Advance Tax Payment: Due Dates, Calculator, Applicability, Procedure, Installment Details

In advance tax mechanism, tax is paid during the financial year by the taxpayer instead of paying while filing the returns. If the tax on such income exceeds Rs. 10,000 for the financial year, he should pay advance tax.

Advance Tax Due Date

• The due date to pay the 1st installment of advance tax for Q1 FY 2026-27 (Apr-Jun) is June, 2026 
• Taxpayers should make sure to pay 15% of the total tax liability for the year by June 15, 2026. 
• Taxpayers shall refer to section 403 to 410 of the Income Tax Act, 2025 with effect from 1st April 2026

What is Advance Tax?

Advance tax is income tax paid through multiple installments before the end of financial year, instead of a lump sum payment after the end of the financial year. The provisions related to advance tax are covered under section 403 to section 410 of the Income tax act, 2025.

The taxpayer calculates the estimated total income at the beginning of the financial year, thereby estimating his tax liability. The advance tax payments have to be made in fixed percentage through four installments as per the due dates provided by the income tax department.

Who Should pay Advance Tax?

• As per section 404 of the Income tax act, any assessee whose estimated tax liability for the financial year exceeds Rs 10,000, he or she is required to pay advance tax. 
• If TDS is already deducted against a person, and still Rs 10,000 tax is payable as per estimation, he /she also needs to pay advance tax.
• This provision applies to all taxpayers, salaried individuals, freelancers, and businesses.

Note: Senior citizens - People aged 60 years or more who do not have income from any business or profession during the financial year are exempt from paying advance tax. 

However, senior citizens (60 years or more) having business or professional income must pay advance tax.

Advance Tax Rates and Due Dates For FY 2026-27

The due date for advance tax payments for FY 2026-27 is given below:

Regular Taxpayers 

Note: No interest u/s 425 shall be levied if you have paid advance tax up to 12% in first instalment and up to 36% in second instalment.

Taxpayers Opting Presumptive Taxation 

For freelancers, small business owners who have opted for Presumptive Taxation Scheme under sections 44AD & 44ADA – the advance tax due dates are as follows.

*Taxpayers opting for presumptive taxation also have the option to pay all of their tax dues by 31st March. However, any person engaged in business and opted for the presumptive scheme under for plying hiring and leasing of vehicles, is required to pay advance tax in four instalments on or before the due date as prescribed by the income tax department.

Want a CA to calculate and help pay your advance tax dues? Get in touch with ClearTax!

Consequences of short-payment or non-payment of Advance Tax

Interest on Advance Tax u/s 424

As per Section 424, you must pay at least 90% of the total taxes as advance tax or TDS/TCS by 31st March. Failure to make advance tax payments will result in an interest @1% on the unpaid amount.

Interest on Advance tax Instalments u/s 425

If the advance tax instalments are not paid within the specified due dates, interest at 1% per month is payable. 

How to calculate Advance Tax?

Here is a step by step guide to ascertain your advance tax liability and instalment amount.

1. Consider your income earned for preceding financial years. 
2. Ascertain how much more or less you will earn as compared to preceding years.
3. Consider all your eligible deductions and exemptions.
4. Make an estimate of your total taxable income. 
5. Using our tax calculator, calculate the tax liability under the most beneficial tax regime for you. 

If your total tax liability exceeds Rs.10,000 for the financial year, you are required to pay advance tax.The below table will help you understand better.

Advance Tax liability will be 15%, 45%, 75%, and 100% of Net Tax Liability for the month of June, September, December, and March respectively.

How to Pay Advance Tax Online?

The following step-by-step guide illustrates the procedure to pay advance tax online.

Pay Advance Tax by Logging into Income Tax Portal

1. Go to incometax.gov.in, and login to your account with your user ID (PAN) and password.
2. Go to e-file > e-pay tax.
3. On the top right corner, click on “New Payment”.
4. Various types of payments like TDS payment, equalization levy, income tax options are available on the screen. Choose Income Tax - which contains advance tax and self assessment tax. Click ‘Proceed’.
5. Choose Tax Year 2026-27, and minor head as ‘Advance Tax’ with code 100.
6. Enter the components of tax like taxes, surcharge, cess, interest, etc.
7. Choose the mode of payment and click ‘Pay Now’ on the next page.
8. Read the terms and conditions, agree and then complete the payment through the mode chosen.

Pay Advance Tax Without Logging In to the Income Tax Portal

1. Visit the e-filing portal of the Income Tax Department of India
2. On the left side of the home page, there is a 'Quick Links' section, click on the 'e-Pay Tax' option. You can also search for 'e-Pay Tax' in the search bar.
3. On this page, enter your PAN and re-enter to confirm it. Then, enter your mobile number and click on ‘Continue’.
4. Now enter the 6-digit OTP received on your mobile number and 'Continue'.
5. Select the first box labelled as ‘Income Tax’ and click on ‘Proceed’ 
6. Select the ‘Tax year’ as 2026-27 and ‘Type of Payment’ as ‘Advance Tax (100)’ and click on 'Continue'.
7. Enter all the tax details.
8. Select the payment method and the bank and press 'Continue'.
9. Preview the challan details and click on ‘Pay Now’. You may also ‘Edit’ these details if required.

You can see the BSR code and challan serial number on the right side of the challan. Save a copy of this tax receipt for future reference. You will need to enter the BSR code and challan number in your tax return.

Advance Tax Calculator – Calculate Advance Tax Liability

Use this intuitive tool from ClearTax to calculate your advance tax liability:

Advance Tax Calculation - An Illustration

Let's understand the calculation with the help of an example. Ajay is a freelancer earning income from the profession of interior decoration. For the FY 2026-27, Ajay estimates his annual gross receipts at Rs 20,00,000. Ajay estimates his expenses at Rs 12 lakhs. Ajay has deposited Rs 40,000 in PPF account. 

Ajay has also paid Rs 25,000 towards the LIC premium. Further, Ajay has paid Rs 12,000 towards the medical insurance premiums. Professional receipts of Ajay are subject to TDS. Ajay estimates a TDS of Rs 30,000 on certain professional receipts for the FY 2026-27. Besides professional receipts, Ajay estimates an interest of Rs 10,000 on fixed deposits held by him. Ajay’s advance tax liability would be as below:

The advance tax instalment amounts can be calculated as shown below:

Note: 

1. The above example of tax liability is calculated under the old tax regime since deductions under section 80C are beneficial to the assessee & the said section is available only in the case of the old tax regime. 

2. In the above case, the assessee is not liable to pay any advance if the net tax liability is not more than Rs.10,000, after adjusting with the TDS/TCS.

How to use Challan Correction Feature?

Challan ITNS 280 should be used to pay advance tax online. Follow these steps to make corrections to tax challan:

• Log in to the e-filing ITR portal
• Select “Challan Correction” from the services tab
• Click on "Create Challan Correction Request" on the webpage
• Choose the correction type: 
  • assessment year
  • major head
  • minor head 
• Enter either the Assessment Year or Challan Identification Number (CIN)
• Depending on your choice, view either specific CIN details or a list of challans for the chosen Assessment Year. Choose the relevant challan for correction.
• Input the correct information
• Verify the correction using Aadhaar OTP, Digital Signature Certificate (DSC), or Electronic Verification Code (EVC) through net-banking, Demat, or bank account.
• Once the correction is successfully verified, you will receive a success message along with a transaction ID. Keep the transaction ID for tracking the status of your correction request.

Conclusion

It is important to pay advance tax as and when applicable by the taxpayers. Failure to discharge advance tax liability will attract interest under sections 424 and 425 @ 1% per month each. However, in case of an excess payment of advance tax, the taxpayer will be eligible for a refund.