Form 24Q is filed in four quarters: Q1 (April-June) due July 31, Q2 (July-September) due October 31, Q3 (October-December) due January 31, Q4 (January-March) due May 31. Q4 carries additional importance because it includes the full annual salary and deduction details used to generate Form 16. Late filing attracts penalties under Section 234E.
Zoho Payroll compiles TDS deducted across all employees for the quarter, validates PAN details, salary figures, and TDS amounts, and generates the return file. The file is validated using the NSDL FVU tool before uploading to TRACES. Any errors in PAN or TDS mismatch flagged by FVU must be corrected in Zoho Payroll before re-generating the file.
Q4 Form 24Q includes Annexure II, which contains the full annual salary breakup, exemptions, deductions, and TDS for each employee. This data directly feeds into Form 16 Part A generation on TRACES. Accuracy in Zoho Payroll’s payroll processing throughout the year is essential for a clean Q4 24Q with no demand notices.
Form 24Q is the quarterly TDS return that employers file with the Income Tax Department, reporting salary payments and TDS deducted from employees. Zoho Payroll generates the Form 24Q data file in FVU-compatible format after each quarter for employer filing on the TRACES portal.
Q1 is due July 31, Q2 October 31, Q3 January 31, and Q4 May 31. Late filing attracts a penalty of Rs 200 per day under Section 234E, subject to a maximum of the TDS amount. Zoho Payroll does not file 24Q automatically; it generates the data file that the employer uploads to TRACES.
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