Form 16A
Issue Form 16A non-salary TDS certificates to vendors — TRACES download workflow, certificate contents, issuance deadlines, and penalties
Form 16A
Form 16A is the TDS certificate you issue to vendors for non-salary deductions under Sections 194A, 194C, 194H, 194I, 194J, 194O, and others. Each vendor receives one certificate per quarter.
Important: Per CBDT Circular 04/2013, only Form 16A certificates downloaded from the TRACES portal are legally valid. The app provides vendor-wise TDS data previews to help you verify data before filing, but the official certificates come from TRACES.
When to issue
Issue Form 16A to a vendor whenever you deduct TDS on their payments:
- Contractor payments (Section 194C)
- Professional or technical fees (Section 194J)
- Rent for land, building, or machinery (Section 194I)
- Commission or brokerage (Section 194H)
- Interest payments (Section 194A)
- E-commerce operator payments (Section 194O)
What Form 16A contains
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Deductor details | Your company name, TAN, PAN, and address |
| Deductee details | Vendor name, PAN, and address |
| Assessment year | The assessment year for the financial year |
| Quarter | Q1, Q2, Q3, or Q4 |
| Section code | The TDS section under which tax was deducted |
| Amount paid/credited | Total payment to the vendor during the quarter |
| TDS rate | The applicable deduction rate |
| TDS deducted | Amount of tax deducted |
| TDS deposited | Amount deposited to the government |
| Challan details | BSR code, deposit date, and challan serial number |
| Certificate number | Unique number assigned by TRACES |
Issuance deadlines
Issue Form 16A within 15 days of the due date for the quarterly TDS return:
| Quarter | Return due date | Form 16A deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Q1 (Apr–Jun) | 31 July | 15 August |
| Q2 (Jul–Sep) | 31 October | 15 November |
| Q3 (Oct–Dec) | 31 January | 15 February |
| Q4 (Jan–Mar) | 31 May | 15 June |
Late issuance attracts a penalty of ₹100 per day under Section 272A(2)(g), capped at the TDS amount.
How to issue Form 16A
Step 1: File Form 26Q
File your quarterly non-salary TDS return (Form 26Q) through the TDS returns process. TRACES generates Form 16A certificates only after processing the quarterly return.
Step 2: Preview vendor data in the app
Go to Payroll > TDS > Form 16A. Select the financial year and quarter, then click Preview Vendor TDS to review the per-vendor summary — amounts paid, TDS deducted, sections, and PAN status. Fix any missing PAN or data issues before relying on TRACES.
Step 3: Download from TRACES
- Log in to the TRACES portal.
- Go to Downloads > Form 16A.
- Select the financial year and quarter.
- Request certificates for all vendors or specific vendors.
- TRACES generates text files within a few hours.
- Download the text files.
Step 4: Convert to PDF
Use the TRACES PDF Converter Utility (available on the TRACES Downloads page) to convert the text files to PDF format.
Step 5: Distribute to vendors
Send the PDF certificates to each vendor by the issuance deadline. Keep a copy for your records.
Related articles
- Form 26Q — the quarterly non-salary TDS return you file before issuing Form 16A
- TDS returns — the complete quarterly return filing process
- TDS sections — section-wise rates and thresholds
- TDS challans — deposit details included in the certificate
- TDS overview — complete TDS compliance workflow