How to Check TDS Credit in Form 26AS and AIS

TL;DR

TDS shows up as credit in Form 26AS only after the deductor deposits it and reports it. Match your certificates against 26AS and AIS before filing — and claim only what is verified.

TDS deducted from your salary, fees, rent or interest is not “paid” until the deductor deposits it and files the TDS statement. This article explains exactly how the credit flow works, how to verify it in Form 26AS and AIS, and what to do when a credit is missing or short — with a worked example and a pre-filing checklist.

Quick Answer

How do I confirm my TDS credit before filing my ITR? Log in to incometax.gov.in, download Form 26AS for the relevant assessment year, and view your AIS (Annual Information Statement) with its summary, the TIS. Match each TDS entry against your Form 16 (salary) or Form 16A (non-salary) certificates. Where amounts differ, claim the verified figure in your return — not the certificate figure — and have the deductor file a correction statement if an entry is missing or wrong.

Form 16, Form 16A, Form 26AS, AIS and TIS — Who Issues What

These five documents are often confused, and confusion is where refund delays and Section 143(1) demands begin. Here is what each one actually is:

Form 16

The TDS certificate issued by your employer for salary deducted under Section 192. It is issued annually, generally by 15 June under Rule 31, and has Part A (deduction and deposit details) and Part B (salary computation).

Form 16A

The TDS certificate issued by a non-salary deductor — a bank deducting TDS on interest, a tenant deducting under Section 194I, a client deducting under Section 194J. Under Section 203 read with Rule 31, it is now generally issued at monthly intervals, within 15 days of the deductor depositing the tax.

Form 26AS

The consolidated tax credit statement issued in your name by the Income Tax Department (framed under Rule 31AB). It shows TDS/TCS against your PAN as well as your own advance tax and self-assessment tax payments — but only what has actually reached the government’s records.

AIS (Annual Information Statement)

A broader statement on the e-filing portal. Beyond TDS/TCS, it shows SFT information (bank interest, dividends, share and mutual fund transactions, property deals, large payments), your tax payments, and demand and refund history. You can submit feedback on any AIS entry you believe is wrong.

TIS (Taxpayer Information Summary)

The category-wise summary inside AIS, after deduplication and your feedback. Accepted TIS values feed the pre-filling of your ITR.

The practical rule is simple: certificates prove deduction; 26AS and AIS prove credit. The department gives you tax credit under Section 199 on the basis of Form 26AS, not on the basis of a Form 16A someone emailed you.

Document	Issued by	Proves	Verify before ITR
Form 16 / 16A	Deductor (employer, bank, client, tenant)	TDS was deducted and reported to the department	✔ Match to 26AS
Form 26AS	Income Tax Department (Rule 31AB)	Tax credit available to you	✔ Primary claim reference
AIS / TIS	Income Tax Department (e-filing portal)	Third-party-reported income and credit picture the CPC will match against	✔ Declare everything in AIS

Why a TDS Credit Is Sometimes Missing or Short

A missing credit always traces back to the same chain — the money must move through four steps before it becomes your credit:

1. The deductor withholds tax from your payment.
2. The deductor deposits it to the government (with a challan).
3. The deductor files the TDS statement (Form 24Q / 26Q / 27Q) showing your PAN and the amount — and the statement must contain your details correctly for you to get credit (Section 200(3) proviso). For salary, that is Form 24Q; for others, Form 26Q or 27Q.
4. The statement is processed on TRACES and the entry appears in your 26AS / AIS.

Breakage at any step produces a blank or short credit:

• The statement is late. Non-government deductors must generally file quarterly statements by 31 July (Apr–Jun), 31 October (Jul–Sep), 31 January (Oct–Dec) and 31 May (Jan–Mar) of the relevant year, subject to any government extensions. A credit deducted in February may simply not be posted yet in July.
• Deposited but reported late or incorrectly. A challan was paid, but your PAN, the section code, the assessment year or the amount was typed wrong. Late or defective statements attract a late filing fee of ₹200 per day under Section 234E (capped at the TDS amount) and a penalty of ₹10,000–₹1,00,000 under Section 271H — which is why deductors have every incentive to fix errors quickly through a correction statement.
• Deducted but never deposited. This is the worst case. The deductor owes you nothing on paper — the tax sits with them, and they also face interest under Section 201(1A) (generally 1.5% per month) and proceedings under Section 201(1). You are protected in one narrow sense: if you can show the amount was actually suffered, the credit is eventually available — but you should not bank on the timeline.
• Correction pending. The deductor has filed a correction, but TRACES processing takes time. The entry will appear; it just has not yet.

A common issue we see is a landlord or freelancer who files the ITR claiming the full Form 16A figure while only part of it is in 26AS — and then receives an intimation with a demand and interest.

Step-by-Step: Verifying and Claiming TDS Credit (AY 2026-27)

Use this sequence before you file your return for FY 2025-26 (assessment year 2026-27):

1. Download Form 26AS for AY 2026-27 from the e-filing portal (the Direct Tax Forms / tax-credit section). Save the PDF.
2. Open AIS (e-File → Annual Information Statement → View AIS). Check the Tax Deducted / Collected at Source (TDS/TCS) section and the Tax paid section. Note the difference between “reported” and “modified” values.
3. Collect every certificate — Form 16 from each employer, Form 16A for interest, rent, fees and other deductions.
4. Build a line-by-line reconciliation: deductor name, section, quarter, certificate amount vs 26AS amount. Flag every difference.
5. For every gap, contact the deductor first. Ask them to confirm the deposit (challan details) and to file a correction statement or the pending quarterly statement. A TDS-side fix is always faster than an income-tax-side correction later. Our guide on TDS on salary and how your employer calculates it explains the employer side of this.
6. File your ITR claiming only verified credit — the amount as it appears in 26AS on the filing date. Declare all income visible in AIS; the CPC adjusts the return against AIS/26AS automatically.
7. Track the pending credit after filing. When the correction posts, recover the difference through a revised return under Section 139(5) (generally permitted up to 31 December of the assessment year) or a rectification request where the mistake is the department’s.
8. If the deductor is unresponsive, raise a grievance on the e-filing portal under the TDS/tax-credit category. Keep the invoice, the credit advice showing the deduction, and the certificate as evidence.

Worked Example: A Freelancer With a Short Credit

Example: reconciling a missing quarter

Meera, a freelance designer, bills a client ₹6,00,000 in FY 2025-26. TDS is deducted at 10% under Section 194J = ₹60,000. She holds Form 16A certificates showing ₹60,000.

When she downloads Form 26AS, only ₹45,000 appears — the Jul–Sep quarter has not been deposited and reported by the client.

Meera’s total tax liability for the year is ₹90,000. She has two choices:

Approach	TDS claimed	Self-assessment tax paid	What happens
Claim the certificate figure	₹60,000	₹30,000	CPC matches 26AS (₹45,000), disallows ₹15,000 of credit and raises a demand with interest under Section 234B/234C. She pays it, then runs refund/rectification.
Claim verified credit	₹45,000	₹45,000	Return processes cleanly. When the client’s correction posts the pending ₹15,000, Meera files a revised return and receives a ₹15,000 refund.

The safe route costs one extra filing; the aggressive route costs a demand, interest litigation and time.

Common Mistakes

1. Filing the ITR before downloading 26AS and AIS. The certificates are the deductor’s word; the 26AS is the government’s record. Reconcile both — this is the single most effective habit for a clean refund.
2. Claiming the certificate amount instead of the 26AS amount. Any excess credit claimed is reversed in the Section 143(1) intimation — as a demand you must pay and then fight. Our guide on responding to income tax notices (143, 148, 245) shows how these adjustments read.
3. Ignoring the TDS you can see nowhere but your bank statement. If a credit in AIS is wrong (you never received that income), submit feedback in AIS rather than arguing in the return — that is the channel the department built for exactly this.
4. Assuming a new employer will fix a previous employer’s non-deposit. Salary TDS credit depends on the former employer’s 24Q statement. Chase the ex-employer in writing; a Section 201 default is theirs, not yours.
5. Missing the correction window. Ask the deductor to act before the next quarterly statement cycle closes; corrections pile up in March–May when everyone files at once.
6. Not keeping the reconciliation at all. Save the 26AS PDF, AIS download and Form 16/16A set with your ITR-V. Six months later, they are the only proof of what you claimed and what you verified.

FAQ

When will TDS reflect in my Form 26AS?

Generally a few days to a few weeks after the deductor files the quarterly statement and TRACES processes it — and increasingly on a near live basis as deposits and statements flow through the reporting systems. There is no statutory credit date you can rely on for your own filing, which is why we recommend verifying 26AS itself rather than the certificate.

Can I file my ITR if my TDS is not showing in 26AS?

Yes, you can file — but claim only the credit that appears in 26AS on the filing date. Declare the income fully (income and TDS are tested separately; hiding income to mask a TDS gap invites bigger trouble). If the credit appears later, use a revised return under Section 139(5) to recover the difference.

What is the difference between Form 26AS and AIS for TDS?

Form 26AS is your tax credit statement — the TDS/TCS and tax-paid figures you claim credit against. AIS is the department’s full information picture: TDS/TCS plus SFT transactions (interest, dividends, securities, property), payments, and demand and refund history. Your return must be consistent with both — the Section 143(1) processing checks the AIS side.

Form 16 and 26AS do not match — what does it mean?

Three usual causes: (a) employer deposited but the 24Q statement is not yet filed or processed; (b) a PAN, quarter or amount error requiring a correction statement; or (c) the tax was deducted but not deposited. Steps (a) and (b) are a paperwork race the deductor can fix quickly; step (c) needs written follow-up with the employer and, if needed, a grievance on the portal.

Who can file a correction statement — me or the deductor?

Only the deductor can file a TDS statement or correction on TRACES. If you are the one paying a professional to handle it, our TDS correction statement service and TDS return filing service cover the deductor side, which is where the problem actually sits.

What if the deductor deducted TDS but never deposited it?

You remain the taxpayer on that income; you may have to pay the shortfall yourself through self-assessment tax to avoid an adverse 143(1) adjustment, and later recover the credit when the deductor deposits (refund via revised return or rectification). The department’s remedy against the defaulting deductor is under Section 201(1) with interest under Section 201(1A) — your leverage is a written demand to the deductor plus a portal grievance.

Does AIS replace Form 26AS?

No. The two serve different purposes and both are used — AIS for income completeness and feedback, 26AS for tax credit. The e-filing portal’s own guidance treats them as complementary: Form 26AS is the credit statement, while AIS adds the wider reported information and lets you submit feedback on entries.

What changes from FY 2026-27 under the Income-tax Act, 2025?

Returns for income up to FY 2025-26 (AY 2026-27) are governed by the Income-tax Act, 1961. From FY 2026-27 onwards the Income-tax Act, 2025 (with the Income-tax Rules, 2026) applies; the TDS-credit architecture stays the same — certificate, statement, credit in 26AS/AIS — but the section numbers used on Form 16/16A change from FY 2026-27. Keep the same reconciliation habit for both regimes.

When to Get Professional Help

A TDS credit gap looks small — ₹15,000 here, one missing quarter there — but it lands as a demand with interest, and unwinding it costs more than preventing it. If your reconciliation shows deposits missing, multiple deductors with errors, or a demand already raised on a 26AS/AIS mismatch, a professional review before filing prevents the correction cycle afterwards. FinTax24 reviews 26AS / AIS against your certificates and files the return on this basis — see our ITR filing service and the ITR filing guide for salaried.

Disclaimer: This article is for general informational purposes and reflects the rules understood at the time of publication for assessment year 2026-27 (income up to FY 2025-26). Tax and compliance requirements can vary with individual circumstances and subsequent government notifications. Consider professional advice before acting on a significant tax matter.

Sources

• Income Tax Department — AIS overview and help: incometax.gov.in
• CBDT — late fee under Section 234E and penalty under Section 271H: incometaxindia.gov.in
• TRACES — TDS statements, corrections and 26AS processing: traces.tdscpc.gov.in
• Income Tax Department — e-filing portal (Form 26AS download, grievance redressal): incometax.gov.in