Form 13, Application for Lower or Nil TDS Deduction
Application for a certificate under Section 197 authorizing a payer to deduct TDS at a lower rate, or not at all.
Who files it
Taxpayers whose actual tax liability is lower than what standard TDS rates would deduct, such as an NRI seller of property or a business running losses.
Frequency
Event-based, typically once per financial year per payer
Due date
No fixed date; apply before the relevant payment is due, ideally at the start of the year
Filed with
Income Tax e-filing portal, subject to assessing officer approval
Without this certificate, TDS gets deducted at the standard rate regardless of your actual tax position, and the excess has to be claimed back as a refund after filing a return, which can take months. A Form 13 application, if approved, lets the payer deduct at a lower rate (or not at all) from the start.
The assessing officer evaluates the application based on projected income and tax liability, so it works best when applied for early in the year with a reasonably accurate income estimate, rather than after a large payment has already been made.
This is a quick-reference summary, not a filing walkthrough. Due dates shown are the statutory defaults and can be extended in practice; applicability depends on your specific registration, turnover, and entity type. For general informational purposes only, not professional tax or legal advice.