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A deductee suspects a customer deducted TDS but did not deposit it, and has no direct way to see the customer's payments.
The Challan Identification Number (BSR code, deposit date, serial number) lets anyone confirm a deposit; a found challan with an empty credit statement points to the deductor's return, not the deposit.
Request the TAN, BSR code, deposit date, challan serial number and return acknowledgement; record the challan status result against the TDS receivable line.
Each missing credit is classed as deposit problem or return problem, so the request to the customer names the right fix.
Short answer: Ask the customer for their TAN and the three challan details (BSR code, date of deposit and challan serial number), then run a challan status check on an official portal. If the challan is found but your Form 26AS (Form 168 from tax year 2026-27) is still empty, the money has reached the government and the gap is in their quarterly return, not the deposit.
What do the three outcomes mean?
| Outcome | What it means | Next step |
|---|---|---|
| Challan found, amount covers your TDS | Tax was deposited | If your statement is empty, the return is missing or wrong; ask for the return acknowledgement and the PAN quoted |
| Challan found, but date, amount or details differ | Customer gave you the wrong challan, or the challan is too small for everything it must cover | Ask them to confirm the challan used for your deduction |
| Challan not found | Digits are wrong, or the tax was not deposited | Recheck digits; if still missing, ask for bank debit proof in writing |
The challan amount is usually larger than your TDS. One challan often pays a month’s TDS for many vendors under one section.
Where do I get the challan details if the customer is slow?
Try these, in order:
- Payment advice. Some companies print the challan details on the remittance email.
- The TDS certificate. Form 16A (Form 131 from tax year 2026-27) lists the BSR code, deposit date and challan serial number for each deduction.
- A direct written request naming the invoice, month and amount.
A certificate generated from TRACES, the department’s TDS portal, already proves the return was processed with a matched challan, which answers most of your question.
What if the challan exists but my Form 26AS is still empty?
The deposit is linked to the deductor’s TAN, not to you. It reaches your PAN only through the quarterly return (Form 26Q for most business payments). So one of these is true:
- the return is not filed, or not processed yet (due dates 31 July, 31 October, 31 January, 31 May);
- the return quotes a wrong PAN for you;
- the return lists the wrong challan details, so the line is unmatched;
- the deduction was reported in another quarter.
Each needs the customer to act, usually through a correction statement.
Worked example: ₹12,400 TDS
A customer paid you ₹1,24,000 (before GST) in June for professional services and deducted 10% under Section 194J, so ₹12,400. Your Form 26AS shows nothing in early September. You ask for details, and they share: BSR code 0230001, deposit date 6 July, challan serial number 00231.
- 6 July is before the 7 July deposit deadline for June deductions, so the timing is fine.
- You run the challan status check with these three details.
Reading 1: the challan shows ₹2,85,000 deposited under the professional fees section on 6 July. That is larger than ₹12,400 because it covers all June vendors. The deposit exists, so ask for the Q1 return acknowledgement and the PAN quoted.
Reading 2: the challan shows a 6 August date. That is a different month’s payment. Ask which challan covered June.
Reading 3: nothing found. Ask them to recheck the BSR code and serial number. If they confirm the same digits, ask for the bank debit entry.
What to read next
- If the challan really does not exist, read my customer deducted TDS but never deposited it: what proof do I need?
- TRACES portal: how to download and reconcile TDS data
- TDS challan mismatch: how to identify and resolve errors
Once you check more than a handful of customers a quarter, the evidence trail gets messy. TransactIG reconciles TDS receivable against your credit statement and keeps the open items in an exception queue with audit-ready exports; see TDS reconciliation software.
Content authored by practitioners with experience at Amazon India, Intuit QuickBooks, and the Tata Group. Meet the team →