Required under your state’s Shops & Establishments Act — the deadline and which clinics are covered vary by state. Covers working hours, employee records, and signage requirements.

✓

Drug Licence (if you run a pharmacy)

Required if your clinic runs a pharmacy that sells medicines to the public — retail licence in Forms 20 / 21, wholesale in Forms 20B / 21B. Supplying medicines only to your own patients is generally exempt, subject to conditions.

✓

GST Registration (exempt vs taxable)

Healthcare services by authorised practitioners are exempt. Purely cosmetic procedures are taxable at 18%, pharmacy sales at the rate notified for each medicine, and non-ICU room rent above ₹5,000/day at 5% without input tax credit.

✓

Professional Tax Registration

State-level tax on professionals, capped at ₹2,500 a year. Levied in states such as Maharashtra, Karnataka, Gujarat and West Bengal; states like Delhi and Haryana do not levy it.

✓

Clinical Establishment Registration

Under the Clinical Establishments Act, 2010 in states that adopted it, or the state’s own nursing-home law elsewhere. Covers minimum standards for infrastructure, equipment, staffing, and record-keeping.

✓

Annual ITR with Section 44ADA Benefits

File ITR-4 with presumptive income at 50% of receipts (ITR-3 if total income exceeds ₹50 lakh). No books of account needed within the ₹75 lakh limit. For FY 2025-26 the ITR-3 / ITR-4 due date is 31 August 2026.

Your Compliance Map

What Applies to a Doctor’s Clinic

Tax filings every practising doctor meets, plus the health-sector registrations that switch on only when you run premises, keep staff, dispense medicines or install imaging equipment. Many of the licences are state laws, so the exact form and deadline depend on where your clinic is.

Obligation	Applies when	Due	Law	Status
Income tax returnITR-4 / ITR-3	Every doctor whose income exceeds the basic exemption limit; ITR-4 only if on 44ADA with total income up to ₹50 lakh	FY 2025-26: 31 August 2026; 31 October 2026 if audited	Income-tax Act, 1961, s.139	Mandatory
Presumptive taxationSection 44ADA	Resident doctor or partnership firm with gross receipts up to ₹75 lakh (₹50 lakh if cash receipts exceed 5%)	Chosen in the return each year	s.44ADA (s.58 of the 2025 Act)	Recommended
Advance tax	Tax for the year, after TDS, is ₹10,000 or more	On 44ADA: 100% by 15 March. Otherwise 15 June, 15 September, 15 December, 15 March	Income-tax Act, 2025, s.408	If applicable
Tax auditForm 3CB-3CD / Form No. 26	Receipts above ₹50 lakh outside 44ADA, or declaring less than the 44ADA deemed profit	30 September; return by 31 October	s.44AB (s.63 of the 2025 Act)	If applicable
TDS on staff salariesForm 24Q / Form 138	A nurse, receptionist or doctor on payroll earns above the taxable limit	Deposit by the 7th; quarterly statements 31 Jul, 31 Oct, 31 Jan, 31 May	Income-tax Act, 2025, s.393	If applicable
TDS on clinic rent	Rent above ₹50,000 a month; 10% if your accounts are audited, 2% if not	Under the 2025 Rules, paid with Form No. 141 within the 30-day cycle	s.393; Rule 218(3)	If applicable
TDS on visiting consultants’ fees	Your accounts are audited and fees to one professional exceed ₹50,000 in the year	10% at the time of payment or credit	s.194J (s.393 of the 2025 Act)	If applicable
Clinical establishment registration	Any clinic, nursing home or diagnostic centre in a state that has adopted the Act or has its own law	Before you start seeing patients	Clinical Establishments Act, 2010 / state law	If applicable
Bio-medical waste authorisation	Your clinic generates bio-medical waste — sharps, dressings, swabs; tie-up with a common treatment facility	From the State Pollution Control Board before operating	Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules, 2016	If applicable
Bio-medical waste annual reportForm IV	Every clinic holding a bio-medical waste authorisation	30 June every year	BMW Rules, 2016, r.13	If applicable
Shops & establishments registration	Clinic premises covered by your state’s Shops & Establishments Act	As the state law sets, usually soon after opening	State S&E Act	If applicable
Professional tax	You practise, or employ staff, in a state that levies it	As the state sets; capped at ₹2,500 a year per person	State PT Act; Constitution, Art. 276	If applicable
GST registration & returns	You make taxable supplies (cosmetic procedures, pharmacy sales) and aggregate turnover, exempt fees included, crosses ₹20 lakh	GSTR-1 by the 11th, GSTR-3B by the 20th; annual return by 31 December	CGST Act, s.22	If applicable
Retail drug licenceForms 20 / 21	You run a pharmacy selling medicines to the public	Before the first sale	Drugs & Cosmetics Rules, 1945	If applicable
X-ray equipment licence	You install diagnostic X-ray, CT or dental X-ray equipment	Before operating, via AERB’s online portal	Atomic Energy (Radiation Protection) Rules, 2004	If applicable
Ultrasound registration	You own or use an ultrasound machine	Before installation, with the district Appropriate Authority	PC&PNDT Act, 1994	If applicable
ESI & PF registration	ESI from 10 employees in notified areas; PF from 20 employees	Contributions by the 15th of each month	ESI Act, 1948; EPF Act, 1952	If applicable
Trademark for clinic nameClass 44	You want to protect the clinic’s name and logo	Any time — ideally before signage and branding	Trade Marks Act, 1999	Recommended

Healthcare services by a clinical establishment or authorised medical practitioner are GST-exempt; a doctor who earns only from treatment need not register at any turnover. Clinical establishment, shops, fire safety and professional tax rules differ by state. The Income-tax Act, 2025 applies from tax year 2026-27; returns for FY 2025-26 are still filed under the 1961 Act.

FY 2026-27 Calendar

Your Year at a Glance

The dates a clinic with staff works to. Monthly: TDS on salaries deposited by the 7th, ESI and PF by the 15th, and GST returns by the 11th and 20th if you are registered.

Apr – JunQ1
- 31 MayQ4 salary TDS statement for FY 2025-26 (Form 24Q)
- 15 JunForm 16 to staff for FY 2025-26
- 15 JunAdvance tax — 15% (not needed on 44ADA)
- 30 JunBio-medical waste annual report (Form IV)
Jul – SepQ2
- 31 JulQ1 salary TDS statement (Form 138 under the 2025 Act)
- 31 AugITR-3 / ITR-4 for FY 2025-26 (non-audit)
- 15 SepAdvance tax — 45% cumulative
- 30 SepTax audit report, if receipts cross the limit
Oct – DecQ3
- 31 OctITR for audited practices; Q2 TDS statement
- 15 DecAdvance tax — 75% cumulative
- 31 DecBelated or revised ITR for FY 2025-26; GSTR-9 where it applies
Jan – MarQ4
- 31 JanQ3 TDS statement
- 15 MarAdvance tax — 100%; the single instalment for 44ADA doctors
- 31 MarYear-end: fee register closed, equipment bills filed, old-regime investments made

What Goes Wrong

Mistakes That Cost Doctors Money

Most problems we see in medical practices are not about the medicine — they are a missed date, a missing licence, or TDS credit left unclaimed.

Skipping advance tax

Hospitals deduct only 10% TDS, and your own clinic’s fees have none. The shortfall is charged interest when you file.

Interest 1% per month on the shortfall

Declaring below 50% on 44ADA without audit

Showing lower profit than the presumptive rate, with income above the exemption limit, needs books and a tax audit.

0.5% of receipts, up to ₹1.5 lakh, for no audit

Late income tax return

A late return costs a fee, loses the right to carry forward some losses and delays any TDS refund.

₹5,000 late fee (₹1,000 if income is up to ₹5 lakh)

Selling medicines without a licence

A pharmacy counter that sells to walk-in patients needs a retail drug licence; stock can be seized.

Prosecution under the Drugs & Cosmetics Act

Ignoring bio-medical waste rules

No authorisation, no tie-up with a treatment facility, or no annual report invites Pollution Control Board action.

Closure directions + penalty under environment law

Treating cosmetic work as exempt

Aesthetic procedures are taxable. Once turnover, exempt fees included, crosses ₹20 lakh, GST is due from the start.

Past tax + 18% p.a. interest + penalty

Working With TaxClue

How It Works — and What We Need

Four steps

Tell us how you practiseOwn clinic, hospital attachments, partnership, pharmacy counter, staff strength and state.
Get your compliance mapA dated list of every filing and licence that applies, with a fixed fee quoted upfront.
We prepare, you approve, we fileITR, advance tax, TDS returns and GST prepared by our CAs; you review before anything is filed.
Stay on scheduleReminders ahead of each date and one place for your filed returns and licence copies.

Documents to keep ready

PAN & Aadhaar
Medical council registration certificate
Fee register and bank statementsAll accounts, including the clinic’s UPI / card collections
Form 16A, Form 26AS & AISFor TDS deducted by hospitals and TPAs
Clinic rent agreement or ownership papers
Staff salary register
Equipment purchase billsNeeded only if you keep books instead of 44ADA
Existing licencesClinical establishment, bio-medical waste, drug licence, S&E

Read the Detail

Guides for Doctors

Common Questions

Doctor Tax & Compliance — FAQs

Healthcare services provided by authorised medical practitioners are exempt from GST under Notification 12/2017. Purely cosmetic or aesthetic procedures are taxable at 18%, pharmacy sales are taxed at the rate notified for each medicine, and non-ICU room rent above ₹5,000 per day is taxed at 5% without input tax credit. If you make any taxable supplies, registration is required once your aggregate turnover — including your exempt consultation fees — crosses ₹20 lakh (₹10 lakh in special-category states).

Section 44ADA is a presumptive taxation scheme for professionals including doctors. Under this section, 50% of your gross receipts are deemed as profit — you pay tax only on that 50%. You don’t need to maintain detailed books of account if your gross receipts are within ₹75 lakh and cash receipts are no more than 5% of the total; if cash is higher, the limit is ₹50 lakh. This significantly simplifies compliance and often reduces your effective tax burden.

Only if you run a pharmacy that sells medicines to the public. A registered medical practitioner supplying medicines to their own patients is generally exempt under Schedule K of the Drugs & Cosmetics Rules, provided no open shop is kept. A clinic pharmacy needs a retail licence (Forms 20 / 21) from the State Drug Controller, with a registered pharmacist in charge; wholesale dealing needs Forms 20B / 21B. Selling without a valid licence is an offence under the Drugs & Cosmetics Act.

Yes, if you opt out of presumptive taxation (44ADA), you can claim depreciation on medical equipment, furniture, and computers under the Written Down Value (WDV) method. Medical equipment attracts 15–40% depreciation depending on the category. Dental chairs, X-ray machines, and ultrasound equipment qualify. However, under 44ADA, all deductions are already deemed included in the 50% expense allowance.

A multi-doctor clinic or hospital usually needs: a partnership deed, LLP or company to hold the practice, clinical establishment registration under the state’s law, bio-medical waste authorisation, a fire NOC where the state’s building rules require one, an AERB licence for X-ray equipment, PC&PNDT registration for ultrasound, ESI from 10 employees and PF from 20 employees. NABH accreditation is optional. We handle the tax, GST, payroll and registration filings and coordinate the rest with you.

ITR-4 if you use Section 44ADA, are resident, and your total income is up to ₹50 lakh. Use ITR-3 if you keep books, your total income is above ₹50 lakh, you hold unlisted shares or a directorship, or you claim foreign tax credit. For FY 2025-26 the ITR-3 / ITR-4 due date was relaxed to 31 August 2026; if a tax audit applies, the return is due by 31 October 2026. A belated or revised return can be filed up to 31 December 2026.

Hospitals and TPAs deduct 10% TDS on professional fees once payments to you exceed ₹50,000 in the year (Section 194J; section 393 of the 2025 Act). The deduction shows in your Form 26AS and AIS and is credited against your tax when you file. If the TDS is more than your final tax, the excess is refunded. Check 26AS against your own fee records before filing — a hospital that deducted but did not deposit or report the TDS will not show up, and you cannot claim it until they correct their statement.

It depends on your state. The Clinical Establishments (Registration and Regulation) Act, 2010 applies only in states and union territories that have adopted it; several others have their own nursing-home or private medical establishment laws. Where either applies, single-doctor clinics are usually covered too. Registration is with the district or state health authority and must be in place before you start seeing patients. Tell us your city and we confirm which law applies.

If your clinic generates bio-medical waste — needles, sharps, dressings, swabs — you need an authorisation from the State Pollution Control Board under the Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules, 2016, a tie-up with a common bio-medical waste treatment facility, colour-coded segregation, and an annual report in Form IV by 30 June each year. Keep the treatment facility’s pick-up records; they are the first thing an inspector asks for.

It renumbers the law, not the core rules. From tax year 2026-27 the presumptive schemes, including 44ADA, sit in section 58 with the same 50% rate and ₹75 lakh / ₹50 lakh limits; TDS moves to section 393, and the salary TDS statement becomes Form 138. Your FY 2025-26 return, tax audit and Form 16 for that year are still under the 1961 Act with the old names.

Focus on Your Patients

Let Us Handle the Compliance.

Tell us where you stand — a CA calls back with a clear action plan.

Book a Review WhatsApp Us

📍 Plot No 55, Sector 21A, Faridabad Haryana 121001 · · hello@taxclue.in