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No platform cut. Still two things to plan for.

Toptal pays your full quoted rate — no freelancer-side fee. Forex conversion still takes a slice, and unlike Upwork and Fiverr, Toptal publishes no India TDS policy — so assume no 26AS credit and check your own remittance statements. See what lands, and what you'll owe.

Your Toptal income

$

Toptal pays freelancers their full quoted rate — its margin is billed to the client, not deducted from you.

mid-market
₹/$

Enter the current mid-market rate — your bank/payout markup is the spread below.

1.5%

Your bank/payout method's markup over the mid-market rate.

Section 58(2) Table Sl. No. 3 (formerly 44ADA) — tax on 50% of gross receipts — is only for a resident individual or partnership firm (not an LLP) in a specified profession: legal, medical, engineering, architectural, accountancy, technical consultancy, interior decoration, authorised representative, film artist, company secretary or information technology, with gross receipts up to ₹50 lakh (₹75 lakh if cash receipts are no more than 5%). Design, writing, marketing, coaching and general consulting are not on the list — check with a CA before relying on it for that work.

GST registration applies. Annualised gross billings (before the platform fee) cross ₹20L. Platform work is not automatically an export of service — whether a job qualifies (and can be zero-rated under LUT) depends on where the buyer is, the place of supply and being paid in foreign exchange. Check it with your CA.

Advance tax — FY 2026-27

Annual gross billings₹45,36,000
Annual taxable incomeafter fee + spread₹44,67,960
Total tax liability₹9,57,200

Next instalment: ₹2,87,160 due 15 Dec.

Take it with you

Take your Toptal numbers with you

One payout traced from the amount billed through the fee and the conversion spread to the rupees that arrive — then the Indian tax still left to pay, with the instalment dates it is due on.

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How this works

The best fee structure of the three — plan the rest anyway.

Does Toptal charge freelancers a fee?
No — Toptal's margin is billed to the client, not deducted from the freelancer's rate. You receive your full quoted rate before forex conversion, unlike Upwork or Fiverr, which both take a cut off the top.
Does Toptal deduct TDS for Indian freelancers?
Probably not, but check your own remittance statements rather than assuming. Section 194O does bind e-commerce operators based outside India — Upwork and Fiverr both publish India TDS policies and withhold 0.1% (5% without a PAN linked to Aadhaar). Toptal publishes no equivalent India TDS policy, and it engages most talent as a direct contracting counterparty rather than as a marketplace operator, so in practice nothing is usually withheld. If your statements show no deduction, there is no Form 26AS credit for this income and you must pay the full advance tax yourself; if they do show one, claim it in your ITR.
Do I need GST registration for Toptal income?
Only once your aggregate turnover for the year (across all clients and platforms) exceeds ₹20 lakh — ₹10 lakh in Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura. Toptal income is not automatically an export of services: whether an engagement qualifies, and can be zero-rated under LUT, depends on where the client is, the place of supply and being paid in foreign exchange — so check it with a CA.

Forex spread is an estimate — verify your payout provider's current rate. Tax figures are for FY 2026-27 under the Income-tax Act 2025 — s.58(2) Sl. 3 (formerly 44ADA), ss.404–408 (formerly 208–211) and ss.424/425 (formerly 234B/234C) — with rates per Finance Act 2026, unchanged. Results are indicative; consult a CA for filing.

Continue your calculation

Related glossary

Plain-English definitions of the terms behind this calculator.