October is a busy compliance month for taxpayers. The key income-tax deadlines this month are October 7 for depositing TDS and TCS collected in September 2026, and October 21 for furnishing tax audit reports for assessment year 2026-27.

The tax audit deadline was extended from September 30 to October 21 by the CBDT for specified taxpayers. The corresponding income-tax return deadline has moved to November 21 from October 31.

October 15 is the deadline for issuing specified quarterly TDS certificates and filing designated non-resident and remittance forms for the quarter ended September 30.

On the GST side, October 10 brings GSTR-7 and GSTR-8, October 11 the monthly GSTR-1, and October 20 the monthly GSTR-3B.

Businesses should track the full statutory calendar for PF, ESI and SEBI filings too, as penalties for missing revised deadlines still apply.

The CBDT revised the tax audit deadline after representations from industry, moving it from September 30 to October 21 for specified taxpayers. Transfer-pricing cases have a separate October 31 deadline with Form 3CEB.

Taxpayers who miss the deadlines face interest and penalties. With Diwali-weekend and Dussehra holidays falling inside the compliance window, professionals advise filing well before the last dates.