Form 26AS vs AIS: Which to Check Before Filing Your ITR
You have two documents that summarize your financial year. One has been around since 2009. The other arrived in 2021 and made the first one look incomplete. If you only check one before filing, you're asking for a notice.
Here's what Form 26AS and AIS actually contain, where they overlap, where they don't, and what to do when they disagree.
What Is Form 26AS?
Form 26AS is your annual tax credit statement under Section 203AA. Think of it as a ledger of every rupee deducted or paid as tax against your PAN. It contains:
- TDS deducted by employers, banks, tenants, clients - anyone who withheld tax
- TCS collected on purchases (cars, foreign remittances above thresholds)
- Advance tax and self-assessment tax you paid directly
- Refunds received during the year
- Demands outstanding against your PAN
This is what CPC matches against your ITR when processing your return. If you claim a TDS credit that doesn't appear in 26AS, CPC will disallow it and either reduce your refund or raise a demand.
You can access it on incometax.gov.in (e-File > Income Tax Returns > View Form 26AS), which redirects to the TRACES portal.
What Is AIS?
The Annual Information Statement was introduced by CBDT in November 2021. Where 26AS only tracks tax credits, AIS tracks transactions. It pulls data from banks, mutual fund registrars, depositories, sub-registrars, and other reporting entities to build a comprehensive picture of your financial year.
AIS covers:
- Salary as reported by your employer
- Interest income from savings accounts, FDs, and bonds - including amounts below the TDS threshold that don't appear in 26AS
- Dividends received from listed and unlisted shares
- Share transactions - individual buy/sell records from depositories
- Mutual fund purchases and redemptions
- Foreign remittances under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme
- Property transactions from sub-registrar records
- GST turnover if you're registered under GST
Access it on incometax.gov.in under Services > Annual Information Statement.
What About TIS?
TIS (Taxpayer Information Summary) is not a separate document. It's a processed summary of your AIS that groups individual transactions into category totals. For each category, TIS shows three values:
- Reported value - what the reporting entity submitted
- After feedback - adjusted value after you submit corrections
- Considered for pre-fill - what gets auto-populated in your ITR
When you open AIS on the portal, TIS appears alongside it. If you've given feedback on any AIS entry, TIS reflects the corrected figures.
Key Differences
| Aspect | Form 26AS | AIS |
|---|---|---|
| Primary purpose | Tax credit verification | Comprehensive income reporting |
| Scope | TDS, TCS, tax payments, refunds | All financial transactions |
| Interest income | Only if TDS was deducted | All interest, including below TDS threshold |
| Share/MF transactions | Limited (SFT above thresholds) | Detailed per-transaction records |
| Property transactions | Limited | Sale/purchase from sub-registrar data |
| Feedback mechanism | No | Yes - correct errors directly |
| Used by CPC for | TDS/TCS credit matching | Income verification, notice triggers |
| Data source | TRACES / tax deductors | Banks, depositories, registrars, GST |
Why You Need Both
They serve different purposes and neither is a subset of the other.
Check 26AS for TDS credits. If your employer deducted Rs 1,20,000 TDS but 26AS shows only Rs 90,000, the remaining Rs 30,000 might be a timing issue (employer filed TDS return late) or an error. Either way, CPC will only allow what's in 26AS. Sort this out before filing.
Check AIS for unreported income. That Rs 30,000 FD interest your bank paid? No TDS was deducted (below the Rs 50,000 threshold under Section 194A for FY 2025-26), so it won't appear in 26AS. But AIS has it. If you skip it in your ITR, the department knows - and you may get a notice under Section 143(1)(a).
AIS mismatches are a common reason for ITR refund delaysWhat to Do When They Disagree
Mismatches between 26AS and AIS are common because they pull from different sources. Here's the rule:
- For TDS/TCS credits: Follow 26AS. That's CPC's source of truth. If your AIS shows TDS but 26AS doesn't, contact your deductor to file or correct their TDS return.
- For income amounts: File based on your actual income, not blindly copying either document. If AIS shows Rs 50,000 FD interest but your bank statement shows Rs 45,000, go with Rs 45,000 and submit feedback on the AIS entry.
- For entries you don't recognise: Submit AIS feedback marking the entry as "relates to other PAN" or "denied." Keep documentation ready.
How to Fix Errors in AIS
Unlike 26AS, AIS lets you submit corrections directly. On the AIS portal, each line item has a feedback button. Your options:
Your corrected values flow into TIS and are used for ITR pre-filling. Two things to note: AIS feedback does not auto-correct Form 26AS - those are separate systems. And the department can still ask for supporting documents even after you submit feedback.
Calculate your tax liability with the Income Tax CalculatorFrequently Asked Questions
Form 26AS primarily shows TDS/TCS credits, advance tax, and self-assessment tax paid against your PAN. AIS (Annual Information Statement) is much broader - it shows salary, interest, dividends, share transactions, mutual fund trades, property deals, and more, sourced from banks, depositories, registrars, and other reporting entities. Form 26AS is your tax credit ledger. AIS is your complete financial profile.
Yes. Form 26AS is essential for claiming TDS/TCS credits - if an amount is not in 26AS, CPC will reject that credit. AIS is essential for ensuring you have reported all income - if AIS shows income you did not declare, you may receive a notice under Section 143(1)(a). Check both before filing.
TIS (Taxpayer Information Summary) is a processed summary of AIS. It aggregates individual AIS line items into category-wise totals and shows three values: the reported value, the value after your feedback, and the value used for ITR pre-filling. TIS is not a separate document - it is a summary view available alongside AIS on the income tax portal.
On the AIS page of the income tax portal, each line item has a feedback option. You can mark entries as: Information is correct, Information is not fully correct, Information relates to other PAN or year, Information is duplicate, or Information is denied. The corrected values flow into TIS and are used for ITR pre-filling. AIS feedback does not automatically correct Form 26AS.
Mismatches are common because the two documents pull data from different sources. For TDS credits, always follow Form 26AS - that is what CPC uses to verify credits. For income reporting, check AIS and submit feedback if any entry is incorrect. File your ITR based on your actual income, not blindly copying either document. Keep supporting documents ready in case of a notice.
Both are available on incometax.gov.in after login. For Form 26AS: go to e-File, then Income Tax Returns, then View Form 26AS - this redirects to TRACES. For AIS: go to Services, then Annual Information Statement, select the financial year, and download as PDF or JSON.