Tax
TDS
Also known as: Tax Deducted at Source
Tax cut directly from your income by the payer before the money even reaches you.
TDS means whoever pays you, your employer, bank, or client, deducts tax upfront and sends it to the government on your behalf.
It appears on your Form 26AS and Form 16, and you adjust it against your final tax when filing your ITR.
If too much TDS was cut, you claim a refund. If too little, you pay the balance at filing.
For example
A freelancer billing ₹1L may receive ₹90,000 because the client deducted ₹10,000 as 10% TDS, which the freelancer later adjusts in their ITR.