Form 16 is the document that proves you paid tax. Every salaried person in India whose employer deducted TDS must get one by 15 June each year. Without it, filing ITR is harder but still possible. Here is exactly how to read it and use it.
What Form 16 actually is
Form 16 is a TDS (Tax Deducted at Source) certificate issued under Section 203 of the Income Tax Act. It is generated by your employer using the TRACES portal of the Income Tax Department. It has 2 parts:
### Part A — the official TDS certificate
This is the proof of tax remitted to the government on your behalf. It contains:
- Employer details — name, address, TAN (Tax Deduction Account Number), PAN
- Employee details — your name, PAN, address
- Period — financial year (e.g., 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026)
- Quarter-wise summary of TDS deposited — Q1 (Apr-Jun), Q2 (Jul-Sep), Q3 (Oct-Dec), Q4 (Jan-Mar)
- TRACES verification stamp — a unique 7-character receipt number per quarter
Part A is auto-generated by TRACES. Your employer cannot fabricate this — every number ties back to a TDS challan filed with the government.
### Part B — the salary breakup (the useful part)
This is the manual annexure prepared by your employer with the line-by-line breakup:
- Gross salary (basic + HRA + special allowance + LTA + bonus + perks)
- Allowances exempt under Section 10 (HRA exemption, LTA, conveyance, transport, gratuity, etc.)
- Net taxable salary
- Standard deduction (₹75,000 under new regime, ₹50,000 under old regime for FY 2025-26)
- Professional tax
- Deductions under Chapter VI-A (Section 80C, 80D, 80E, 80G, 80CCD, etc.) — only if you are filing under old regime
- Total taxable income
- Tax payable
- Tax already paid (TDS)
- Balance tax payable or refundable
This is the document that matches what you fill in ITR-1.
When your employer issues Form 16
The legal deadline is 15 June 2026 for FY 2025-26.
In practice: - Top private companies (TCS, Infosys, Wipro, banks) issue around 31 May to 5 June - Mid-size companies issue between 10-15 June - Small companies and startups often miss the deadline by 1-2 weeks
If you have not received Form 16 by 20 June 2026, escalate.
How to download Form 16
### Option 1 — Employer portal (most common)
Most companies use Cleartax, Quicko, Greythr, or an in-house HRMS that emails Form 16 directly to your work email. Steps usually are:
1. Login to your HR/payroll portal (BambooHR, Greythr, Darwinbox, etc.) 2. Navigate to My Profile → Tax Documents or Payroll → Form 16 3. Download the PDF 4. The PDF is password-protected — common password formats: PAN in lowercase + DOB in DDMMYYYY format (e.g., abcde1234fa01011990) or PAN + last 4 of Aadhaar
### Option 2 — Email from TRACES
Some companies have employees download Part A directly from TRACES:
1. Go to tdscpc.gov.in 2. Register/login as taxpayer 3. Downloads → Form 16 / 16A / 27D 4. Generate Part A — works only if employer has filed quarterly TDS returns
### Option 3 — Request from HR
If you left the company mid-year or got fired, email HR:
"Subject: Form 16 for FY 2025-26 — request
Dear HR, I worked at [Company] from [start date] to [end date] and need Form 16 for the period of my employment for filing my ITR. Please share or confirm timeline."
By law, even if you left, the employer must issue Form 16 for the period you worked.
Reading every box of Part B (with example)
Let's walk through a real example. Imagine you earn ₹15 lakh CTC at a Bangalore IT company.
Section 1 — Gross salary
| Component | Annual amount | |---|---| | Basic salary | ₹6,00,000 | | HRA | ₹3,00,000 | | Special allowance | ₹3,00,000 | | LTA | ₹50,000 | | Bonus | ₹1,00,000 | | Employer NPS contribution | ₹50,000 | | Other taxable perks | ₹1,00,000 | | Gross salary | ₹15,00,000 |
Section 2 — Allowances exempt under Section 10
| Component | Amount | |---|---| | HRA exemption (depends on actual rent paid) | ₹2,00,000 | | LTA exemption (only if travel undertaken) | ₹50,000 | | Conveyance allowance (₹19,200 max if old regime) | ₹0 | | Total exempt | ₹2,50,000 |
Section 3 — Net salary = Gross (₹15,00,000) − Exempt (₹2,50,000) = ₹12,50,000
Section 4 — Less: - Standard deduction = ₹75,000 (new regime) or ₹50,000 (old) - Professional tax = ₹2,500
Section 5 — Net taxable salary = ₹12,50,000 − ₹75,000 − ₹2,500 = ₹11,72,500 (under new regime)
Section 6 — Chapter VI-A deductions (only old regime): - 80C contributions = ₹1,50,000 - 80D health insurance = ₹25,000 - 80CCD(1B) NPS additional = ₹50,000
Section 7 — Total taxable income = ₹11,72,500 (new regime, no Chapter VI-A) or ₹11,72,500 − ₹2,25,000 = ₹9,47,500 (old regime)
Section 8 — Tax computed at slab rates under new regime FY 2025-26: - 0 to ₹3 lakh: 0% - ₹3 lakh to ₹6 lakh: 5% = ₹15,000 - ₹6 lakh to ₹9 lakh: 10% = ₹30,000 - ₹9 lakh to ₹12 lakh: 15% = ₹40,875 (on ₹2,72,500) - Subtotal: ₹85,875 - Cess @ 4% = ₹3,435 - Total tax = ₹89,310
Section 9 — Tax already deducted (TDS) = whatever your employer cut every month from your salary. If accurate, this matches Section 8.
Section 10 — Refund or balance — if TDS > tax, refund due. If TDS < tax, you must pay self-assessment tax before filing ITR.
Using Form 16 to fill ITR-1
Open ITR-1 on incometax.gov.in. The portal pre-fills everything from Form 16 (since your employer uploaded it to the TRACES system in their quarterly TDS return).
You verify by mapping these:
| Form 16 line | ITR-1 box | |---|---| | Gross salary (Section 1) | Salary → Gross salary received | | Section 10 exemptions (HRA, LTA) | Salary → Allowances exempt | | Standard deduction | Auto-applied | | Professional tax | Salary → Professional tax | | Chapter VI-A deductions | Deductions section (if old regime) | | TDS amount | Tax paid section |
If anything in the auto-fill doesn't match Form 16, edit it manually. Trust Form 16 over auto-fill.
What if Form 16 is wrong
Common employer errors: - Wrong PAN in Part A (TDS not credited to your PAN) - Wrong TAN or quarter classification - Miscalculated HRA exemption - Missing perks in gross salary - Wrong cess percentage
Step 1 — Email your HR/payroll team with the specific error. Most fix it in 7-15 days and reissue.
Step 2 — If they refuse, file a complaint at tdscpc.gov.in under "Inconsistency in TDS return".
Step 3 — File ITR with the correct numbers (not the wrong Form 16 numbers). Attach a note in the ITR remarks. CPC may issue a notice — respond with email correspondence as proof.
Multiple employers in one year
If you switched jobs mid-year, both employers must give you Form 16 for the months you worked there. You merge them when filing ITR-1:
- Add gross salaries from both
- Add exemptions from both
- The standard deduction applies once on combined salary (₹75,000 cap, not per employer)
- Add TDS from both employers
The new employer should ideally collect Form 12B from you with previous-employer salary details, so they can deduct correct TDS. Most don't — which is why salaried people who switched jobs often owe self-assessment tax.
Form 16 vs Form 16A
| Form | Issued by | For what | |---|---|---| | Form 16 | Employer | Salary TDS | | Form 16A | Banks, MF AMCs, tenants, clients | Non-salary TDS — interest, rent, professional fees |
If you earned interest above ₹40,000 from FDs, your bank issues Form 16A. If you are a freelancer and your client deducted TDS at 10%, they issue Form 16A. You add this to your ITR as "TDS on income other than salary".
What if you have no Form 16
Two scenarios:
### Scenario A — employer never deducted TDS
Total annual salary was below the taxable threshold (e.g., ₹3 lakh basic exemption under new regime). Then your employer is not required to issue Form 16. You can still file ITR using salary slips and Form 26AS.
### Scenario B — employer cut TDS but never gave Form 16
Use Form 26AS as your backup. Login to incometax.gov.in → My Account → View Form 26AS. It shows every rupee of TDS deducted on your PAN by every deductor. Cross-reference quarter-wise amounts against your salary slips.
If 26AS shows TDS but no Form 16 from employer, send a legal notice to your employer demanding Form 16 — courts have ruled in favour of employees on this consistently.
The 5-minute Form 16 review checklist
Every year when you receive Form 16:
1. Open the PDF (use the password from HR) 2. Verify PAN — yours, no typos 3. Verify TAN — your employer's 4. Verify the quarter-wise TDS — does it match what you saw in your salary slips? 5. Cross-check against Form 26AS — every quarter's TDS total should match between Form 16 and 26AS
If everything matches, file ITR. If anything is off, escalate before filing.
Related reading
- How to File ITR-1 Online in 2026
- Form 16 Explained — How to Read It
- ITR-1 vs ITR-2 vs ITR-3: Which Form?
Related calculators
- Income Tax Calculator — verify your tax against Form 16 numbers
- Old vs New Tax Regime — pick the right regime before TDS starts
Our source
Income Tax Act Section 203 mandates Form 16. TDS reconciliation system: tdscpc.gov.in (TRACES). Form 26AS access at incometax.gov.in.