Verify your Form 16 details, TDS, deductions, and tax regime before filing your ITR to avoid errors and refund delays.
Jasmine | Jun 17, 2026 |
Form 16 Checklist: What Every Taxpayer Must Verify Before ITR Filing
Employers must issue Form 16 by 15 June for every financial year. However, receiving this document does not mean that you should immediately begin with ITR filing, as it is important to verify the details mentioned in it, that includes total income, tax deducted at source (TDS), exemptions, and deductions claimed during the financial year.
Form 16 is a TDS certificate and it is issued by an employer to their employee when tax has been deducted from salary under Section 192 of the Income Tax Act.
The certificate is divided into two parts: Part A includes details of the employer and employee and also contains information related to the tax deducted and deposited with the government, whereas Part B contains detailed information of salary income, including allowances, exemptions, deductions claimed, and tax calculations.
You should check details like mismatch in salary details, missed deductions, incorrect PAN, or uncredited TDS which can result in refund delays or even tax notices.
Start by verifying simple details like your name, PAN, employer’s name, TAN, financial year, and assessment year, as even small mistake in this information can lead to issues with TDS credit or ITR filing.
Compare Form 16 salary details with your monthly payslips and annual salary statement to make sure that they are matching. Your gross salary, allowances, bonuses, and other components should align with your employment records, and any mismatch should be clarified with your employer before filing your return.
Ensure that you have covered all your investment made towards tax savings in areas like 80C, 80D, and 80CCD and also ensure that any other source of income like interest from home loans and savings accounts has been accounted for.
Ensure that Form 16 reflects the correct taxation scheme under which your employer has deducted TDS. You can switch taxation schemes during the filing of ITRs.
Compare your information in Form 16 with the AIS and Form 26AS before filing your return to check whether there are any mistakes in respect of all income or Tax Deduction at Source entries in the forms. This will assist you to find out if salary income, tax credits, interest payments, dividends, and others are shown correctly. In addition, make sure the tax credit information in Form 16 appears in Form 26AS.
If you find any errors in Form 16 such as incorrect salary details, deductions or TDS information then immediately contact your employer’s HR, payroll or finance team as they can file a revision of the TDS return and send an updated Form 16.
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