Property Sale TDS Estimator
Estimate how much TDS a buyer must withhold when you sell property in India -- with and without a Section 395 lower-TDS certificate (Form 128; formerly Section 197 / Form 13).
The total amount the buyer is paying you for the property.
What you originally paid for the property. Used only to estimate your capital gain for the 'with certificate' scenario -- doesn't include cost of improvement or transfer expenses.
More than 24 months is long-term (LTCG); 24 months or less is short-term (STCG) -- the two are taxed very differently.
Estimated TDS on this sale
Your estimated capital gain: ₹70.00L
Without a lower-TDS certificate
- TDS calculated on
- ₹1.50Cr
- Base rate
- 12.5%
- Surcharge
- 15%
- Health & education cess
- ₹86.25K
- Total TDS withheld
- ₹22.43L
- Effective rate on this amount
- 14.95%
With a Form 128 certificate
- TDS calculated on
- ₹70.00L
- Base rate
- 12.5%
- Surcharge
- 10%
- Health & education cess
- ₹38.50K
- Total TDS withheld
- ₹10.01L
- Effective rate on this amount
- 14.30%
To get the lower rate, you need:
A Section 395 lower/nil-deduction certificate (Form 128 -- called Section 197 / 'Form 13' under the old Act) from your Assessing Officer, applied for online via the TRACES portal *before* the sale closes -- processing typically takes 15-45 days, so apply as soon as the sale is being negotiated. Without one on file, the buyer has no legal basis to deduct anything less than the full-consideration rate shown here.
Capital gain here is simply sale price minus purchase price -- this does not model cost of improvement, transfer expenses (brokerage, legal fees), or Section 54/54EC/54F reinvestment exemptions, all of which can lower your actual liability further. The long-term rate (12.5%, no indexation) applies to all NRI sellers regardless of when the property was acquired -- NRIs are not eligible for the pre-July-2024 grandfathering choice available to resident individuals/HUFs. Surcharge is shown using the amount taxed in each scenario as a stand-in for your total Indian income, capped at 15% (the confirmed cap for long-term gains); for short-term gains above roughly ₹1 crore, some professionals apply higher, uncapped surcharge slabs instead -- confirm with a CA for a high-value short-term sale. Under the Income-tax Act, 2025 (in force from 1 April 2026) this TDS falls under Section 393(2) (formerly Section 195) and the lower-deduction certificate is Form 128 under Section 395 (formerly Form 13 under Section 197); the rates used here are unchanged. Confirm the current process with a CA or the TRACES portal before applying. This is not tax or legal advice.
Rates and rules last verified on 02 Sep 2026.
How the Property Sale TDS Estimator Works
When an NRI sells property in India, the buyer -- not the seller -- is legally responsible for deducting TDS under Section 393(2) of the Income-tax Act, 2025 (formerly Section 195) before paying out the sale amount. Without a special certificate, the buyer has no way to know the seller's actual profit, so by default TDS gets deducted on the ENTIRE sale price, not just the capital gain -- often locking up a large sum until the seller files a return and claims a refund.
A Section 395 lower/nil-deduction certificate (Form 128 -- formerly Section 197 / Form 13), obtained from the Assessing Officer before the sale, changes this: it tells the buyer the actual computed capital gain, so TDS is deducted on that much smaller amount instead of the full sale price. This calculator shows both scenarios side by side -- TDS without a certificate (on the full price) versus TDS with one (on the actual gain) -- so you can see exactly how much cash flow a Form 128 application can free up.
Long-term (held > 24 months): TDS = 12.5% x Gain, no indexation. Short-term (held <= 24 months): TDS withheld at a flat 30% of the taxable amount (approximating the top slab, since the buyer cannot know the seller's real bracket). Plus applicable surcharge and 4% cess.Frequently asked questions
Why is TDS deducted on the full sale price instead of just my profit?
Because the buyer -- who is legally responsible for deducting the TDS -- has no way to verify your cost of acquisition or actual gain. Without a Section 395 certificate (formerly Section 197) telling them otherwise, the law requires them to withhold on the full consideration as a safe default.
Can I use the 20%-with-indexation option like a resident seller can?
No -- the grandfathering choice between 20% with indexation and 12.5% without, introduced for property bought before 23 July 2024, is restricted to resident individuals and HUFs. NRI sellers must use the flat 12.5% no-indexation rate regardless of when the property was acquired.
How long does a Section 395 (formerly Section 197) certificate take, and is it worth applying for?
It varies by Assessing Officer and case complexity, but is generally worth pursuing well before the sale closes for any property where the actual gain is meaningfully smaller than the full sale price -- exactly the gap this calculator quantifies for your numbers.