Aarambha: Learn & InvestWhen you work for yourself, no one cuts tax from your pay, so you pay it yourself in parts through the year. This is called advance tax. See your tax for the year and how much to set aside by each date, so you avoid interest and a surprise bill in March.
Your numbers
Fifteen lakh rupees
After business expenses, not gross receipts.
Tax still to pay this year
₹59,200
Set aside about ₹4,933 a month.
- Income tax, new regime
- ₹1,09,200
Tax year 2026-27 (FY 2026-27, AY 2027-28) · Checked 5 November 2026 by Prashanth Sekhar
Advance-tax dates
| Paid in total by | Amount |
|---|---|
| 15 June | ₹8,880 |
| 15 September | ₹26,640 |
| 15 December | ₹44,400 |
| 15 March | ₹59,200 |
Totals by each date, not instalments. Falling short adds interest: 3% of the shortfall at each of the first three dates, 1% in March.
Estimates for education, not tax, legal or investment advice. Report a wrong number
Understand your result
Without an employer deducting tax each month, freelancers pay it themselves through the year as advance tax, in four instalments. Clients' TDS counts towards it.
Professionals with receipts up to ₹75 lakh (₹50 lakh if more than 5% comes in cash) can use the presumptive scheme and treat 50% of receipts as profit. Then the whole advance tax is due by 15 March.
A common mistake
Spending the TDS refund before you've worked out the year's tax. TDS at 10% often covers less than the real tax once your profit crosses ₹12 lakh.
How it's worked out
Still to pay = tax on profit (no standard deduction) − TDS. Regular dates: 15%, 45%, 75% and 100% by 15 June, September, December and March.
Assumptions
- Tax year 2026-27, residents below 60, slab-rate income only (no capital gains). Includes the standard deduction, the rebate with marginal relief, surcharge above ₹50 lakh and 4% cess. Rounded to ₹10.
- No salary or other income. Advance tax already paid isn't taken off.
Sources
- Income-tax Act, 2025, s.202: tax rates
- Income-tax Act, 2025, s.156: rebate
- Income-tax Act, 2025, s.408: advance-tax dates
- Income-tax Act, 2025, s.425: interest on late instalments
- Income-tax Act, 2025, s.58: presumptive income
Updates
- 5 November 2026: Published. Rules checked against the Income-tax Act, 2025, the Finance Act, 2026 and the official October to December 2026 rates.
Questions people ask
Who has to pay advance tax?
Anyone whose tax for the year, after TDS, is ₹10,000 or more. Salaried people usually don't, because TDS covers it.
What if I miss a date?
You pay interest on the shortfall: 3% for each of the June, September and December dates and 1% for March (section 425). There's none if you've paid at least 12% by 15 June and 36% by 15 September. Paying late still beats not paying.
Is the ₹12 lakh rebate available to freelancers?
Yes, in the new regime it applies to any resident individual. Freelancers don't get the ₹75,000 standard deduction, which is only for salary.
What counts as profit?
Receipts minus genuine business expenses, or the presumptive share of receipts if you use the scheme.