TAN Registration — Apply Online with Form 49B

PAN (Permanent Account Number) identifies a taxpayer and is used for filing income-tax returns and general tax compliance by everyone. TAN (Tax Deduction and Collection Account Number) identifies a deductor and is used only for TDS/TCS — on TDS returns (24Q, 26Q, 27EQ) and TDS challans (Challan 281). A PAN cannot replace a TAN for regular TDS, except in the specific PAN-based deductions under Sections 194-IA, 194-IB and 194M.

A TAN such as MUMB12345C has four letters, five digits and a check letter. The first three letters are the jurisdiction/city code of the TDS office, the fourth letter is the first letter of the deductor's name, the next five are a system-generated sequential number, and the last character is an alphabetic check digit.

Every business that deducts TDS or collects TCS needs a TAN. Companies, LLPs and firms almost always do, because they pay salaries, rent, contractor and professional fees on which TDS applies. A small individual or proprietor not under tax audit and with no TDS obligation may not need one — but the moment a TDS-triggering payment is made, a TAN becomes mandatory.

Usually not. Most individuals have no TDS obligation. An individual needs a TAN only if they carry on a business or profession under tax audit and deduct TDS. Even large one-off payments are handled on PAN: property purchase over Rs 50 lakh (Section 194-IA, Form 26QB), rent over Rs 50,000 a month by a non-audit individual/HUF (Section 194-IB), and contract/professional payments (Section 194M) all use PAN, not a TAN.

No. Under Section 194-IA, the buyer of an immovable property where consideration is Rs 50 lakh or more deducts 1% TDS using their own PAN and deposits it through Form 26QB — no TAN is required. The buyer then issues Form 16B to the seller. A TAN is needed only for regular property-related TDS such as rent under Section 194-I by a company.

If you are an individual or HUF not subject to tax audit, no. Section 194-IB lets you deduct TDS on your PAN once a year, and from 1 April 2025 the rate was reduced from 5% to 2%. A TAN is required only if you are a business/company deducting rent TDS under Section 194-I, whose annual threshold was raised to Rs 6 lakh (Rs 50,000/month) in Budget 2025.

Apply in Form 49B on the Protean (NSDL) TIN portal or through the income-tax portal. Select your deductor category, fill in name, address, PAN and the responsible person's details, pay the fee online, and note the 14-digit acknowledgement number to track the request. The TAN is emailed and posted to the registered address, usually within 7-10 working days.

The government processing fee is about Rs 65 plus GST, which works out to roughly Rs 77 in total for an online application. The fee is non-refundable even if the application is rejected. TaxClue can file Form 49B and set up your TDS returns for a professional fee on top of the government charge.

Typically 7 to 10 working days after a correctly filled Form 49B is submitted and the fee is paid. You can track progress on the Protean portal using the 14-digit acknowledgement number. The allotment letter is sent by email and post, and the TAN can then be quoted on TDS challans and returns.

Form 49B is the standard application form for allotment of a new TAN, filed online or offline. Corrections or changes to an existing TAN use the separate "Change/Correction in TAN data" form. Keep the PAN of the applicant entity handy, as PAN is mandatory in the Form 49B application.

Section 272BB imposes a penalty of Rs 10,000 for failing to apply for a TAN, failing to quote it, or quoting an incorrect TAN in challans, returns and certificates. Separately, you cannot file TDS returns without a TAN, your deductees will not get their credit in Form 26AS/AIS, and you can be treated as an assessee-in-default under Section 201 with monthly interest on the TDS involved.

A TAN can be flagged inactive if no TDS return is filed for a long period. Verify a TAN under "Know Your TAN / Verify TAN" on the income-tax portal (incometax.gov.in) by entering the number or the deductor name to see the status. If it shows inactive, file a pending TDS return or contact your jurisdictional TDS assessing officer.

Generally no. A single deductor needs only one TAN, used across all its TDS/TCS sections and returns nationwide. Large organisations sometimes obtain separate TANs for different branches or divisions to file returns independently, but duplicate TANs for the same office should be surrendered to avoid credit mismatches.

Quote the TAN on every TDS/TCS challan (Challan 281), every TDS return (24Q for salary, 26Q for non-salary, 27EQ for TCS) and every TDS certificate such as Form 16 and Form 16A. Quoting a wrong TAN, or omitting it, attracts the Section 272BB penalty and can break the deductee's Form 26AS credit.