Key Takeaways
- AIS is the department's own view of you. It consolidates what banks, employers, deductors, mutual funds and the GST network report against your PAN, and your return is compared with it after you file.
- Download fresh on the day you file. Reporting entities keep uploading data through the year, so save the latest AIS, TIS and Form 26AS with the download date.
- Use all three documents. AIS checks completeness of income, Form 26AS confirms the tax credit you can claim, and Form 16 supports your salary and deductions.
- AIS shows sale value, not your gain. Compute capital gains from broker and registrar statements before reporting them.
- Feedback is not a correction. It records your position, but your ITR must carry the right figure from the start, and reportable income should never be dropped because an entry looks wrong.
- Filed already? A belated return can be filed until 31 December 2026, and a revised return is allowed until 31 March 2027.
The Income Tax Department already holds what banks, employers, deductors, mutual funds and the GST network report against your PAN, and its systems compare your return with that data after you file. This guide from N D Savla & Associates, Chartered Accountants in Andheri East, Mumbai, explains how to read AIS, how to complete AIS reconciliation using AIS for AY 2026-27, and how to fix a wrong entry in AIS without triggering avoidable notices.
BasicsWhat Is AIS in Income Tax and Why Does It Matter for AY 2026-27?
AIS stands for Annual Information Statement, a consolidated record on the income tax portal that lists every financial transaction reported against your PAN in a financial year. What is AIS in income tax, in practical terms? It is the department's own view of your salary, interest, dividends, securities sales, property deals, high-value deposits, tax payments, refunds and GST turnover, as reported by the institutions that dealt with you. AIS for AY 2026-27 covers FY 2025-26, that is, 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026.
It matters because the department pre-fills your return from this data and compares your filed ITR with it afterwards. A difference between what a bank or employer reported and what you declared is exactly what the matching system looks for. Doing AIS reconciliation before you submit is the simplest way to avoid that. N D Savla & Associates handles this check as part of its business tax filing service for individuals, professionals and business owners.
Getting StartedHow to Download AIS and TIS from the Income Tax Portal?
You download AIS from the e-filing portal under the Services menu, free of cost, in PDF, JSON and CSV formats. Here is how to download AIS for the current filing season, the first practical step of AIS reconciliation:
- Log in to the e-filing portal. Open incometax.gov.in and sign in with your PAN and password.
- Open the AIS service. Go to Services, choose Annual Information Statement (AIS) and click Proceed to reach the AIS portal.
- Select FY 2025-26. Pick the financial year from the drop-down. Two tiles appear: AIS, which holds the detailed entries, and the Taxpayer Information Summary (TIS), which summarises them.
- Download the files. Use the download icon to save AIS as a PDF for reading and as JSON or CSV for software or spreadsheet work. TIS downloads as a PDF.
- Open the file with your password. The password is your PAN in lowercase followed by your date of birth in DDMMYYYY format.
The department also offers the AIS for Taxpayer mobile app on Android and iOS, which shows the same entries and accepts feedback. On how to download AIS, one rule helps: download it again on the day you file, because reporting entities keep uploading data through the year.
Reading AISHow to Read AIS: What Do Part A and Part B Show?
How to read AIS becomes simple once you know its two parts: Part A holds your identity details and Part B holds your financial data. Read Part A first, then work through Part B category by category, because Part B is where AIS reconciliation actually happens.
What Does Part A of AIS Show?
Part A shows general information: your PAN, masked Aadhaar number, name, date of birth, address, mobile number and email. Verify these details first. A wrong mobile number or an old address means notices and OTPs reach the wrong place.
What Does Part B of AIS Show?
Part B has five categories:
- TDS/TCS Information lists salary, interest, dividends, rent, professional fees and other receipts on which tax was deducted or collected.
- SFT Information carries Statement of Financial Transactions data reported by banks, registrars, mutual fund houses and others, such as cash deposits, time deposits, securities transactions and property deals.
- Payment of Taxes records advance tax, self-assessment tax and TDS credited to your PAN.
- Demand and Refund shows outstanding demands and refunds.
- Other Information covers items such as GST turnover, dividends and interest on refunds.
Every line shows the information source, a description, the reported amount and a status. TIS in income tax means the Taxpayer Information Summary, which rolls these lines into category totals with two values: a processed value computed by the department and a derived value that reflects your feedback or the source's confirmation. The derived value feeds the pre-filled return, so check TIS in income tax terms after you submit AIS feedback, not only the AIS lines. Unfamiliar entries usually fall into three groups: transactions that are yours but forgotten, the same transaction reported twice, and entries tagged to your PAN by mistake.
ComparisonAIS vs Form 26AS: Which One Should You Rely On While Filing?
Rely on both: AIS for completeness of income and Form 26AS for the tax credit you can claim. AIS vs Form 26AS is not a contest. Form 26AS is a tax credit statement showing TDS, TCS, advance tax, self-assessment tax and selected high-value transactions, while AIS contains all of that and adds interest, dividends, securities and mutual fund transactions, GST turnover and more. Only AIS lets you submit feedback.
| Aspect | Form 26AS | AIS | Form 16 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Issued by | Income Tax Department | Income Tax Department | Your employer |
| Main purpose | Verify tax credit | Complete view of reported transactions | Salary and TDS certificate |
| Scope | TDS, TCS, tax paid, refunds, selected high-value transactions | Everything in 26AS plus SFT data, interest, dividends, securities, GST turnover | Salary and TDS of one employer |
| Feedback option | No | Yes | No |
| Use in your ITR | Claim TDS and TCS credit | Check completeness of income | Report salary and deductions |
Compare all three before you finalise any figure in your return.
Claim TDS credit only for amounts that appear against your PAN, because credit follows the deductor's filed TDS statement. Whenever AIS vs Form 26AS show different credit figures, ask the deductor to correct the statement instead of claiming the higher amount. Income missing from both statements is still taxable; the law taxes what you earned, not what an institution reported.
ContextHow Did AIS Evolve from Pre-1991 Paper Records to Today?
AIS is the outcome of three decades in which the department moved from paper-based self-reporting to third-party data matching.
Before 1991 — Paper Returns and Manual Checks
Before 1991, assessments under the Income-tax Act, 1961 ran on paper returns, physical files and manual cross-checks. The Permanent Account Number scheme dated from 1972 but its use stayed limited, and few institutions reported your transactions, so disclosure depended largely on the taxpayer.
1991 to 2004 — Computerisation and the Annual Information Return
After the 1991 economic reforms, banking, mutual funds and the stock markets expanded and the department began to computerise. PAN was computerised and its quoting became compulsory for more transactions through the 1990s. From 2004, the Annual Information Return under Section 285BA, now called the Statement of Financial Transactions, began collecting high-value transactions from banks, registrars and other reporters, and e-filing arrived in the same period. Form 26AS became the tax credit statement taxpayers relied on.
2017 Onwards — GST, Company Filings and the Arrival of AIS
The current phase starts with the Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, which added a stream of turnover data, and the Companies Act, 2013, whose filings with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs give the department another reference for directors, shareholders and company finances. AIS and TIS arrived on the e-filing portal in 2021, and returns are now pre-filled from this data. The Income-tax Act, 2025 applies from 1 April 2026, yet returns for AY 2026-27 remain governed by the Income-tax Act, 1961. You can see your own data trail on the Income Tax Department's e-filing portal.
How to Complete AIS Reconciliation Before Filing ITR: What Are the Steps?
To reconcile AIS before filing ITR, compare each Part B entry with a primary document, classify every difference, correct what is wrong through feedback, and report what is right in your return. This seven-step AIS reconciliation works for salaried taxpayers and businesses alike:
Collect Your Documents First
Gather Form 16, payslips, interest certificates, broker and mutual fund capital gain statements, rent receipts, tax payment challans and, for business income, your books and GST returns. Without these papers you cannot judge whether an entry is right.
Download the Latest AIS, TIS and Form 26AS
Save PDF and JSON copies with the download date. Compare Form 26AS with AIS first for tax credits; any gap shows up immediately.
Match Salary and TDS Entries
Compare salary in AIS with Part A and Part B of Form 16, and the employer's total TDS with the credit shown. A gap usually means the employer filed or revised its TDS statement late or reported perquisites differently.
Tally Interest and Dividend Entries
Add the interest from every savings, fixed and recurring deposit and compare it with AIS. Report interest even where no TDS was deducted. The deduction under Section 80TTA (up to ₹10,000) or Section 80TTB (up to ₹50,000 for senior citizens) is available only under the old tax regime.
Reconcile Securities and Mutual Fund Transactions
AIS shows the sale consideration reported by brokers and registrars, not your gain or loss. Compute capital gains from your broker's profit and loss statement and the capital gain statements of mutual fund registrars, then confirm that your ITR form accommodates them. Our guide to capital gains tax filing for AY 2026-27 explains the rates and schedules.
Explain High-Value Transactions and Other Information
Cash deposits, property purchases or sales, credit card payments and GST turnover each need an explanation, such as savings, sale proceeds, gifts or business receipts. Keep the supporting documents ready.
Submit Feedback, File and E-Verify
Where an entry is wrong, duplicate or not yours, submit AIS feedback with the correct value and let TIS update. File the ITR with correct figures even if feedback is pending, and e-verify within 30 days of filing.
Note. To reconcile AIS before filing ITR, always work from the latest download. Reporting entities upload revised statements through the year, and an entry missing in July can appear by October. Save the final PDF with your tax records.
How to Submit AIS Feedback for a Wrong Entry in AIS?
Open the entry in AIS, click Optional, choose the feedback option that fits, enter the correct value and submit; the portal forwards it to the reporting source and displays the status. The options include information is correct, information is not fully correct, information relates to another PAN or year, and information is duplicate or already included in another entry.
You can submit AIS feedback on a single entry or in bulk, modify it later, and download an acknowledgement. Treat feedback as a record of your position, not as a correction of your ITR. A wrong entry in AIS stays wrong until the source confirms the change, so your return must carry the right figure from the start. Feedback supports AIS reconciliation; it never replaces it.
Common IssuesWhat Are the Most Common AIS Mismatches and How Do You Fix Them?
The most common AIS mismatch in an ITR arises from salary, interest, securities, TDS credit and turnover entries. The table pairs each AIS mismatch with its usual cause and fix.
| Mismatch | Usual cause | How to fix it |
|---|---|---|
| Salary differs from Form 16 | Perquisites or a revised employer TDS statement | Ask the employer to correct the statement; report the figure your Form 16 supports |
| TDS missing from Form 26AS | Deductor filed late or quoted a wrong PAN | Request a correction statement from the deductor before claiming credit |
| Interest not in your return | Forgotten fixed deposits or secondary accounts | Add interest from every account and reconcile with bank certificates |
| Securities sale value without gain | AIS reports sale consideration, not profit | Compute gains from broker and registrar statements |
| Same transaction twice | Two sources reported one transaction | Submit feedback marking it duplicate |
| GST turnover differs from books | Timing, exempt supplies or unreconciled books | Reconcile books with GST returns and document the difference |
Always keep the supporting document for each entry you accept, correct or dispute.
A missing TDS credit is fixed at the deductor's end, and N D Savla & Associates supports deductors through its TDS return filing service. For business taxpayers, bookkeeping aligned to GST returns makes AIS reconciliation routine, because turnover in the books then agrees with turnover in the department's data.
RisksWhat Happens If You Skip AIS Reconciliation and File with a Mismatch?
The department's system flags the difference, and you typically receive an intimation under Section 143(1) with adjusted income and a tax demand, or an email and SMS asking you to review the entry. An income tax notice for AIS mismatch can escalate to a notice under Section 142(1) seeking explanations and, in selected cases, to scrutiny under Section 143(2). Skipping AIS reconciliation is what makes that escalation possible.
Important. Under Section 270A of the Income-tax Act, 1961, under-reported income attracts a penalty of 50% of the tax on that income, and misreported income attracts 200%. Never remove reportable income from your return because an AIS entry looks wrong. Dispute the entry through feedback and keep documents to prove your case.
Interest under Sections 234B and 234C applies where advance tax fell short. An omission corrected early through a revised return costs far less than one found by the department. A year-round routine under accounting and tax compliance support keeps your records aligned with AIS data, so an income tax notice for AIS mismatch becomes unlikely.
DeadlinesWhat Are the Deadlines to File or Revise ITR for AY 2026-27?
As of 15 October 2026, the original due dates for most non-audit taxpayers have passed: 31 July 2026 for ITR-1 and ITR-2 filers and 31 August 2026 for non-audit business or professional taxpayers filing ITR-3 or ITR-4. An unfiled return must go in as a belated return under Section 139(4) by 31 December 2026, with a Section 234F fee of ₹5,000 (₹1,000 if total income is up to ₹5 lakh) and Section 234A interest at 1% per month on unpaid tax.
If you have already filed without checking AIS for AY 2026-27, run AIS reconciliation now. A revised return under Section 139(5) is free until 31 December 2026 and allowed until 31 March 2027 with a Section 234I fee of ₹1,000 or ₹5,000 after that date. An updated return under Section 139(8A) stays available until 31 March 2031 at additional tax of 25% to 70%. Tax audit cases have until 21 November 2026 to file after the CBDT extended the date from 31 October, and the audit report is due by 21 October 2026; our income tax audit team handles both. After filing, obtain an income tax return true copy whenever a bank or consulate asks for a certified copy.
Frequently Asked QuestionsWhat Do Taxpayers Ask Most About AIS Reconciliation?
What is AIS in income tax?
AIS in income tax means the Annual Information Statement, a statement on the e-filing portal that consolidates the financial transactions reported to the Income Tax Department against your PAN during a financial year. It includes salary and other TDS entries, interest, dividends, securities and mutual fund transactions, property deals, high-value deposits, tax payments, refunds and GST turnover. Taxpayers can download it as PDF, JSON or CSV and give feedback on entries that look wrong. TIS in income tax, the Taxpayer Information Summary, summarises AIS and pre-fills the return, so review both before filing.
How to read AIS before filing ITR?
Download AIS for the relevant financial year, open it with your lowercase PAN followed by your date of birth as the password, and read Part A to confirm your personal details. Then go through Part B category by category: TDS/TCS Information, SFT Information, Payment of Taxes, Demand and Refund, and Other Information. For each line, note the source, amount and date, and match it with Form 16, bank certificates, broker statements and your books. Mark every difference as correct, not fully correct, duplicate, or belonging to another PAN or year.
Is AIS reconciliation mandatory before filing ITR?
The Income-tax Act, 1961 does not prescribe a separate filing for AIS reconciliation, so no form or fee is attached to it. It is still necessary in practice, because the department compares your return with AIS data and flags differences. Filing without reconciliation exposes you to an income tax notice for AIS mismatch and, for under-reported income, penalty under Section 270A. AIS reconciliation takes a few hours and lets you correct your figures before submission instead of defending them afterwards.
Can I file ITR if AIS does not match Form 16?
Yes, you can file, but resolve the difference first. Check whether your employer reported different salary or TDS figures from those in Form 16, and ask the employer to file a corrected TDS statement if the TDS is wrong. Report income and claim deductions on the basis of your documents, and use AIS feedback to record that a particular entry is not fully correct. Claim TDS credit only for the amounts that appear against your PAN, since credit depends on the deductor's filed statement.
Who reports information in AIS?
Reporting entities send data to the Income Tax Department under the TDS, TCS and Statement of Financial Transactions provisions of the Income-tax Act, 1961. They include employers, banks, post offices, stock exchanges, depositories, mutual fund houses, registrars and transfer agents, sub-registrars of property, and the GST network. Each AIS line shows its information source, so you can approach that source directly if an amount looks wrong. The department also records your own tax payments, refunds and demands.
How do I correct a wrong entry in AIS?
Open the entry in AIS, select Optional, choose the matching feedback option, such as information is not fully correct, duplicate, or relates to another PAN or year, and enter the correct value where asked. Submit it individually or in bulk, then download the acknowledgement. The portal sends your response to the reporting source and shows the status, and the derived value in TIS updates once feedback or source confirmation is processed. Keep documents ready to support your response, and file your ITR on the basis of the correct figures.
Related Guides and Services
- Capital Gains Tax Filing for AY 2026–27: LTCG, STCG, Mutual Funds & Real Estate: how to compute and report the gains that AIS shows only as sale value.
- CA Fees in Mumbai 2025: Complete Price Guide for Every Service: typical charges for ITR filing, tax audit, GST and more, so you can budget before you call a CA.
- Business tax filing: returns for individuals, professionals and business owners, with AIS checks built in.
- TDS return filing: correction statements and compliance when TDS credit is missing.
- Bookkeeping: books aligned to GST returns so turnover agrees with the department's data.
- Accounting and tax compliance: a year-round routine that keeps records aligned with AIS.
- CA for income tax audit: support where a tax audit applies.
- Income tax return true copy: certified copies of your filed return for banks and consulates.
Need Professional Help with AIS Reconciliation?
N D Savla & Associates, Chartered Accountants in Andheri East, Mumbai, reviews your AIS, TIS and Form 26AS against your documents, resolves each mismatch and files your return with figures that stand up to scrutiny. Whether you need help to reconcile AIS before filing ITR or to revise a return already filed, our team handles the full process for AY 2026-27. Call us, write to us, or reach us through our contact page.
Suite No.102, L1, Ashok Premises, Nicholas Road, Andheri East, Mumbai - 400069
Talk to a CA →