How to file ITR without Form 16

Yes, you can file without Form 16. It is a certificate your employer gives you, not a legal condition for filing. You need three things: your salary figures from your payslips, the TDS that actually reached the department as shown in Form 26AS or Form 168, and the other income shown in your AIS. If these agree, you have everything the return asks for.

What Form 16 is and why it helps

Form 16 is the TDS certificate for salary. It shows your gross salary, exemptions, the standard deduction, deductions the employer allowed and the tax deducted. Under the Income-tax Act, 2025 the certificate is called Form 130. It saves time because it does the salary arithmetic for you. It is not what the department checks. The department checks the TDS in its own records.

Step 1: Collect your salary figures

Without Form 16, build the salary part from:

• Payslips for all twelve months, or the annual salary statement from your employer's HR portal.
• Your employer's TAN and name, usually printed on the payslip or the offer letter.
• Allowances and exemptions you want to claim. For example, house rent allowance needs rent receipts and your landlord's details.
• A previous employer's figures, if you changed jobs. Ask for that employer's last payslip and full and final statement.

Step 2: Check the TDS in Form 26AS or Form 168

Only TDS that appears in the department's statement can be claimed. Use Form 26AS for tax years up to 2025-26 and Form 168 from 2026-27. Look for your employer's TAN and the salary TDS under it. If the TDS is missing, the employer may not have deposited it or filed its quarterly statement. You cannot claim what the department does not show.

Step 3: Check your AIS and TIS

Your AIS also lists salary reported by your employer, along with interest, dividends and share trades. Check that salary in the AIS roughly matches your payslip total. The TIS gives the category-wise summary that the return pre-fills from. If AIS shows more salary than your payslips, ask the employer why before you file.

Step 4: Compute the salary head

Salary income is gross salary, less exempt allowances, less the standard deduction. For the tax year 2025-26 the standard deduction is ₹50,000 in the old regime and ₹75,000 in the new regime.

Then add house property, capital gains and other income, apply the deductions your regime allows, and compare the tax with the TDS credit. See old vs new tax regime.

Step 5: Choose the form, file and verify

Salary with one house and simple income usually means ITR-1. Capital gains beyond the ITR-1 limit or more than one house mean ITR-2. See which ITR form to file. After you submit, e-verify within 30 days.

Risks to watch

• TDS mismatch. If you claim more TDS than Form 26AS or Form 168 shows, the department can reduce your refund or raise a demand.
• Missing a previous employer. Salary from two employers must both be reported. Leaving one out is a common cause of a notice.
• Deductions without proof. Keep the proof for every deduction. See proofs you need for each deduction.
• A wrong regime. The new regime is simpler; the old regime needs the deductions. Calculate both.

If the employer will not give Form 16

Write to the employer's payroll or HR team and ask for the Form 16 (Form 130 from the tax year 2026-27) and the TDS return details. Your return can claim only the TDS that appears in Form 26AS or Form 168. If TDS was deducted from your pay but does not appear there, ask the employer to file or correct its TDS statement, and keep your payslips as proof of the deduction. A Tax Expert can help if the employer does not act.

How TaxCare helps

TaxCare fetches your salary, TDS and other income from the Income Tax portal after you confirm with an OTP, so you do not have to key them in from a Form 16 you do not have. It checks the TDS against Form 26AS or Form 168, compares both regimes and shows any difference between your AIS and the figures you enter. If you do have a Form 16, the filing flow can also take the salary figures from it. Nothing is submitted until you approve. See pricing.

This guide gives general information and is not professional tax advice.