Joint buyers and the Rs 50 lakh TDS limit: per buyer or per flat?

Many joint buyers assume the Rs 50 lakh TDS threshold is tested on each buyer's share. It is not. The test is on the property, and since 1 October 2024 the law says so in plain words.

The Rs 50 lakh limit applies per property, not per buyer. Since 1 October 2024, the consideration paid by all buyers to all sellers is aggregated for the threshold test. Splitting a flat between two buyers at Rs 30 lakh each does not avoid TDS.

Is the Rs 50 lakh limit tested on my share or on the whole flat?

On the whole flat. Under the TDS provision for property purchase, no deduction is required only where the consideration and the stamp duty value are both less than Rs 50,00,000. With effect from 1 October 2024, the Finance (No.2) Act 2024 made it explicit that where there is more than one transferor or more than one transferee, the consideration for the Rs 50 lakh test is the aggregate of the amounts paid or payable by all buyers to all sellers for that property.

So a husband and wife buying a Rs 90 lakh flat at Rs 45 lakh each are well inside the net. The aggregate is Rs 90 lakh, the threshold is crossed, and 1 per cent applies to the entire Rs 90 lakh — not merely to the excess over Rs 50 lakh.

Did the old splitting idea ever work?

It was argued, and it was contested. Before October 2024 the section did not spell out aggregation, and some buyers took the view that each co-buyer's share stood on its own feet. The department did not accept that reading. Rather than let the argument run on, Parliament put the matter beyond doubt from 1 October 2024. Today the point is not arguable at all — the plain words cover it.

How do co-buyers actually deduct and file?

Each buyer deducts 1 per cent on their own share, at the earlier of credit or payment.
The base is the higher of the actual consideration or the stamp duty value.
Where payment is in instalments, deduct from every instalment, not once at the end.
Each buyer files separately using their own PAN — no TAN is needed.
If the seller does not furnish a PAN, deduct at 20 per cent instead of 1 per cent.

For transactions from 1 April 2026, the challan-cum-statement is Form 141 (Schedule B), filed through the buyer's PAN login within 30 days from the end of the month of deduction, with the certificate in Form 132 within 15 days of that due date. Our TDS on property purchase calculator works out each co-buyer's figure, and the fuller position is set out in our note on TDS on property purchase. If the seller is an NRI this section does not apply at all and a different route follows — please take your chartered accountant's view on the facts of your own purchase.

Work it out for your own society

Enter the agreement value, the stamp duty value and each co-buyer's share to see exactly how much TDS each buyer must deduct, and by when it must be paid.

Open the TDS on Property Purchase Calculator

Common questions

If two of us buy a flat for Rs 80 lakh, does each of us test Rs 40 lakh against the limit?

No. Since 1 October 2024 the consideration paid by all buyers to all sellers is aggregated for the Rs 50 lakh test. The aggregate is Rs 80 lakh, so TDS applies, and it applies to the whole Rs 80 lakh rather than only the amount above Rs 50 lakh.

Do joint buyers file one return between them?

No. Each buyer deducts 1 per cent on their own share and files their own challan-cum-statement using their own PAN. No TAN is required. Where the price is paid in instalments, the deduction is made from each instalment.

What if the stamp duty value is above Rs 50 lakh but the agreement value is below it?

TDS still applies. The exemption is available only where the consideration and the stamp duty value are both less than Rs 50 lakh, and the 1 per cent is computed on the higher of the two figures.