Tax
What is Form 26QB?
The form the buyer has to file — and the deadline that quietly accrues a penalty of ₹200 a day while nobody is looking.
The short answer
Form 26QB is how a property buyer pays the 1% TDS deducted under Section 194-IA, when buying from a resident for ₹50 lakh or more.
The BUYER files it. Not the seller. Not the builder. You.
Within 30 days of the end of the month in which you made the payment. Late, and a fee of ₹200 a day accrues — against you.
What Form 26QB is
A challan-cum-statement. It is both the return that reports the TDS and the challan that pays it, in one online form.
You use it when:
- You are buying immovable property
- The consideration is ₹50 lakh or more
- The seller is a RESIDENT
You do not need a TAN for this — your PAN is enough. That is the whole point of 26QB: it exists so that ordinary individual buyers can comply without registering as a tax deductor.
The deadline — and the penalty
You made a payment to the seller on 10 March. The month ends on 31 March. Your deadline is 30 April.
Miss it, and a late-filing fee of ₹200 per day accrues under Section 234E — until it equals the TDS amount.
Plus interest on the unpaid TDS, at 1% or 1.5% per month.
And it is the buyer's liability. The seller is unaffected. You are the one the department writes to.
How to file it
- Go to the Income Tax e-filing portal (or TIN-NSDL). Find Form 26QB under e-Pay Tax.
- Enter both PANs — yours and the seller's. Get the seller's PAN in writing; without it you must deduct at a much higher rate.
- Enter the property details, the total consideration, the date of agreement and the date of payment.
- The form computes the 1% TDS.
- Pay — net banking, or generate a challan and pay at a bank.
- Save the acknowledgement.
- A few days later, download Form 16B from TRACES.
- Give Form 16B to the seller. They need it to claim the credit.
Form 16B — and why the seller will chase you for it
Form 16B is the TDS certificate. It is the seller's proof that the 1% you deducted was actually paid to the government on their behalf.
Without it, the seller cannot claim the credit in their return — and they have effectively lost 1% of the sale price.
Download it and give it to them. It takes five minutes and it is the last thing you owe them.
Paying in instalments — file 26QB EACH TIME
You are on a construction-linked plan. You make eight payments over three years.
You must deduct TDS and file Form 26QB on EACH ONE. Not once at the end.
Eight payments, eight 26QBs, each within 30 days of the end of its month.
People file one 26QB at the end and discover a penalty running back three years. Set a reminder each time you pay an instalment.
If the seller is an NRI — 26QB does NOT apply
Section 194-IA and Form 26QB apply where the seller is a RESIDENT.
If the seller is a non-resident, Section 195 applies instead:
• No ₹50 lakh threshold
• A much higher rate, generally on the whole sale consideration
• You need a TAN
• You file Form 27Q, not 26QB
And if you get this wrong, the shortfall is YOUR liability — while the seller is abroad with your money. Establish the seller's residential status in writing, with a passport copy, before you pay anything.
We have written this against the current position and checked it carefully. But tax turns entirely on your specific facts: your residential status, when you bought, when you sell, which regime you are on, and what else is in your return.
Note also that the Income Tax Act, 2025 now replaces the 1961 Act, and section numbering is changing even where the substance is not. We use the familiar numbers — 54, 54F, 24(b), 80C — because those are what people search for and what CAs still say. Confirm the current section references with your accountant.
Before you sell a property, pay a CA. On a transaction this size it is the best-value fee you will ever pay, and the cost of getting it wrong runs to lakhs.
Frequently asked questions
What is Form 26QB?
A challan-cum-statement used by a property buyer to deposit the 1% TDS deducted under Section 194-IA, when buying from a resident for Rs 50 lakh or more. The BUYER files it, not the seller, and no TAN is needed — your PAN is enough.
What is the deadline for filing Form 26QB?
Within 30 days of the END OF THE MONTH in which you made the payment. Pay on 10 March, and the deadline is 30 April. Miss it and a late fee of Rs 200 a day accrues under Section 234E, plus interest on the unpaid TDS — and it is the buyer's liability, not the seller's.
Do I need to file Form 26QB for each instalment?
Yes. If you are paying in stages on a construction-linked plan, you must deduct TDS and file a separate Form 26QB on EACH payment, each within 30 days of the end of its month. People file one at the end and discover a penalty running back three years.
What is Form 16B?
The TDS certificate you download from TRACES a few days after filing Form 26QB, and give to the seller. It is their proof that the 1% you deducted was actually paid to the government on their behalf — without it, they cannot claim the credit, and have effectively lost 1% of the sale price.
Does Form 26QB apply if the seller is an NRI?
No. Form 26QB and Section 194-IA apply only where the seller is a RESIDENT. If the seller is a non-resident, Section 195 applies instead: no Rs 50 lakh threshold, a much higher rate generally on the whole sale consideration, you need a TAN, and you file Form 27Q. Getting this wrong makes the shortfall your liability as the buyer.