Advance Tax Due June 15, 2026: What Salaried Pros Miss
You have a job, your employer cuts TDS every month, and you assume tax is handled. Then you sold some ESOPs, booked a few lakh in equity gains, and collected dividends — and none of that was fully covered by salary TDS. That gap is yours to pay as advance tax, and the first installment for FY 2026-27 is due 15 June 2026. Miss it and the interest meter under Section 234C starts ticking at 1% a month.
Summary
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Who owes it | Anyone whose tax after TDS exceeds ₹10,000 (Section 208) — salaried included |
| First installment | 15% of estimated FY 2026-27 tax, due 15 June 2026 |
| Full schedule | 15% (Jun 15), 45% (Sep 15), 75% (Dec 15), 100% (Mar 15) |
| Penalty for delay | 1% per month on the shortfall (Section 234C) |
| Relief | Capital gains + dividends get a 234C waiver if paid in the next installment |
| How to pay | Income tax e-pay portal, Challan 280, minor head 100 |
Who actually owes advance tax — even on a salary
The myth is that advance tax is a business-owner problem. It is not. Under Section 208, anyone with an estimated tax liability of ₹10,000 or more after TDS must pay advance tax. For a salaried professional, salary TDS usually clears the salary portion — the leak is everything else:
Capital gains
Sold equity, equity mutual funds, gold, or property this year? The tax on those gains is almost never deducted at source. A ₹4 lakh long-term equity gain above the ₹1.25 lakh exemption is taxed at 12.5% — about ₹34,000 you owe directly.
ESOPs and RSUs
The perquisite at vesting has TDS, but the capital gain when you sell the shares later does not. That second leg is on you.
Dividends and interest
Dividends are taxable at slab rate with only 10% TDS (and only above ₹10,000 from a company). Fixed deposit interest has 10% TDS — but if you are in the 30% slab, the remaining 20% is a shortfall. Both feed your advance tax.
If these push your post-TDS liability past ₹10,000, the June 15 installment is yours.
The June 15 installment: the math
Section 211 sets four installments. By 15 June you must have paid 15% of your full-year estimated tax. The cumulative ladder for FY 2026-27:
| Due date | Cumulative advance tax |
|---|---|
| 15 Jun 2026 | 15% |
| 15 Sep 2026 | 45% |
| 15 Dec 2026 | 75% |
| 15 Mar 2027 | 100% |
Under Section 234C, if you underpay any installment, you pay 1% simple interest per month on the shortfall — for three months on the June miss, three on September, three on December, and one on March. Separately, Section 234B charges 1% a month from April 2027 until you file if you have not cleared 90% of your total tax by year-end. The two stack.
The 234C escape hatch most people miss
Here is the part competitors skip. Capital gains and dividend income are, by nature, unpredictable — you cannot estimate in March what you will sell in November. So the proviso to Section 234C waives the interest on a shortfall caused by capital gains or dividend income — provided you pay the tax on that income in the very next installment after you earn it (or by 15 March if it lands in the last quarter).
In plain terms: you do not have to pre-pay June 15 tax on a gain you have not booked yet. But the moment you sell in, say, August, the tax on that gain must go into your September 15 installment. Forget it, and the waiver is gone and 234C applies.
This is the difference between paying advance tax like a professional and overpaying out of fear — or underpaying into a penalty.
Real example: Salaried, ₹32L CTC, Bengaluru, sold ESOPs
Priya earns ₹32L, fully covered by salary TDS. In May 2026 she sold vested ESOPs for a ₹6 lakh long-term capital gain and earned ₹40,000 in dividends.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| LTCG above ₹1.25L exemption | ₹4.75 lakh |
| Tax on LTCG @ 12.5% | ₹59,375 |
| Tax on dividends @ 30% slab | ₹12,000 |
| Less: 10% dividend TDS | (₹4,000) |
| Net advance tax due | ~₹67,000 |
Because she booked the gain in May, the income falls in the first quarter — so 15% (~₹10,000) is due by 15 June 2026, with the rest laddering across the year. If she ignores it until filing, Section 234C alone adds roughly ₹2,000–4,000 in interest, and 234B more on top. Paying on time costs her nothing extra.
What to do this week
- Add up your non-salary income for April–May 2026: realised capital gains, dividends, FD interest, rent, freelance.
- Estimate the tax on it and subtract any TDS already deducted. If the balance crosses ₹10,000, you owe advance tax.
- Pay 15% by 15 June 2026 via the income tax e-pay portal — Challan 280, minor head 100 (advance tax), not 300 (self-assessment).
- Set a calendar reminder for Sep 15, Dec 15 and Mar 15, and top up each installment as you book new gains through the year.
Don't let TDS lull you into a penalty
Salary TDS is not a full stop — it only covers your salary. The moment you earn outside it, advance tax is your job, and the FY 2026-27 clock starts on 15 June. A ten-minute challan beats months of 1% interest and a scramble at filing.
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