Income Tax Rules provide that the following persons shall pay tax electronically (i.e. internet banking facility or through credit/debit cards) on or after the 1st day of August, 2008:

i.  A company; and

ii.  A person (other than a company), to whom the provisions of section 44AB of the Income-Tax Act 1961 are applicable.

As per the report of Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC):

i.  With effect from 01.10.2014, it is mandatory for all Central Excise assesses and service provider/tax payer to electronically pay duty through internet banking.

ii.  E-payment of duty is mandatory for Accredited Clients Programme (ACP) importers paying duty of ₹ 1.00 lakh or more per Bill of Entry.

Further, Government in August 2011 had asked Public Sector Banks (PSBs), Financial Institutions (Fls) and Public Sector Insurance Companies (PSICs) to deal with payments to staff, vendors, suppliers and disbursement of loans and payments towards instalments and investments only through direct credit to accounts.

This was stated by Shri Jayant Sinha, MoS in the Ministry of Finance in written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha.

Electronic payment obligations require taxpayers and duty payers to remit taxes and duties through mandated digital channels. Electronic payment obligations require companies and non-corporate persons subject to tax audit provisions to pay income-tax electronically via internet banking or credit/debit cards. Central excise payers and service providers are mandated to remit duty electronically, with accredited importers required to e-pay import duty when a bill of entry meets the prescribed transaction threshold. Public sector banks, financial institutions and public sector insurance companies were directed to make staff, vendor, supplier, loan and investment payments by direct credit to accounts.