Form 26AS, AIS and TIS: What Each One Shows

These statements serve different purposes. Form 26AS helps you check reported tax deductions and collections. AIS helps you examine a wider set of reported transactions. TIS helps you review grouped information without starting with every individual entry.

The statements are connected views, so an amount appearing in more than one view is not automatically additional income. The same information may appear as a detailed entry and within a summary. Trace it to its source before counting it again.

The [Income Tax Department e-filing portal](https://www.incometax.gov.in/) is the official source for current rules, which this guide does not restate. For any statutory figure, check the current figure on the official portal or with your chartered accountant.

Start with the correct taxpayer and reporting period. A proprietor should distinguish personal and business transactions while reviewing information associated with their PAN. A company or partnership should use its own records. Mixing records from different taxpayers creates differences that cannot be resolved by adjusting totals.

• ✓Form 26AS, AIS and TIS for the relevant period.
• ✓TDS certificates and records of tax collected at source, where relevant.
• ✓Bank statements and interest certificates.
• ✓Sales invoices, customer ledgers and receipt records.
• ✓Investment statements and transaction confirmations, where relevant.
• ✓The previous reconciliation and any correspondence about corrections.

Keep the original downloads unchanged. Work in a separate comparison sheet and note when each statement was obtained. If you review a later version, retain both copies so you can identify what changed. Share sensitive records only through a secure arrangement agreed with your adviser.

1. 01

   Use TIS to identify categories needing attention

   Compare each relevant category with your records. Mark an unexpected total for investigation. Treat this as a starting point, because a summary alone cannot explain every transaction or its tax treatment.

2. 02

   Examine the underlying AIS entries

   Check the reporting source, transaction description, period and amount. Compare like with like. A transaction value, interest amount and sale proceeds describe different things and should not be combined without understanding them.

3. 03

   Compare Form 26AS with deduction records

   Match the reporting party and deduction details with your certificates and ledgers. For customer receipts, distinguish the invoice amount, tax deducted and net bank receipt. Comparing a gross invoice directly with a net receipt can create an apparent mismatch.

4. 04

   Build a reconciliation for the return

   Record what agrees, what differs and what evidence explains each difference. Ask your chartered accountant to review unresolved items and the proposed treatment. Do not copy a portal total into the return merely because it is already populated.

First identify the kind of difference. A missing deduction, an unfamiliar transaction and a difference between reported and processed values need different investigations. Write down the specific entry and supporting evidence before deciding what action to take.

AIS allows feedback on reported information. Feedback should reflect evidence, not simply the value you would prefer to see. Keep a record of what you disputed and why. A feedback submission alone does not establish that every connected record has been corrected.

• Adding Form 26AS, AIS and TIS totals together. They can describe overlapping information.
• Treating every reported transaction as taxable income. The nature of the transaction and applicable treatment need review.
• Assuming that sale proceeds are the same as taxable profit. Keep the underlying purchase and sale records.
• Changing the books only to match AIS. Correct an accounting entry only when evidence supports the change.
• Assuming a repeated entry is a duplicate without checking its source and transaction details.
• Ignoring an unfamiliar entry because the overall total looks reasonable. Offsetting differences can hide separate errors.

Avoid passing login credentials to someone who offers to resolve a mismatch. Arrange authorised access or a secure document handoff with your adviser. Keep PAN details, passwords and OTPs out of public messages and enquiry forms.

Keep a short reconciliation alongside the supporting documents. It should explain how you moved from reported information to the figures reviewed for your return. Another person should be able to follow the reasoning without relying on a phone conversation.

• ✓The statement and entry being checked.
• ✓The corresponding ledger, certificate or transaction record.
• ✓The reason for the difference and evidence supporting it.
• ✓Any feedback reference or correspondence with the reporting party.
• ✓The agreed treatment, reviewer and unresolved next action.

If a correction is expected, assign someone to check the later statement and record the outcome. Keep an item open until there is evidence supporting closure. Do not replace an unexplained difference with a balancing entry.