment.
Tax paid during the income year.
Individuals and eligible entities.
Withholding may not cover all tax.
Keep every payment acknowledgment.
Practical note: The annual ITR is a separate filing obligation; an advance-tax challan does not substitute for an ITR.
For income earned in FY 2025–26, relevant obligations and consequential advance-tax interest are governed by the Income-tax Act, 1961, with AY 2026–27 selected for the related payment or return. For income earned from 1 April 2026 through 31 March 2027, use Tax Year 2026–27 and the Income-tax Act, 2025. The applicable law depends on the income period—not merely the calendar date on which a payment is made.
During the transition, the Income Tax e-Filing portal supports both legal frameworks. Before creating any challan, cross-check the income period and whether the portal is asking for an Assessment Year or a Tax Year. A payment against the wrong year can complicate credit matching.
Old Act; select AY 2026–27.
New Act; select TY 2026–27.
Confirm before paying.
Match challan with correct year.
Practical note: Do not enter AY 2026–27 in place of Tax Year 2026–27; they refer to different income periods.
Under section 404 of the Income-tax Act, 2025, the general advance-tax threshold is ₹10,000 or more of tax payable as computed under the advance-tax provisions. A comparable threshold applied under section 208 of the 1961 Act. Taxpayer status, eligible withholding credits, applicable rebates and exclusions all matter; turnover or salary by itself is not a substitute for calculating tax payable.
The exemption for a resident individual aged 60 or above without income from a business or profession is recognised under the earlier law; when considering a specific taxpayer, verify the applicable law and eligibility rather than treating age alone as an automatic exemption. Businesses, professionals, salaried persons with other income and investors may need an assessment.
Generally ₹10,000 tax payable.
Check additional untaxed income.
Estimate profits and tax credits.
Verify statutory exemption criteria.
Practical note: The threshold is based on tax payable after the applicable advance-tax computation, not on gross receipts or deposits.
Prepare a tax-year-specific projection that includes salary and incentives, house-property income, business or professional profits, interest, dividends, taxable capital gains and other relevant receipts. Use reasonable assumptions supported by existing records, rather than simply repeating last year’s taxable income.
Irregular events require special attention: a change in employment, bonus, property sale, volatile professional revenue or one-off asset transaction can move the estimate materially. Distinguish taxable income from cash inflows such as loans, capital contributions and reimbursements, and apply the correct category and regime rules.
Salary plus known variable pay.
Realistic profit projection.
Interest, dividends and gains.
Review rental and irregular receipts.
Practical note: Forecast income can be updated during the year; write down what changed and why.
Calculate tax on projected income at the rates and under the regime applicable to the taxpayer and tax year. Consider lawful reliefs, rebates and other adjustments for which the taxpayer qualifies. Then account for the tax deducted or collected at source that can be recognised for the relevant income and period under the applicable computation rules.
For Tax Year 2026–27, section 405 of the Income-tax Act, 2025 expresses the computation as tax on the specified income less eligible TDS/TCS. A credit cannot safely be assumed merely because a payer said deduction would occur; evaluate documentary support and portal information and reconcile later.
Apply correct law and rates.
Use amounts supportable by records.
Assess source and year.
Compute net amount to schedule.
Practical note: An overstated TDS assumption can create a late-year advance-tax shortfall.
For most taxpayers, section 408 of the Income-tax Act, 2025 sets cumulative advance-tax targets: at least 15% by 15 June, 45% by 15 September, 75% by 15 December and 100% by 15 March. Amounts already paid under earlier instalments reduce the additional amount payable at the next checkpoint. The basic pattern continues from the earlier law.
For example, with an estimated annual advance-tax balance of ₹80,000, the cumulative targets would be ₹12,000, ₹36,000, ₹60,000 and ₹80,000 on the respective dates. These are illustrative arithmetic targets, not a personalised tax computation. Review the estimate after material changes and verify any statutory exception.
15% cumulative.
45% cumulative.
75% cumulative.
100% cumulative.
Practical note: The percentages are cumulative; do not pay 15% + 45% + 75% + 100% as four separate additional amounts.
Certain eligible taxpayers using presumptive taxation follow a distinct advance-tax schedule. Under section 408(2) of the Income-tax Act, 2025, assessees declaring profits under the specified section 58(2) categories pay the entire advance-tax amount on or before 15 March of the relevant financial year. The earlier Act provided the corresponding approach for eligible sections 44AD and 44ADA cases.
First confirm that the person and the activity actually qualify for the presumptive provisions. The single-instalment rule should not be extended to every small business, firm, freelancer or company merely because accounting is simple. Income types outside the eligible presumptive framework may require separate scrutiny.
Check statutory scheme conditions.
100% on or before 15 March.
Do not assume all SMEs qualify.
Maintain method and tax estimate.
Practical note: The provision is a statutory payment rule, not an invitation to ignore tax projections until year-end.
On the Income Tax Department’s e-Filing portal, open e-Pay Tax and initiate a new payment or challan. Choose the correct Act/period, tax category, advance-tax payment type and required tax breakup, then select an available payment mode. The portal guides users through generating a challan reference number (CRN) and completing the transaction.
Before confirming, verify PAN, taxpayer type, tax year, minor head and amount. Depending on the portal flow, payment may be available through net banking, debit card, bank counter, RTGS/NEFT or payment gateway. Available methods and page labels can change; follow current portal instructions rather than screenshots copied from prior years.
Choose right Act and tax year.
Advance Tax, not Self-Assessment.
Validate all displayed fields.
Save proof after payment succeeds.
Practical note: A generated CRN is not proof that money was received; check the final paid status and receipt.
A challan request identifies a proposed tax payment, while bank confirmation and the completed payment record establish whether it succeeded. Save the challan receipt and any transaction reference. If the bank debited the amount but the portal still shows a pending status, investigate using the portal’s help process and transaction evidence rather than immediately assuming the payment failed.
After payment, compare the receipt details against the selected period and amounts. Organise records by date, tax year and challan reference. During return preparation, the credit should reconcile to the relevant tax payment information; a genuine payment against the wrong year may require a correction workflow.
Generated payment reference.
Confirm successful tax payment.
Review status after transaction.
Document and resolve carefully.
Practical note: Avoid retrying the same pending transaction without checking bank and portal records; duplicates can be difficult to unwind.
An advance-tax estimate should be dynamic. A larger sales order, unexpected capital gain, reduced business profit, job change or new rental income may alter the net tax payable. Compare the updated estimate to instalments already paid and determine the additional amount required at the next statutory checkpoint.
Maintain a simple change log: original income forecast, revised income by category, credits considered, amount already paid and the reason for revision. This improves clarity if an instalment appears lower than an earlier target or the final return computes a different total.
Update after major transactions.
Reconcile fresh withholding.
Deduct actual advance tax paid.
Recalculate cumulative shortfall.
Practical note: The goal is to reflect real income, not to manipulate estimates to meet a preferred challan figure.
Failure to pay sufficient advance tax or to satisfy prescribed instalment conditions can result in statutory interest. For periods governed by the 1961 Act, sections 234B and 234C are relevant. Under the 2025 Act, the corresponding rules are in sections 424 and 425. The Income Tax Department explains that the new Act does not make a policy change to the principal advance-tax interest approach.
The interest calculation differs between annual default and instalment deferment and may depend on statutory thresholds, percentages and exceptions, including some forms of unexpectedly arising income. Do not use a simple flat annual penalty assumption; examine the taxpayer’s payment dates, return figures and law applicable to that income period.
Sections 234B and 234C.
Sections 424 and 425.
Separate annual and instalment tests.
Review exact eligible scenarios.
Practical note: Service fees are separate from statutory interest; this page does not promise or quote either.
Some income arises after earlier advance-tax checkpoints—for example, a capital gain from a later asset disposal or another genuinely unpredictable receipt. That does not mean the transaction can be omitted from the annual estimate. The relevant statutory instalment-relief and interest provisions may recognise the timing of specified income if the required tax is paid in the prescribed manner.
Collect the transaction date, documents, consideration and cost records, estimated tax and payment evidence. Analyse the applicable year’s provision before concluding that earlier instalment shortfall interest does not apply. The relief for one type of receipt should not be assumed for every unexpected source.
Document when income arose.
Classify gain or other receipt.
Compute tax under correct rules.
Apply relevant statutory exception.
Practical note: Special-case interest relief is fact-specific; never rely solely on a generic online calculator.
Advance tax is a taxpayer’s estimated payment during the earning year. TDS/TCS is tax deducted or collected by another person according to applicable rules. Self-assessment tax is generally the balance paid when final return computations show an amount due after considering available credits. These are distinct payment concepts and should not be selected interchangeably on a challan.
For a correct account, maintain three separate tracks: source withholding, advance-tax payment receipts and final return adjustment. For the transition period, the same date can feature self-assessment tax under the 1961 Act for an older year and advance tax under the 2025 Act for the current tax year. Selecting the right period is therefore essential.
Estimated tax paid during year.
Withholding or collection at source.
Balance on final computation.
Confirm credit belongs to period.
Practical note: A tax payment can be made successfully but still be assigned to the wrong category or period.
A practical review may use salary estimates and payslips, Form 16 or available payroll TDS information, business profit projections, bank interest summaries, rental statements, capital gain computation records and previous advance-tax challans. Not every document is needed for every taxpayer; collect only what relates to the actual income mix and tax category.
Cross-check payment records and relevant tax-information statements available for the applicable year. For Tax Year 2026–27, the Department states that the new Form 168 evolves from the earlier AIS framework, so documentation labels may differ across years. Sensitive identifiers, passwords and OTPs should never be entered into a basic web enquiry form.
Pay, interest, rent or profits.
TDS/TCS information.
CRN and successful receipts.
Use secure document exchange.
Practical note: Start with summary figures; share full supporting records only via an appropriate secure process when genuinely necessary.
Frequent errors include selecting AY instead of Tax Year, forgetting non-salary income, counting the same TDS credit twice, treating instalment percentages as separate additional payments, assuming presumptive-tax eligibility without checking conditions and mistaking a generated challan for a completed payment.
A short pre-payment checklist prevents most problems: confirm income period and governing law, update projected taxable income, review credit support, calculate the cumulative due amount, deduct confirmed payments, verify portal year and minor head, and retain the final receipt. After payment, re-check status before scheduling the next instalment.
Check period before payment.
Review all taxable categories.
Use cumulative instalments.
Confirm successful bank posting.
Practical note: The safest payment is one supported by a written estimate and a verified final receipt.
It is estimated income tax paid during the income year against the taxpayer’s ultimate tax liability. It is distinct from ITR filing and from tax withheld by a payer.
Under section 404 of the Income-tax Act, 2025, advance tax generally becomes payable when tax payable as computed under the relevant provisions is ₹10,000 or more. Earlier-year obligations should be checked under the earlier law.
For most liable taxpayers, cumulative targets are 15% by 15 June, 45% by 15 September, 75% by 15 December and 100% by 15 March, subject to applicable exceptions.
No. Percentages represent cumulative tax paid by that date. Subtract amounts already paid to calculate the additional tax required at the current checkpoint.
Yes. Relevant qualifying presumptive-tax taxpayers have a single 100% advance-tax instalment by 15 March. Confirm eligibility and the specific provision for the correct year.
No. Salary withholding may be adequate, but additional taxable interest, rent, gains or other income can create a balance that needs advance-tax review.
For income of FY 2025–26, select AY 2026–27 under the 1961 Act. For advance tax on FY 2026–27 income, select Tax Year 2026–27 under the 2025 Act.
Certain resident senior citizens with no business or professional income may qualify for exemption under the applicable law. Age and residency alone are not enough; review the actual year and income sources.
Recalculate the total tax, available credits and instalments already paid, then assess the additional amount required at the upcoming due date. Special income timing provisions may be relevant.
Under the 1961 Act, sections 234B and 234C are relevant. For Tax Year 2026–27 onward, the corresponding sections in the 2025 Act are 424 and 425; the facts determine whether interest applies.
No. Verify that the payment shows as successful and retain the final challan receipt. A CRN by itself can represent a generated but unpaid challan.
Yes, the service described here concerns advance-tax estimates, applicable instalments, payment guidance and reconciliation. ITR filing is a separately listed service and should not be assumed to be included.
The following Income Tax Department resources cover the 2025 Act transition, advance-tax threshold, calculation, instalment dates, e-Pay Tax payment options and generating a challan. Check the applicable year and latest portal instructions before making a payment.
Legal transition: FY 2025–26 / AY 2026–27 uses the Income-tax Act, 1961. FY 2026–27 / Tax Year 2026–27 uses the Income-tax Act, 2025. Confirm the period and the law selected in e-Pay Tax.
Online Tax Filings assists with advance-tax estimates, tax-year selection, reviewing TDS/TCS credits, applying relevant statutory instalment rules and checking payment information. We can discuss what calculations and supporting records your situation needs before the next payment checkpoint.
Send a brief summary of your taxpayer type, estimated income mix, tax year and previously paid advance tax. We will identify the information relevant to a personalised review. Service fees and turnaround times are not included here.
Please do not submit OTPs, passwords or complete PAN/Aadhaar numbers in a general enquiry. Use secure channels for sensitive documents when necessary.
PAYMENT REVIEW · INSTALMENTS · CHALLAN CHECK
Review expected income, TDS/TCS credits, statutory instalment targets and evidence of completed payments.
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