TDS, TCS, AIS, Form 26AS and Form 168 · Tax Year 2026-27
Form 26AS vs Form 168: which one is for your tax year?
Form 26AS is the annual tax statement for tax years up to 2025-26. Form 168 replaces it from the tax year 2026-27 under the Income-tax Act, 2025. Learn what each shows and how to use it when you file.
On this page
Form 26AS is the annual tax statement for every tax year up to 2025-26. Form 168 takes its place from the tax year 2026-27, under the Income-tax Act, 2025. Both show the tax that has been deducted, collected or paid against your PAN, which is the credit you can claim in your return.
Which one applies to which year
Tax year | Law | Statement |
|---|---|---|
2025-26 and earlier | Income-tax Act, 1961 | Form 26AS |
2026-27 and later | Income-tax Act, 2025 | Form 168 |
So if you are filing for the tax year 2025-26, you reconcile your TDS with Form 26AS. When you file for the tax year 2026-27, from April 2027, you use Form 168.
What Form 26AS shows
Form 26AS shows, for each tax year:
- TDS and TCS credits, by deductor and section.
- Taxes paid, such as advance tax and self-assessment tax.
- Refunds you received.
- Certain high-value transactions (SFT).
- TDS defaults.
- GST turnover.
What Form 168 shows
Form 168 does the same job under the new Act. Its TDS part has the same layout as Form 26AS Part A. A difference you will notice is in the section column. Each row carries a four-digit code from TRACES, which stands for a section of the new Act.
For example, in the code list TaxCare uses:
- 1002 is TDS on salary paid to employees other than government employees (section 392).
- 1007 is TDS on rent paid by an individual or HUF (section 393(1), table serial 2(i)). From the receiver's side this shows up as rent received.
The department's AIS handbook for the new Act also says the format of the AIS is provided in Form 168, read with rule 245 of the Income Tax Rules, 2026.
Old and new section numbers
The new Act moves TDS sections 192 to 196D into sections 392 and 393, and TCS into section 394(1). A few examples:
Item | Under the 1961 Act | Under the 2025 Act |
|---|---|---|
Salary | 192 | 392 |
Dividend | 194 | 393(1), table serial 7 |
Interest from deposit | 194A | 393(1), table serial 5(ii) and 5(iii) |
Other interest | 193 | 393(1), table serial 5(i) |
Dividend (also reported under this category) | 194K | 393(1), table serial 4(i) |
Some old codes have no equivalent. The department's handbook marks TDS 194LD and 194F as omitted, along with five TCS codes.
Forms that deductors file are also renumbered. For example, the quarterly TDS statement for salary, Form 24Q, becomes Form 138, and the salary TDS certificate, Form 16, becomes Form 130, under the Income-tax Rules, 2026.
How to use the statement when you file
- Download the statement for your tax year from the Income Tax portal.
- Check that each employer, bank or other deductor listed is one you recognise.
- Compare the TDS shown with your Form 16 and your bank certificates.
- Use the amounts from the statement as the tax credit in your return. The credit you can claim is what appears against your PAN in this statement.
- Check whether the TDS shows as matched with your income.
If a figure is missing, ask the deductor to correct their statement. TDS shows only after the deductor has filed its quarterly TDS statement, so check again before you file.
Form 26AS or Form 168 and AIS
The statement and the AIS are different documents.
| Form 26AS or Form 168 | AIS |
|---|---|---|
Main use | Tax credit (TDS, TCS, tax paid) | Complete information reported against you |
Includes interest, dividend and trades | Only through tax deducted | Yes, transaction by transaction |
Feedback on wrong entries | No | Yes |
Use both. The AIS shows you what income the department knows about. The statement shows how much tax credit you have.
How TaxCare helps
TaxCare fetches Form 26AS for the tax years that use it and Form 168 for the tax years that use it, using the same rule as above, and shows them next to your AIS and TIS. Tax credit is taken from the statement and income is cross-checked across all three documents. Lines that do not match are flagged before you file.
This guide gives general information and is not professional tax advice.
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