# How to Download Form 16, Form 26AS and AIS from Income Tax Portal

## Introduction

ITR filing season is here. If you're a salaried employee, you know the drill - Form 16, Form 26AS, AIS, reconcile, file, and hope you don't get a notice. But here's what most people get wrong. They assume all these documents are the same thing. Or they struggle to figure out where exactly to download them from. Let me make this simple. In this post, I'll walk you through exactly how to download each of these three documents from the Income Tax portal. No jargon. No confusion. Just steps you can follow right now. ## What Are These Documents?

Before we get into the downloads, here's what each document actually is: | Document | What It Shows | Who Issues It |
|---|---|---|
| **Form 16** | Salary breakup, deductions (80C, 80D, etc.), and TDS deducted by your employer | Your employer |
| **Form 26AS** | Annual Tax Credit Statement - all TDS/TCS deducted against your PAN | Income Tax Department via TRACES |
| **AIS** | Your complete financial profile - salary, dividends, mutual fund transactions, property deals, foreign remittances, and more | Income Tax Department |

Here's how I think about it. Form 16 is what your employer says you earned. Form 26AS is what the government says was taxed. AIS is the government telling you everything it knows about your finances. All three should match before you file your return. ## Part 1: How to Download Form 16

### You Can't Download Form 16 from the Income Tax Portal

This is the most common confusion I see. Form 16 is issued by your employer, not the Income Tax Department. You can't just log in to the Income Tax portal and download it like Form 26AS. **Form 16 has two parts:**- **Part A** - TDS details generated from the TRACES portal (it has a TRACES watermark)
- **Part B** - Salary breakup and deductions, prepared by your employer

### How to Get Your Form 16 as an Employee

**Still employed:**- Check your HR or payroll portal. Most companies put it on the employee self-service portal
- Email your HR or payroll team directly
- Check your company email - many employers send it by June 15

**Left the company:**- Your previous employer is still legally required to issue Form 16. Email them and follow up if needed
- They face a penalty of Rs 100 per day for delay beyond June 15

**Multiple jobs in the same year:**- Collect Form 16 from each employer separately
- You'll need all of them when you file your ITR

### For Employers: How to Download Form 16 from TRACES

If you handle payroll or work as a CA, here's how you generate Form 16: 1. Go to https://www.tdscpc.gov.in
2. Log in using your TAN and password
3. Click **Downloads** then select **Form 16**
4. Choose **Search PAN Download** (for specific employees) or **Bulk PAN Download** (for all)
5. Select the financial year
6. Verify the employee PAN and TDS details
7. Enter the TDS receipt number and total tax deducted
8. Submit the request. Form 16 will be available within 24-48 hours
9. Download the zip file and use the TRACES PDF Generation Utility to convert it
10. Sign digitally or manually and share with employees

Form 16 PDFs are usually password-protected. The most common format is the first 5 letters of your PAN (lowercase) followed by your date of birth in DDMMYYYY format (e.g., abcde15031985). Some employers may use a different password - check the email from HR. ### One More Thing: Form 16 Is Becoming Form 130

Under the new Income Tax Act 2025, Form 16 has been renamed to Form 130 from Tax Year 2026-27 onwards. For FY 2025-26 and earlier years though, it's still Form 16. ## Part 2: How to Download Form 26AS

Form 26AS is your tax credit statement. Before filing your ITR, you must check this document to make sure all the TDS deducted from your income has actually reached the government. This is where most mismatches happen. ### Method 1: Via Income Tax e-Filing Portal

1. Go to https://www.incometax.gov.in
2. Log in using your PAN as User ID
3. Click **e-File** > **Income Tax Returns** > **View Form 26AS**
4. Read the disclaimer and click **Confirm**
5. You'll be redirected to the TRACES portal
6. Click **View Tax Credit (Form 26AS)**
7. Select the Assessment Year. For FY 2025-26, that's AY 2026-27
8. Pick HTML to view on screen, PDF to download, or Text
9. Click **View** or **Download**

**PDF password:** Your PAN in lowercase + Date of Birth in DDMMYYYY format. Example: PAN = ABCDE1234F, DOB = 15 March 1985 > abcde1234f15031985 ### Method 2: Via Net Banking

Don't feel like logging into the Income Tax portal? You can download Form 26AS through your bank's net banking. 1. Log in to your net [banking account](https://thewealthblog.in/best-bank-accounts/)
2. Look for **Tax Services** or **Income Tax e-Filing**
3. Click **View Form 26AS** or **Tax Credit Statement**
4. Select the assessment year
5. View or download

This works with over 25 authorized banks - SBI, HDFC, ICICI, Axis, Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank, PNB, Kotak, and others. ### Method 3: Direct TRACES Login

1. Visit https://www.tdscpc.gov.in
2. Click **Login** and pick **Taxpayer**
3. Enter your PAN and password
4. Select **View Tax Credit (Form 26AS)**
5. Choose assessment year and format
6. View or download

### What Form 26AS Contains Now

From AY 2023-24 onwards, Form 26AS displays only TDS/TCS-related data. Details like advance tax, self-assessment tax, SFT transactions, and refunds have moved to AIS. The main sections now cover TDS (salary and non-salary), TCS, and TDS/TCS defaults. ## Part 3: How to Download AIS (Annual Information Statement)

AIS is the most detailed of the three. It shows the Income Tax Department's complete view of your financial transactions. If you want to avoid tax notices, this is the document you must check before filing. ### Method 1: Via Income Tax e-Filing Portal

1. Go to https://www.incometax.gov.in and log in with your PAN
2. Click **Services** > **Annual Information Statement (AIS)** - or - **e-File** > **Income Tax Returns** > **View AIS**
3. Click **Proceed** on the pop-up. This takes you to the AIS Compliance Portal
4. You'll see two tiles:

- **AIS** - Detailed statement with every transaction
- **TIS** (Taxpayer Information Summary) - A simplified version used for ITR pre-fill

1. Select the correct Financial Year (FY 2025-26 for AY 2026-27)
2. Click the AIS tile to see the details
3. Hit the **Download** icon and pick your format:

- PDF for reading and reference
- JSON for the AIS Offline Utility
- CSV for individual transaction categories

1. The download begins

**PDF password:** Same as Form 26AS - PAN (lowercase) + DOB (DDMMYYYY) ### Method 2: Via AIS Mobile App

The Income Tax Department has an app called **"AIS for Taxpayer"** on both iOS and Android. 1. Download the app from App Store or Play Store
2. Register with your PAN
3. Log in
4. Go to the AIS section
5. Pick the financial year
6. View or download

### Method 3: AIS Offline Utility

If you have a lot of transactions and want to submit feedback offline: 1. Log in to the Income Tax portal and navigate to AIS
2. Click **Resources** > **Utility** section
3. Download the AIS Offline Utility and extract it
4. Go back to the AIS homepage, click the AIS tile, and download the JSON file
5. Open the utility and import the JSON file
6. Review and submit feedback on anything that looks wrong

### Why AIS Matters More Than Form 26AS Now

AIS covers over 57 data categories including: - Salary and TDS
- Interest from savings accounts, FDs, and other sources
- Dividend income
- Mutual fund and stock transactions
- Property purchases and sales
- Foreign remittances
- GST turnover
- High-value transactions reported under SFT

If any of these don't match what you show in your ITR, the system will flag it. Checking your AIS before filing is not optional anymore. ### Found Something Wrong? Use the Feedback Option

Unlike Form 26AS, AIS lets you give feedback on incorrect entries. If you see a transaction that's not yours: 1. Click on the transaction
2. Pick the right feedback option:

- Information is not fully correct
- Information relates to another person or year
- Information is duplicate
- Information is already considered

1. Submit it
2. The system updates your TIS accordingly

## Quick Comparison

| Feature | Form 16 | Form 26AS | AIS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who issues it | Employer | IT Dept (TRACES) | IT Dept |
| Where to get it | HR or Payroll | incometax.gov.in | incometax.gov.in |
| What it contains | Salary + deductions | TDS, TCS, tax paid | Full financial profile |
| Mandatory for ITR? | Helpful but not required | Must reconcile | Must reconcile |
| Password format | Varies by employer | PAN(lower) + DOB(DDMMYYYY) | PAN(lower) + DOB(DDMMYYYY) |
| Has feedback option | No | No | Yes |
| Data categories | Salary + deductions + TDS | TDS, TCS, defaults | 57+ |

## Before You File Your ITR

1. Get your Form 16 from your employer first
2. Download Form 26AS from the Income Tax portal
3. Download AIS from the Income Tax portal
4. Reconcile all three. The salary shown, the TDS deducted, and the financial transactions should match across all documents
5. Report any discrepancies in AIS using the feedback option
6. Talk to your employer if Form 16 doesn't match Form 26AS

Skipping this step is the number one reason people get 143(1)(a) notices months later. Nobody wants to deal with a tax notice in September when they thought they were done for the year. ## Conclusion

Downloading your tax documents doesn't have to be a headache. Form 16 comes from your employer. Form 26AS and AIS are available on the Income Tax portal in a few clicks. The real work isn't downloading them though - it's making sure all three tell the same story before you file. Take 30 minutes. Download all three. Compare them. Fix any mismatches. That half hour could save you months of tax notice anxiety later. ---

*This is for educational purposes only. Consult a qualified Chartered Accountant or financial advisor for personalized advice.*