How to Pay Income Tax Online

It is the duty of every eligible earning individual in the country to pay income tax, with the income tax department keeping a watchful eye on tax evaders. Paying taxes can be a burden, both financially and on our time, which is why the department has provided adequate provisions, ensuring that taxes are no longer something which people avoid.

Advance Tax:

Most of us pay advance tax on our income, ensuring that the overall tax liability is split up into portions, thereby reducing burden on us to pay a lump sum in one go. A look at our salary slips shows the amount deducted every month as tax, with this computation being done at an approximate level, but the actual tax liability can differ from the amount which has been deducted. There can be cases where the amount paid as advance tax is lesser than the actual tax which an individual should pay, in which case additional amounts need to be paid to clear dues.

A number of taxpayers self-assess their taxes, which are almost equal to the actual tax liability (in most cases), but there could be times when self-assessment goes off track, providing erroneous results. Again, this results in a situation where additional amounts need to be paid to clear tax dues after the IT return has been filed.

Procedure to Pay Due Income Tax:

Paying taxes are viewed as time consuming and complicated by most, and the thought of paying additional dues can make us extremely worried. This, however, isn’t the case, for the Income Tax Department has put sufficient measures in place to ensure that all dues can be paid quickly and without hassles. The IT Department also sends out notices and reminders to people who have taxes due, thereby ensuring that people are aware about their tax liability and can pay the same in order to avoid penalties in the future.

Individuals who are expected to pay their due taxes can do so by following the steps mentioned below.

• Step 1 - Login: Visit the official the income tax department (TIN NSDL website).
• Step 2 - E-payment: Click on the ‘e-payment’ section.
• Step 3 - Challan number 280: Click ‘Challan 280’ for paying your due income taxes.
• Step 4 - Form Fill up: Fill the form with all the necessary details, such as Permanent Account Number, assessment year, name, address, contact number and email id.
• Step 5 - Type of Tax: You need to then choose the kind of tax applicable, which is generally advance tax or tax on regular assessment. In your case, you need to select ‘tax on regular assessment’ since you may have already received an intimation to pay additional taxes from the Income Tax Department.
• Step 6 - Bank: Select the bank which you wish to pay the due income taxes through.
• Step 7 - Online Payment: Click the ‘proceed’ button to be directed to the online payment portal.
• Step 8 - Payment Gateway: Most banks payment gateways are different and will have several options for mode of online payment. So, complete the payment accordingly.
• Step 9 - Receipt of payment: A receipt will be instantly generated. You need to keep this receipt carefully in the form of a soft copy for later reference and communication with the department.

One can also choose to pay the tax offline, by visiting designated banks and paying the amount which is due, either in the form of cash or cheque. Individuals will have to collect the tax challan from the IT office, fill and submit it along with the requisite amounts.

Is it possible to pay the unpaid income tax online ?

Yes, it is possible to pay the unpaid income tax online. The Income Tax Department provides an option to make a payment for the unpaid tax through the online platform - http://www.tin-nsdl.com.

How to pay income tax via online banking ?

In order to pay income tax through online banking, follow these simple steps:

• Visit - http://www.tin-nsdl.com
• Under ‘Services’ click on ‘e-payment’ to pay taxes online or click on the tab ‘e-payment : Pay Taxes Online’
• Select the challan that is relevant for your income category from ITNS 280, ITNS 281, ITNS 282, ITNS 283, ITNS 284 or Form 26 QB demand payment (for TDS on property sale) as applicable.
• Enter the details of the PAN / TAN and other necessary challan details like accounting head under which payment is made, the address of the taxpayer and the bank through which payment is being made.
• Once you have submitted the details, a confirmation screen will be displayed. If PAN / TAN is verified as per the ITD PAN / TAN master, then the full name of the taxpayer will be displayed on the confirmation screen.
• After confirmation, the website will redirect you to your choose bank’s payment page. You can take advantage of your bank’s net banking services to complete the payment.
• You will require to login to your bank’s net-banking website with your user id and password to carry out the payment process.
• Once you have made the payment, you will receive a challan receipt that will include details fo CIN, payment details and bank’s name. You can save the receipt for future reference.

Check the income tax refund status online?

The refund process for online income tax takes around two to six month from the date of e-filing returns online. If you need to track the status of the refund, you can follow these steps:

• Login to the NSDL-TIN website
• Enter your PAN number and assessment year
• The status of your online income tax refund will be displayed on the screen

These are different kind of status that will see:

• Refund Status – Expired
• Refund Status – Refund Returned
• Refund Status – Processed through direct credit mode but failed
• Refund Status – Paid (Received the ECS refund advice but account not credited)
• Refund Status – Adjusted against outstanding demand from previous year
• Refund Status – Processed through NECS/NEFT and failed

What is the last date to pay income tax online?

The payment of advance taxes of income tax for individual and firms:

• 1st Payment of 30% - 15th September
• 2nd Payment of 60% - 15th December
• 3rd Payment of 100% - 15th March

The payment of advance taxes of income tax for companies:

• 1st Payment of 15% - 15th June
• 2nd Payment of 45% - 15th September
• 3rd Payment of 75% - 15th December
• 4th Payment of 100% - 15th March

Pay income tax online through debit/credit card

The IT department facilitate the website - http://www.tin-nsdl.com to make online income tax payments. An individual can choose to either use a debit or credit card to make the payment. After the individual has completed furnishing the required details, he/she will be redirected to their bank’s website (the individual can choose to make the unpaid income tax payment through ICICI Bank or HDFC Bank). The individual will require to login to their net bank account by using the user ID and password. The bank’s payment gateway will guide the individual in completing the payment process.

Things to Consider while paying Dues:

There are a few things one should consider while paying dues in order to avoid further hassles.

• PAN: It is imperative to enter the right Permanent account number.
• Verification: The completed form should be checked and verified to ensure there are no mistakes.
• Calculation: The amount due should be cross checked and individuals should calculate it themselves to ensure no mistakes creep in.
• Receipt: The receipt generated after the tax has been paid should be kept safe, as the challan identification number on it is useful for future correspondence with the department.