The e-payment facility was launched by the IT department for payment of direct taxes online by taxpayers. As a result of this, taxpayers can now choose from two modes of payment for direct taxes (i) physical mode i.e. payment made by producing the hard copy of the challan at the authorized bank and (ii) e-payment mode i.e. making payment via net-banking with any of the authorized banks.
Some taxpayers are not permitted to use the physical mode of tax payment, rather they can only pay taxes through the e-payment mode. Taxpayers that fall under this category are:
All companies
All non-corporate taxpayers who are liable to get their accounts audited under Section 44AB of the Income Tax Act
Anyone who does not fall in the mandatory category can choose to voluntarily pay his or her taxes through the e-payment route. It is always advisable to select the e-payment mode since it saves both time and efforts.
In order to pay taxes through the e-payment route, one needs to have a net banking enabled account with an authorized bank. In case the assessee does not hold a net banking enabled account, the individual can make e-payment through the account of another person, however, the tax should be paid in his or her name.
There are many benefits of choosing the e-payment mode for payment of income tax. Some of these advantages are:
E-payment of income tax is time saving, simple and safe. It can be done any time from any place.
The amount will be instantly transferred from your bank account.
You can enquire whether the Income Tax Department has received the tax amount on the official website of the IT Department.
Details of the e-challan will be sent directly to the Income Tax Department. The bank will not have to go through any data entry.
A receipt for tax payment is issued right away when the income tax amount is deducted from the online bank account
A taxpayer can use the e-payment mode for paying the following direct taxes:
Equalization Levy
Securities Transaction Tax (STT)
Tax deducted at source (TDS)
Tax collected at source (TCS)
Wealth-tax and other direct taxes like gift tax, expenditure tax, etc.
| Challan No. | Nature of tax payment |
|---|---|
| ITNS 280 | For making payment of income tax and corporate tax (i.e. income tax by companies) |
| ITNS 281 | For making payment of TDS/TCS by corporate and non-corporate deductors or collectors |
| ITNS 282 | For making payment of Securities Transaction Tax, Wealth Tax and other direct taxes |
| ITNS 283 | For making payment of Banking Cash Transaction Tax and Fringe Benefits Tax. |
| ITNS 284 | For making payment of income tax and corporate tax in case of undisclosed foreign income and assets |
| ITNS 285 | For making payment of equalization levy |
| ITNS 286 | For making payment under Income Declaration Scheme, 2016 |
| ITNS 287 | For making payment under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana, 2016 (PMGKY) |
| Form No. 26QB | For making payment of tax deducted at source in case of immovable property |
| Form No. 26QC | For making payment of tax deducted at source in case of rent of property |
Source: incometaxindia.gov.in/tutorials/3%20e-payment%20of%20direct%20taxes.pdf
Follow the below steps to pay income tax through the online mode:
Step 1: Login to the NSDL-TIN website www.tin-nsdl.com
Step 2: Go to Services and click on 'e-payment : Pay Taxes Online'
Step 3: Select the relevant challan, which in case of income tax payment, is ITNS 280
Step 4: You will now be redirected to a page asking for the following data:
Permanent Account Number
Assessment Year
Address details of taxpayer
Type of Payment
Mode of Payment
Step 5: After entering all the necessary details, click on the Proceed button. A confirmation screen will be displayed.
Step 6: After verifying entered details, click on the Submit button, which will take you to the online banking page of the selected bank.
Step 7: On the online banking platform, fill in your user ID and password for online banking and proceed to enter payment details at the bank site.
Step 8: After the payment is made, a confirmation receipt will be displayed on the bank website. The acknowledgement you will receive contains the Challan Identification Number, payment details and bank name.
Allahabad Bank
Andhra Bank
Axis Bank
Bank of Baroda
Bank of India
Bank of Maharashtra
Canara Bank
Central Bank of India
Corporation Bank
Dena Bank
HDFC Bank
ICICI Bank
IDBI Bank
Indian Bank
Indian Overseas Bank
Jammu & Kashmir Bank
Oriental Bank of Commerce
Punjab and Sind Bank
Punjab National Bank
State Bank of India
Syndicate Bank
UCO Bank
Union Bank of India
United Bank of India
Vijaya Bank
Challan 280 needs to be filled for making E-payment of income tax and corporate tax. Following are some of the points that need to be noted while providing details in Challan 280:
The assessee should correctly select the applicable tax with the correct code of respective tax. The codes provided in Challan 280 are:
0020 - This is applicable for the income tax paid by companies
0021 - This is applicable for the income tax paid by non-corporate taxpayers
The assessee should correctly choose the applicable type of payment with the correct code of respective type of payment. The codes under different type of payment provided in Challan 280 are:
100 - This is applicable for payment of advance tax
300 - This is applicable for payment of self-assessment tax
400 - This is applicable for tax on regular assessment
106 - This is applicable for tax on distributed profit
107 - This is applicable for tax on distributed income
102 - This is applicable for surtax
E-payment of service tax has been made mandatory with effect from 1 January 2014 for assessees who have paid over Rs. 1 lakh as service tax during the previous financial year. The procedure of e-payment of service tax is as follows:
Step 1: Visit cbec-easiest.gov.in/EST/InputPageForEPaymentServlet
Step 2: Enter the 15-digit service tax registration number allotted by the Jurisdictional Commissionerate
Step 3: There will be an online verification on the validity of the Assessee Code entered. If the code is valid, then your details as saved in the Assesses code master like name, address, etc. will be displayed.
Step 4: Select the accounting codes for which you are filing tax and choose the service for which tax is to be paid
Step 5: After submission of input details, select the bank through which the payment is to be made. This will take you to the bank's website, where you have to enter the user ID, password and the payment details.
Step 6: Once the payment is successful, a challan counterfoil will be displayed, which will contain Challan Identification Number, payment details and bank. This counterfoil will be the proof of the payment made.
What is e-payment of taxes?
E-payment of taxes is a facility launched by the Income Tax Department that allows taxpayers to make income tax payments using the net-banking facility.
Is it compulsory for all companies to pay income tax via the e-payment route?
Yes, it is compulsory for every company to pay income tax using the internet banking facility. It is mandatory for the following assessees to pay the tax only through the e-payment mode:
All companies
All taxpayers besides companies who are liable to get their accounts audited under Section 44AB of the Income Tax Act.
What do I do in case there is an error while making e-payment of taxes?
While making e-payment, if the taxpayer faces any problem at the NSDL website, he or she should contact the TIN call centre by dialling 020 - 27218080 or writing an email to tininfo@nsdl.co.in.
Is there any security risk to my transaction via e-payment?
There are no risks to transactions undertaken via e-payment since they are encrypted via Secure Socket Layer, and is therefore safe.
