TDS and Taxation on Business Current Accounts: Latest Updates

Running a small business means handling cash and bank transactions carefully. In India, any large cash withdrawal from a business current account can trigger TDS (Tax Deducted at Source) under Section 194N of the Income Tax Act. These rules are designed to curb black money and promote digital transactions. Under Section 194N, banks (including co-operative banks and post offices) must deduct tax at source when cash withdrawals exceed certain limits in a financial year. By law, a 2% TDS applies on aggregate cash withdrawals over ₹1 crore per year. However, if the business or its owner hasn’t filed income tax returns for three consecutive years, the exemption threshold is slashed to just ₹20 lakh, and withdrawals over ₹1 crore face a higher 5% TDS.

These measures ensure that large cash dealings from business accounts are tracked. For example, if a business owner withdraws ₹25 lakh in cash and hasn’t filed returns in the past 3 years, the bank will deduct ₹50,000 as TDS (2% of ₹25 lakh) on the spot. In contrast, regular filers only start paying TDS once the ₹1 crore mark is breached (at 2% on the amount over ₹1 crore). The intent, as officials note, is to discourage big cash transactions and push businesses towards transparent, digital payments.

Section 194N for Business Account Cash Withdrawals

• TDS Rates & Thresholds: 2% TDS on cash withdrawn over ₹1 crore in a year. If no ITR filed for 3 years, TDS is 2% on withdrawals over ₹20 lakh and 5% on withdrawals over ₹1 crore.
• Who Must Deduct? Any bank, co-operative bank, or post office where the business holds the account. The bank deducts TDS at the time of the withdrawal.
• Who Is Exempt? Certain entities don’t pay this TDS, including the central/state government, public sector banks, co-operative banks, post offices, RBI-authorized dealers (e.g. forex), business correspondents, full-fledged money changers, and traders operating under APMCs for farmer payments. These exceptions ensure that genuine business channels (like agricultural marketing cooperatives) aren’t penalized.

The introduction of Section 194N came in Budget 2019 (effective Sept 2019) and was later expanded in Budget 2020. It built on an earlier TCS rule (Section 206C(1H)) by shifting to TDS: all large cash payments must now carry an automatic 2–5% tax slug. Importantly, only the account holder (the business or proprietor) can claim credit for the TDS deducted on withdrawals from their account. This means if your business makes a ₹1.2 crore cash withdrawal, you can claim the TDS as a credit against your income tax liability, but you cannot carry that credit forward to a later year.

Other TDS Provisions for Business Payments

While Section 194N is specific to cash withdrawals, businesses must also watch other TDS provisions when paying through the current account. Common examples include: payment to contractors (Section 194C), professionals (Section 194J), rent (Section 194-I), commission (Section 194H), and salaries (Section 192). 

Each has its own threshold and rate. For instance, professional fees above ₹30,000 usually attract 10% TDS (Section 194J), and rent payments above ₹2,40,000 per year require 2% TDS (Section 194-I). However, these TDS deductions are on the payments made by the business, not on the account itself, so they follow the usual rules for business expenses. (Note: current accounts typically don’t earn interest, so Section 194A on bank interest rarely applies.) Always ensure your business deducts TDS where required on outflows and files the returns; failing to do so can lead to interest, penalties, and disallowance of expenses.

Income Tax Implications of Using a Business Current Account

Using a dedicated current account for your business has key tax implications beyond TDS:

• Cash Transaction Limits (Section 269ST): Businesses cannot receive ₹2 lakh or more in cash in a single transaction (or series of transactions for one event). Doing so attracts a penalty equal to the amount received. The only exceptions are deposits through cheques, drafts, electronic transfers, or from specified entities like banks and the government. This rule reinforces the need to accept large payments digitally.
• Reporting High-Value Transactions: Banks are now required to report significant cash movements. In a recent system enhancement, the IT Department flagged deposits or withdrawals of ₹50 lakh or more in a year as “high-value transactions”.
  
  For example, depositing ₹50 lakh in cash into the business current account will automatically be noticed by the tax authorities. While these reports don’t immediately incur extra tax, they invite scrutiny of your declared income. 
• Deposit Thresholds: Banks must report any cash deposits into a current account exceeding ₹50 lakh in a financial year to the Income Tax Department. (For savings accounts, the reportable limit is ₹10 lakh.) This isn’t a tax by itself – it’s for monitoring. But if your business deposits large sums (say from cash sales), the taxman will check whether such income was reported in your books.
• Business vs. Personal Transactions: Maintaining a separate business current account for all enterprise-related income and expenses simplifies compliance. Personal expenses or income should not flow through the business account. Mixing funds can raise red flags during a tax audit and make it hard to justify deductions. Transparent records (invoicing, receipts, payroll) go hand-in-hand with the bank statement to show genuine business activity.

In short, any huge cash inflow or outflow via a business current account will be on the tax radar. As the Income Tax Department’s new “high-value transactions” monitoring notes, withdrawals or deposits above ₹50 lakh will be automatically tracked. If your business income doesn’t justify these sums, it could lead to questions or reassessment.