India · FY 2026-27TDS + GST
Payment short? It's probably TDS.
Enter what you invoiced and what actually landed. This works out how much was deducted — and under which section.
Fill both fields and the verdict lands here.
All deduction scenarios
| If they deducted | Withheld | You'd receive |
|---|
Tolerance ±₹5 for rounding. TDS is computed on the taxable value with GST excluded — correct when GST is shown separately on the invoice. Rates reflect FY 2026-27.
Why your client paid less than you invoiced
If you raised an invoice for ₹1,18,000 and ₹1,08,000 hit your account, nothing has gone wrong. Your client deducted ₹10,000 as TDS — tax deducted at source — and deposited it with the government against your PAN. It isn't a discount, a dispute, or a bank charge. It's tax you've already paid, in advance, that you claim back when you file.
Any company, firm, LLP, trust, or government body paying you for services has to withhold this. Individuals and HUFs only have to if they were liable for a tax audit in the previous year — turnover above ₹1 crore for business, or gross receipts above ₹50 lakh for a profession.
TDS is calculated before GST
This is where most people mis-check the maths. TDS applies to the taxable value of the invoice, not the total — as long as the GST is shown as a separate line. On a ₹1,18,000 invoice with 18% GST, that means the ₹1,00,000 fee is the base, and the ₹18,000 GST comes to you untouched. Ten percent of ₹1,00,000 is ₹10,000, not ₹11,800. If your invoice doesn't break GST out separately, TDS applies to the whole amount, which is one more reason to itemise it.
The rates that apply to service invoices
| Section & what it covers | Rate on fee |
|---|---|
| 194J — professional services: consultants, designers, engineers, lawyers, CAs, doctors, architects | 10% |
| 194J — technical services: software maintenance, IT support, system design, call centres | 2% |
| 194C — contract work, payer is a firm or company | 2% |
| 194C — contract work, payer is an individual or HUF | 1% |
| 206AA — PAN not furnished to the deductor | 20% |
| Section 51 — GST TDS, government deductors only | 2% |
The 194J threshold is ₹50,000 aggregate per payee for the financial year — not per invoice. Once a client crosses it, TDS applies to the whole year's payments, including the earlier ones that were under the line.
Deductors tend to default to 10% when the classification is arguable, because under-deducting draws interest and notices while over-deducting costs them nothing. If you think your work is technical rather than professional, that's a conversation worth having — but it only affects your cash flow, never your final tax.
Getting the money back
The deduction shows up in your Form 26AS and AIS once the deductor files their quarterly return — roughly a month after the quarter ends. Check that it's there. If your client deducted the tax but never deposited it, you can't claim the credit, and an unmatched deduction is real money gone. Ask for the TDS certificate if it doesn't appear.
When you file, the deducted amount is a credit against your tax liability. If you owe less than was withheld across the year, the balance is refunded.
When the gap isn't TDS
If the shortfall doesn't match any standard rate, it's usually one of four things: bank or wire charges on an international transfer, a foreign exchange spread, a partial payment the client didn't flag, or a deduction applied to the wrong base. The calculator above will tell you the gap as a percentage of your fee, which is normally enough to identify which.
Does GST TDS apply to you?
Probably not. The 2% GST TDS under Section 51 is only deducted by government departments, local authorities, and notified bodies. If your client is a private company, they don't deduct it. Worth knowing because a 2% GST TDS and a 2% income-tax TDS produce an identical payout — the amount alone can't tell them apart, only the identity of your client can.
This tool does arithmetic on published rate structures. It isn't tax advice and it doesn't know your situation. The Income Tax Act, 2025 came into force on 1 April 2026 and renumbered these provisions — 194J is now Section 393 — with new return and certificate forms still settling in. Confirm anything that matters with your CA.