Form 16 Part A contains details of tax deducted and deposited by the employer on the employee’s behalf. (AI image)
ITR filing FY 2025-26: For salaried taxpayers, the process of filing income tax return or ITR begins with Form 16. It’s the most important document with comprehensive details about your salary income. The deadline to file ITR for salaried taxpayers is July 31, 2026. In case you are confused about what details your Form 16 has and what are the top things to check in it, we have you covered.
Understanding Form 16:
Form 16 is divided into two parts: Part A and Part BPart A contains details of tax deducted and deposited by the employer on the employee’s behalf. It includes the employee’s PAN, employer’s TAN, period of employment and a quarter wise summary of TDS. “Taxpayers should verify whether the TDS reflected in Part A is also appearing in Form 26AS and AIS. Any material discrepancy should be reviewed before filing the ITR,” says Siddharth Deb, Tax Partner, EY India.Part B contains the detailed salary and tax computation. It captures details of salary income, exemptions, deductions, and the resulting taxable salary income on which tax has been computed.Also Read | ITR filing: Which is the correct tax return form for you? ITR-1 to ITR-7 eligibility explainedFor example, an employee’s gross salary may be reduced by eligible exemptions and deductions before arriving at taxable income. Taxpayers should reconcile these figures with their payslips and other supporting records.“Part A helps salaried taxpayers verify that taxes deducted by the employer have been deposited with the government, while Part B explains how salary income and tax liability have been computed. Reviewing both sections, together with Form 26AS and AIS, can help ensure accurate reporting and reduce the likelihood of notices, refund delays, or subsequent revisions,” he says.
What is Form 16?
Form 16: Key Checks
According to Siddharth Deb, one of the key checks is the tax regime considered by the employer while computing TDS.
- In Part B of Form 16, taxpayers can look for the field “Whether opting out of taxation under section 115BAC(1A)?”. If the answer is “No”, it indicates that the employee has opted for the new income tax regime for TDS purposes.
- Conversely, “Yes” would indicate that the employee has opted for the old income tax regime for TDS purposes.
One important thing that the tax expert points out is: The tax regime applied by the employer for TDS purposes does not necessarily determine the regime while filing the ITR.Also Read | ITR filing FY 2025-26: How to calculate taxes under old income tax regime – explained “Salaried taxpayers may either continue with or change the tax regime at the time of filing the ITR, subject to the provisions of the Income-tax Act,” he says.Siddharth Deb also advises that employees receiving taxable benefits should review Form 12BA, where applicable. “Individuals who changed employers during the year should ensure that salary income reported across multiple Form 16s is appropriately consolidated and avoid duplicate slab benefits. Income such as bank interest, dividend, rental income or capital gains may not be reflected in Form 16 and must be separately considered while filing the ITR,” he says.Also Read | ITR filing FY 2025-26: Old vs new income tax regime – how salaried taxpayers can lower tax outgo
