Check Your AIS and Form 26AS Before Filing

Before you file your return this season, spend ten minutes on two documents the Income Tax Department already has about you: your Form 26AS and your Annual Information Statement (AIS). Most notices we see could have been avoided with this one check.

What they are

• Form 26AS — your tax credit statement: TDS deducted by employers, banks and others, taxes you paid, and refunds issued.
• AIS — a broader statement of your financial footprint: interest, dividends, securities and mutual fund transactions, and other reported information. The TIS (Taxpayer Information Summary) is its simplified view.

Both are available after logging in at the income-tax e-filing portal.

What to reconcile

1. Salary & TDS — does the TDS in 26AS match your Form 16?
2. Interest income — savings and FD interest in AIS often gets missed in returns; the department will not miss it.
3. Dividends — small amounts across holdings add up and are fully reported.
4. Shares & mutual funds — sale transactions appear in AIS; if you traded, capital gains likely need reporting (and possibly ITR-2/ITR-3).
5. Advance/self-assessment tax — confirm your challans are reflected.

If something doesn’t match

• If the return would be wrong, correct the return before filing.
• If the AIS itself is wrong (e.g. a duplicate entry), you can submit feedback against that entry on the portal — don’t simply ignore it.

The payoff

Returns that match 26AS/AIS get processed and refunded faster, and are far less likely to attract a mismatch notice later.

Want us to do this reconciliation and file for you? Get in touch — it’s part of every filing we handle.

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This article is for general information only and is not a substitute for advice specific to your circumstances.