The fundamentals
Form 26AS is the older statement, generated by the Tax Department. It shows everything that has been TAXED IN YOUR PAN — primarily TDS deducted by your employer, TDS on FD interest, TCS, advance tax, and self-assessment tax paid. It's a TAX-CENTRIC view: 'what tax events touched this PAN in this year'.
AIS (Annual Information Statement), introduced in FY 2020-21, is the broader cousin. It pulls from a wider net — banks, MFs, brokers, RBI, FIU, foreign exchange, property transactions. It's an INCOME-CENTRIC view: 'what financial activity associated with this PAN happened this year, whether or not tax was deducted'.
Where the mismatches come from
Reporting timing differences
26AS updates within ~7 days of a TDS deposit. AIS updates monthly/quarterly from SFT (Statement of Financial Transactions) filings, which themselves can lag 30-60 days. Late-March transactions may appear in 26AS but not yet in AIS — and vice versa for some categories.
Coverage scope
26AS skips income that wasn't subject to TDS (e.g., small FD interest under ₹40K, savings-account interest, dividends below the TDS threshold). AIS captures these via SFT and reports them anyway. Result: AIS often shows MORE income than 26AS.
Granularity
26AS shows aggregated TDS per deductor per section. AIS shows individual transactions (each MF redemption, each dividend, each FD interest credit). A buyer who reviews only 26AS misses transactions whose tax was withheld at source but not aggregated under their PAN (rare but real for foreign payouts).
TIS — the third document
On the same e-filing portal you'll also see the Taxpayer Information Summary (TIS) — a CONSOLIDATED view that pre-fills your ITR. TIS is derived from AIS but adjusted for taxpayer feedback. If you reject a line in AIS as wrong, TIS updates to reflect your version. Always use TIS as the file-against-this number, not the raw AIS.
The four most common mismatches
Salary in AIS, TDS in 26AS
AIS shows ₹15.2L salary (from your employer's quarterly Form 24Q filing). 26AS shows ₹2.1L TDS. The two are consistent — AIS reports gross, 26AS reports tax on it. If the implied effective rate doesn't match your slab, dig into 24Q for the breakdown.
FD interest in AIS, no TDS in 26AS
Your bank credited ₹38,000 of FD interest. AIS shows it (banks file SFT for all interest credits ≥ ₹10K). 26AS shows zero TDS because banks only deduct TDS on FD interest ABOVE ₹40K (₹50K for seniors). You still owe tax on the ₹38K — declare it in 'Income from other sources'.
MF redemption in AIS, not in 26AS
You redeemed equity MF units in November. AIS shows the transaction (broker's SFT). 26AS shows no TDS (TDS doesn't apply to capital gains from MFs for residents). Compute LTCG / STCG yourself from the CAS and declare in ITR — the AIS row is a reminder, not the final number.
Old TDS in 26AS, missing in AIS
A late-March 2025 TDS deposit by your employer (for March 2025 salary) might show in 26AS by mid-April but not in AIS until the May AIS refresh. Always download both AFTER April 30 of the next year, and ideally after May 31 for the cleanest reconciliation.
How to reconcile before filing
- 1
Download all three: 26AS, AIS, TIS
Log into the income-tax portal (incometax.gov.in) → Services → Annual Information Statement (AIS) → download each tab. 26AS lives at TRACES via the portal's 'View 26AS' link. Save all three as PDF.
- 2
Treat TIS as the starting line
Open TIS first. The numbers in TIS are what the system will pre-populate into your ITR drafts. Cross-check TIS against your own ledger (Form 16, bank statements, CAS, broker contract notes).
- 3
Reject incorrect entries inside AIS
If AIS shows an FD interest that's wrong (e.g., double-counted because of joint account), click 'Submit feedback' on that AIS row → select 'Information is incorrect' or 'Information is duplicate'. Your TIS updates within 24 hours; the original AIS retains both versions but TIS uses your corrected number.
- 4
Reconcile 26AS to your TDS expectations
Open Form 26AS. Verify employer TDS aggregates to your Form 16 Part B total. Verify any TDS on FDs matches your bank certificates (Form 16A). Mismatches here usually mean an employer/bank filed wrong — contact them BEFORE July 31 because corrections at TRACES can take 4-6 weeks.
- 5
File using TIS + your own ledger
Your ITR's income side should match TIS. Your TDS side should match 26AS. If they differ, the issue is in the reporting, not your filing — file based on your own truth (Form 16, CAS, broker reports), document your reasoning in case of scrutiny.
Important caveats
Don't 'correct' your ITR to match AIS / TIS blindly. AIS is reported BY others ABOUT you; it can be wrong. Your source documents (Form 16, CAS, bank statements) are what scrutiny will rely on.
Reject duplicate or wrong AIS entries via the feedback feature. It's the only way to keep TIS clean and prevent the same wrong number from auto-populating into next year's defaults.
AIS doesn't show short-term capital gains classification. You must classify each MF/equity redemption as STCG or LTCG yourself based on holding period — AIS lists the transaction value, not the gain.
If you have foreign assets (FA Schedule), AIS doesn't capture them. You report them separately under Schedule FA in ITR-2/ITR-3 from your own records.
AIS keeps a permanent log of what was reported about you, even if you reject the line. This is useful evidence in scrutiny — the rejection trail proves you flagged the wrong number, not ignored it.
Common questions
AIS shows interest from an FD I closed last year — is the bank wrong?
Probably not. Banks file SFT for the YEAR's interest accruals, including the partial interest from before you closed the FD. Check your bank's interest certificate (Form 16A or annual interest statement) — the AIS number should match.
My Form 16 says TDS ₹2.5L but 26AS shows ₹2.4L. What gives?
Almost always a delay between employer payment and TRACES update. Wait until end of April; if 26AS still doesn't show ₹2.5L, ask your employer to file the Q4 24Q correction. Without 26AS reflecting the full ₹2.5L, the portal won't credit you for it.
Should I use the AIS pre-fill or enter my own numbers?
Use AIS / TIS pre-fill as a STARTING POINT — but verify every line against your source documents. If your source says ₹X and AIS says ₹Y, file ₹X (your source) and reject the AIS line with feedback. Filing AIS's wrong number to 'match the system' creates a worse problem at scrutiny.
What if my dividend income is missing from AIS entirely?
Brokers and AMCs file SFTs but the threshold is ₹5,000+ per AMC per year. Small dividend payouts may not appear. You're still obligated to declare them in 'Income from other sources'. Use your broker's quarterly capital-gain statement or CAS to get the complete number.
Can Sajag reconcile AIS vs 26AS automatically?
Yes — Sajag parses both PDFs, identifies the four common mismatch classes shown above, and flags lines that need your attention before filing. The reconciliation runs locally on your Mac; the PDFs never leave your machine.
When this doesn’t apply
- • You're a freelancer / professional with 50%+ income outside salary — the volume of SFT transactions makes manual reconciliation impractical. Get a CA or use Sajag's automated reconciliation.
- • You have foreign income, FA assets, or NRI status — these aren't covered by AIS/26AS at all. Independent records are mandatory.
Related guides
From article to your numbers
Run this against your actual Form 16.
Sajag reads your Form 16 + 26AS + CAS locally on your Mac and computes the exact number every guide above describes. No spreadsheets, no copy-paste, no cloud upload of your salary slip. One-time purchase. Forever yours.
Get Sajag — ₹99macOS · 30-day refund · no subscription