What is Form 16

Form 16 is a document or certificate, issued as per the Section 203 – Income-Tax Act 1961, to salaried professionals in India by their respective employers. Also, referred to as a “salary certificate”, it contains the entire details regarding the salary given by the organization or employer to the employee in a particular financial year and the income tax that has been removed from the salary of the individual by the payer. It validates the fact that TDS has been deducted and deposited with the authorities on behalf of the employee.

Form 16 contains the information you need to prepare and file your income tax return. Employers must issue it every year on or before 15 June of the next year, immediately after the financial year in which the tax is deducted

Components of Form 16

One of the most important income tax forms for salaried individuals is Form 16. It contains all the information related to the salary received by the employee along with the tax that has been collected from the salary, by the deductor. Form 16 has two components – Part A and Part B. In case you lose your Form 16, you can request for a duplicate from your employer.

Income Tax India - Form 16 - Part A and Part B

Part A of Form 16

Form 16A is also a TDS Certificate which reflects TDS deducted on the salary income by your employer. On the other hand While Form 16 is for only salary income, Form 16A is applicable for TDS on Income Other than Salary.

Fundamentally, the Part A gives the summary of tax collected by the organization or employer from the salary income, on the employee’s behalf and deposited in the government’s account. It is a certification duly signed by the employer that they have deducted the TDS from the employee’s salary and deposited it with the income tax department.

Prior to issuing the certificate, the employer should authenticate its contents. It is important to note that if you change your job in one financial year, every employer will issue a separate Part A of Form 16, for the period of employment. It contains the following details:

  • Personal information of the employer as well as the employee. Particulars such as name, address details, PAN details of both deductor/deductee and employer’s TAN details. (TAN refers to the number assigned to an account responsible for the deduction and collection of tax). These details help the IT Department to track the flow of money from the account of employee and employer. (It should be noted that if an organization does not possess the TAN, they are not entitled to deduct TDS. Thus, in this situation, they will not provide the Form 16)
  • The Assessment Year (AY) – As the name indicates, this refers to the year in which the income is getting assessed or in other words, the year in which the taxpayer needs to work on the tax return processes. For example, for the income earned between 1 April 2019 and 31 March 2020, the Assessment Year will be 2020-21.
  • The time period for which the individual was employed with the employer in the concerned Financial Year
  • Summary of the salary paid
  • Date of tax deduction from the salary
  • Date of tax deposit in the account of government
  • Summary of tax deducted & deposited quarterly with the Income Tax Department
  • Acknowledgment Number of the TDS Payment

All details that are there in Form 16A are available on Form 26AS. This can be used to file your return. However, the same is not in the case of Form 16. Details of Form 16 that are available in Form 26AS is only TDS deducted by the employer.

Both the forms are important and are required to help you file your return smoothly. You can also verify the income details and how much TDS has been deducted and at what rates.

Part B of Form 16

Part B of Form 16 is an annexure to Part A. Part B is a consolidated statement covering details regarding salary paid, any other income as disclosed by the employee to his/her organization, amount of tax paid and tax due, if any. It represents the information in a comprehensive and orderly manner stating the income earned by the employee along with the exemptions and deductions applicable thereon, in the prescribed format. Employee details such as name and PAN are mentioned even in Part B.

Form 16B is a TDS certificate for TDS deducted on the sale of property and reflects that the TDS amount deducted on Property by the Buyer has been deposited with the Income Tax Department. The buyer is required to deduct 1% TDS on Property from the amount he has to pay the seller at the time of sale of immovable property. The buyer is later required to submit the TDS with the Income Tax Department and provide Form 16B to the seller of the property. Form 16B is a proof that the TDS deducted on the sale of the property has been deposited with the Government. It contains the following details:

  • Detailed breakup of salary: Salary structure is further broken down into various components such as House Rent Allowance, Leave Travel Allowance, Leave Encashment, Gratuity and others.
  • Detailed breakup of exempted allowances under Section 10: As per Sec (10) of Income Tax Act, 1961 such as allowances given to employees for Conveyance, Housing rent (HRA), Children education and hostel expenditure, medical, etc. are also mentioned in the form.
  • Gross Income: This is the sum of the salary income as received from the employer and any other income earned by the employee such as income obtained from house/property etc. Details regarding other income need to be shared by the employee with the employer during the phase of investment proof submission.
  • Deductions allowed under the Income Tax Act (under chapter VIA): Section 80 C / 80 CCC / 80 CCD includes contributions made towards instruments or schemes such as Public Provident Fund, Life Insurance policies, tax saving mutual funds, pension, Sukanya Samriddhi among others. The maximum limit for the same is Rs. 1,50,000. Deductions under other sections such as 80D (premium paid towards health insurance or Mediclaim), 80E (interest payment on education loan), 80G (donations), deductions for disability and other applicable sections are provided. The details for all these deductions need to be submitted by the employee along with the necessary documents to the employer.
  • Net Taxable Salary: Total deductions are aggregated under “Chapter IV-A” and reduced from the gross income to calculate the taxable income. Your tax liability is calculated on this amount.
  • Education Cess and surcharges if any
  • Rebate under Section 87, if applicable
  • Relief under Section 89, if any
  • Total amount of tax payable on income
  • Tax deducted and the balance tax due or refund applicable

Download Form 16

Form 16 can only be downloaded and issued by the employer. Any individual cannot download his / her Form 16.

  • There is a common misconception that an individual a download Form 16 on TRACES website using the PAN number. All salaried individuals are eligible to get a Form 16 from their employers.
  • If your employer deducts TDS from your salary, then he must issue your Form 16 as it is a TDS certificate which reflects the TDS is deposited to Government.
  • Also, the employer should issue Form 16 before the due date of May 31 of every financial year.

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