It is true for a fact that a buyer is subjected to multiple taxes while purchasing a property; but what one cannot ignore, however, is that multiple tax liabilities subsequently are imposed on the seller of the property too. One of such taxes is the TDS or the tax required to be deducted at source at the time of the sale. TDS payments are dealt with under section 194 and sub-sections 191 IA, 194 IB of the Income Tax. Before we get to understanding the section or the sub-sections, let’s first address the elephant in the room: TDS.
TDS, also known as tax deducted at source, is a form of a tax that is deducted as soon as a certain income is received by a person. TDS is typically deducted by the remitter of the income and then deposited to the Income Tax Department.
Sections 194IA and 194IB of the income tax deal with taxes with respect to buying or selling of property. Under these sections, TDS on the purchase of a property has to be deducted by the payer of the rent and the buyer of the property respectively.
Effective since 2013, sections 194IA and 194IB of the income tax essentially define that “a buyer of an immovable property that costs more than Rs.50 lakhs is required to deduct TDS while paying the seller.”
It should be hence noted that the responsibility of deducting the TDS amount and of submission of the taxes to the income tax department lies on the buyer. In case the buyer fails to deduct and submit the due TDS on purchase of a property, penal actions can lawfully be initiated against the buyer.
“Any person, being a transferee, responsible for paying to a resident transferor any sum by way of consideration, for the transfer of any immovable property (other than agricultural land), shall, at the time of credit of such sum to the account of the transferor or at the time of payment of such sum in cash or by the issue of a cheque or draft or by any other mode, whichever is earlier, deduct an amount equal to 1% of such sum as income-tax thereon,” quotes the Section 194IA of the Income Tax Act.
TDS on the sale of a property is at 1% for all transactions after March 31, 2021. For transactions carried out from 14 May 2020 to 31 March 2021, however, the TDS education was at 0.75%. It should also be noted that no TDS is required to be dedicated for the sale of properties that cost less than 50 Lakhs.
Apart from the basics that TDS cannot be charged on the sale of properties for less than 50 lakhs and that the TDS is to be deducted + submitted by the buyer, here are a few more factors considered for the applicability of section 194 IA of the income tax-
TDS on purchase of a property under section 194 IA of the income tax needs to be made using Form 26QB.
As per section 194B of the income tax act, individuals or Hindu Undivided Families (who aren’t liable for audit under Section 44AB) can deduct TDS for rent payment made to an Indian resident. However, the total rent amount needs to be more than Rs.50,000 per month for this tax to be applicable.
“Rent” under section 194 IB can be defined as any payment made for a lease, tenancy, sub-lease, or other arrangements for properties like-
TDS on rent under section 194 UB should be deducted on either of the events, whichever is earliest –
The rate of TDS under Section 194IB of the Income Tax Act is 5%. Even under section 194 IB, the tenant needs to obtain and present the owner’s PAN card. On failing to do so, the TDS increased from 5% to 20%.
TDS payment under section 194 IB of the income tax needs to be made using Form 26QC.
You need to fill the form 26QB and for that,
The payment of the property can be paid physically at a bank or online through net banking.
The TDS education rate is typically very high in the case of properties sold by an NRI since the government also deducts an additional capital gains tax from NRIs along with the TDS. When an NRI sells the property, the buyer is liable to deduct TDS at 20%, and in case the said property has been sold before 2 years, the TDS is applicable at 30%.
The Indian law and section 194 IA of income tax mandate that a buyer should deduct the applicable TDS, after the purchase of a property, on the transaction value and submit it with the government. However, a property buyer who fails to deposit the TDS within the recommended time period may have to suffer serious legal consequences like a monetary penalty in the form of interest or imprisonment of up to 7 years.
Laws like TDS on sale of property, wherein the purchaser of a property has to deduct tax at source, are introduced by the Indian government in an attempt to curb the use of black money at the time of purchase of an immovable property It is recommended that one educated themselves about taxation rules and regulations in order to avoid such severe consequences.
If the seller of a property does not use the sale of the property for capital gains, they are permitted to claim the credit of the TDS. To do so, the seller will need to file the income tax return online and claim a TDS refund on immovable property deducted.
The PAN of the seller is mandatory for TDS deduction on property and filing Form 26QB. Failing to acquire the PAN of the seller can cause the TDS rate to spike to 20%. It is the buyer’s responsibility to acquire the PAN from the seller prior to even initiating the deal.
No, the sole responsibility of the deduction of TDS lies only on the buyer, even if the property is financed by a home loan or is purchased from a builder and not an individual seller. Banks are permitted to help customers and can deduct the TDS from disbursement but are not mandated or obliged to do so.
Form 26QB challan needs to be filled by each buyer for every unique buyer-seller combination for their respective share in case of joint parties. For example, if there are three buyers and two sellers. four different forms need to be filled. Similarly, if there are one buyer and three sellers, three different forms need to be filled.
