TDS on Rent Above ₹50,000 a Month: A Tenant's Guide to Form 141

If you are an individual or a Hindu undivided family (HUF) and your rent is above ₹50,000 for any month, you have to deduct 2% TDS from the rent and pay it to the government yourself. Under the Income-tax Act, 2025 you do this once: from the rent for the last month of the tax year, or the last month of the tenancy if it ends earlier. You pay it online with Form 141, Schedule A, which replaced Form 26QC. You do not need a TAN.

This guide covers who must deduct, how much, when, and the portal steps, with two worked examples. It is about rent paid to a resident landlord for Tax Year 2026-27 (April 2026 to March 2027).

The rule in short

The source is section 393(1) of the Income-tax Act, 2025, Table Sl. No. 2(i), with Note 1 to that row. Section 397(1)(c)(i) says a person deducting under that row does not have to apply for a TAN.

Who has to deduct

Sl. No. 2(i) applies to a payer who is not a "specified person". Section 2(37) defines a specified person as either:

• anyone who is not an individual or HUF, such as a company or a firm; or
• an individual or HUF whose sales, gross receipts or turnover in the previous tax year were more than ₹1 crore from a business or more than ₹50 lakh from a profession.

So a salaried person, a pensioner, or a freelancer or small business under those limits is the tenant this guide is about. If you are a specified person, rent is taxed under Sl. No. 2(ii) at 10% for land, buildings and furniture and 2% for machinery and equipment, and you deduct through your TAN. Schedule A of Form 141 is open only to individuals and HUFs. A specified person should speak to a CA.

The ₹50,000 test is per month. Rent of ₹50,000 exactly is not above the limit. Where rent changes during the year, for example from ₹45,000 to ₹55,000, the Act and the portal's FAQ do not spell out how the earlier months are treated, so ask a CA before you decide.

If you share the flat, each co-tenant deducts on their own share and files their own Form 141. The portal's FAQ says multiple deductors cannot share one form.

When to deduct: once, not every month

You may come across advice to deduct a little every month. The Act does not ask for that. Note 1 to Sl. No. 2(i) says tax is deducted at the time the rent for the last month of the tax year, or the last month of the tenancy, is credited to the landlord's account or paid, whichever is earlier.

In practice you pay the landlord the full rent in every earlier month. In the last month you hold back 2% of the rent for the whole period and pay the landlord the balance.

A worked example: the full year

Neha rents a flat for ₹60,000 a month. The landlord is a resident individual and the tenancy runs from April 2026 to March 2027.

1. Rent for the tax year: ₹60,000 x 12 = ₹7,20,000.
2. TDS at 2%: ₹14,400.
3. In March 2027 she pays the landlord ₹60,000 minus ₹14,400, which is ₹45,600.
4. She deposits ₹14,400 with Form 141 within 30 days from the end of March, that is, by 30 April 2027.

A worked example: the tenancy ends early

Karan pays ₹55,000 a month and moves out at the end of October 2026, after seven months in the tax year.

1. Rent for the tenancy: ₹55,000 x 7 = ₹3,85,000.
2. TDS at 2%: ₹7,700.
3. He holds back ₹7,700 from the October rent and pays the landlord ₹47,300.
4. He deposits ₹7,700 with Form 141 by 30 November 2026.

Karan chooses End of Tenancy as the reason in the form. Neha chooses End of Tax Year.

If the landlord's PAN is missing

Section 397(2) says a person who is paid an amount on which tax is deductible must give a valid PAN to the person deducting. Without it, tax is deducted at the higher of the rates the section lists, and 20% is the figure for most payments. For rent under Sl. No. 2(i), section 397(2)(e) adds a limit: the TDS cannot be more than the rent payable for the last month of the tax year or the tenancy.

An inoperative PAN, one that has not been linked with Aadhaar, can also bring the higher rate. See what an inoperative PAN does to TDS and ask the landlord to fix it before you pay.

How to pay and file Form 141, Schedule A

The Income Tax Department's user manual for Form 141 gives these steps. You need an active PAN and a registered e-Filing account. The manual recommends that an individual's PAN be linked with Aadhaar, and says an unlinked PAN is made inoperative.

1. Log in to the e-Filing portal with your PAN.
2. Go to e-File > e-Pay Tax and select Income Tax Act 2025.
3. Click New Payment, then Proceed on the Form 141 tile.
4. Choose the type of deductee: Corporate if the landlord's PAN has C as its fourth character, otherwise Non-Corporate. All landlords on one form must be of the same type.
5. Fill in the particulars: the tax year of the transaction, the month of deduction, and Schedule A as the nature of transaction.
6. Enter the transaction details: - type of property: land, building, or land and building, with its full address; - the tenants and their shares, with only your share entered if there are co-tenants; - the landlords, whose shares must add up to 100%; - period of tenancy in the tax year, up to 12 months; - the reason for deduction: End of Tax Year or End of Tenancy; - total rent paid in the tax year, and the rent paid for the last month.
7. For each landlord, enter the PAN, the date of payment, the amount on which TDS applies, the rate, and the date of deduction. The TDS amount is calculated for you. The rate is a number you enter, and a higher rate fills in automatically if a PAN is not available.
8. Choose the payment mode, check the preview and click Pay Now. You get an email and an SMS, and the challan receipt is in Payment History.

Keep the month of deduction and the date of deduction consistent. The date calendar only allows dates inside the month you chose.

After you pay

• Due date. The FAQ says to pay within 30 days from the end of the month in which you deduct, and to file the challan-cum-statement within one month from the end of that month.
• Certificate for the landlord. The TDS certificate is downloaded from TDS-TRACES. The landlord can check that the credit appears against their PAN in their tax statement and AIS.
• Corrections. A mistake in a filed Form 141 is corrected on TDS-TRACES, not on the e-Filing portal. Register there as a taxpayer.
• Form missing from Payment History. Raise a grievance on the e-Filing portal.

If you are the landlord or you manage a family member's tax records, myutils.me brings back tax deposits, AIS and TIS for every PAN you add, each time you add a PAN or press Sync. It is an independent app that reads the Income Tax portal for you.

Frequently asked questions

Is TDS on rent 5% or 2%?

For tenants who are individuals or HUFs and not specified persons, the Income-tax Act, 2025 gives 2% in section 393(1), Table Sl. No. 2(i). Older articles that quote 5% describe a rate that no longer applies.

Do I deduct TDS every month?

No. Note 1 to Sl. No. 2(i) fixes the time of deduction as the rent for the last month of the tax year or of the tenancy.

Is the ₹50,000 limit for the whole year or each month?

Each month. The threshold in the Act is ₹50,000 for a month or part of a month. Once it is crossed, tax is deducted on the entire rent.

Do I need a TAN to deduct TDS on rent?

No. Section 397(1)(c)(i) exempts a person deducting under Sl. No. 2(i) from applying for a TAN. You use your PAN to file Form 141.

Which form replaced Form 26QC?

Form 141, Schedule A. The department's Form 141 FAQ says Forms 26QB, 26QC, 26QD and 26QE were merged into it. See Form 26QB is now Form 141 for the other schedules.

Does this apply to rent paid to a company or a non-resident landlord?

Schedule A covers resident landlords only, according to the department's user manual. The landlord can be an individual or a company. Rent paid to a non-resident follows a different part of the Act, so take advice before paying.

Can I deduct TDS on rent paid before 1 April 2026?

This guide covers Tax Year 2026-27 under the 2025 Act. The e-Pay Tax page asks you to choose the Act, and tax deducted before 1 April 2026 goes under the 1961 Act option. See TDS under sections 392 and 393 for how the old and new sections line up.

Sources

• Income-tax Act, 2025 (Gazette of India, Act 30 of 2025): section 393(1) Table Sl. No. 2(i) and (ii) with Note 1, section 397(1)(c)(i) and 397(2), and section 2(37) "specified person".
• Form 141 FAQs, Income Tax Department e-filing portal.
• Form 141 user manual (Schedule A: TDS on rent), Income Tax Department e-filing portal.