Do not mix up your two tax documents
When you log in to incometax.gov.in, you will see two big documents: Form 26AS and the AIS (Annual Information Statement). Beginners often treat them as the same thing. They are not, and knowing the difference is the first step to a clean, notice-free return.
Form 26AS in plain words
Think of Form 26AS as your tax-credit passbook. It mainly records tax that has already been paid against your PAN: - TDS (Tax Deducted at Source): tax your employer or bank cut before paying you. - TCS (Tax Collected at Source): tax collected on certain spends, like a foreign tour package or a car. - Advance / self-assessment tax: tax you paid yourself during the year.
Rule of thumb: if you want to claim a tax credit in your ITR, it must show up in Form 26AS.
AIS in plain words
AIS is a much wider net. It includes the tax credits in 26AS, plus third-party reports about your money: savings interest, FD interest, mutual fund and share sales, dividends, rent received, and big-ticket purchases. A related screen, the TIS (Taxpayer Information Summary), simply totals AIS data category-wise for pre-filling your return.
How they compare
| What it tracks | Form 26AS | AIS |
|---|---|---|
| TDS / TCS credits | Yes | Yes |
| Advance / self-assessment tax | Yes | Yes |
| Savings and FD interest | No | Yes |
| Mutual fund / share sales | No | Yes |
| High-value purchases (SFT) | No | Yes |
Stat to know: India recorded over 7.28 crore ITRs filed for AY 2024-25 by 31 July 2024 (Source: Income Tax Department / CBDT press release). At that scale, the department leans heavily on AIS data-matching to catch unreported income.
How to view both (exact portal path)
- Log in at incometax.gov.in with your PAN and password.
- For AIS: go to Services > Annual Information Statement (AIS) and open the AIS tile.
- For 26AS: go to e-File > Income Tax Returns > View Form 26AS and proceed to the TRACES screen.
- Download both as PDF (the password is your PAN in lowercase plus date of birth as DDMMYYYY).
What you should do
Use both: Form 26AS to confirm the tax credits you will claim, and AIS to make sure you are not silently missing income such as a small savings-interest line.
Common mistake
Filing only from Form 16 and ignoring AIS. Your employer never sees your bank interest, so a clean Form 16 does not mean a complete return.
How LastMinute ITR helps
LastMinute ITR reconciles your Form 16 against both AIS and 26AS and flags gaps before you file. Start at /file, pull documents via /file/import/documents, and review gaps at /file/import/mismatch.
LastMinute ITR is a companion tool, not affiliated with the Income Tax Department. You file and e-verify your return yourself on incometax.gov.in.