AIS and TIS in Income Tax: How to Use Them When Filing Your ITR
The ais tis income tax india system is the Income Tax Department’s comprehensive data repository of all financial transactions linked to your PAN. The Annual Information Statement (AIS) and Taxpayer Information Summary (TIS) were introduced to help taxpayers verify data before filing and to reduce mismatches between ITR and department records. This guide explains what AIS and TIS contain, how to access them, how to use them while filing, and what to do when you spot errors.
What Is AIS (Annual Information Statement)?
The Annual Information Statement is a comprehensive document showing all financial transactions related to your PAN that have been reported to the Income Tax Department by third parties – banks, mutual fund houses, stock brokers, property registrars, and others. AIS was introduced in November 2021 to give taxpayers visibility into what data the department holds about them.
AIS contains data across multiple categories: salary paid by employers (TDS), interest income from banks and financial institutions, dividends received, securities transactions (purchases and sales of stocks, mutual funds, bonds), foreign remittances, rent received, purchase of property, foreign travel spends, and more. It is essentially every significant financial transaction that leaves a paper trail with a third party who reports to the IT department.
What Is TIS (Taxpayer Information Summary)?
The Taxpayer Information Summary is a condensed version of AIS. Where AIS shows individual transactions, TIS summarizes them by category – showing total salary received, total interest income, total securities sale proceeds, total property purchase value, etc. TIS is easier to quickly scan for completeness. AIS provides the detail needed to verify individual entries.
TIS has three value columns for each category: reported value (what the third party reported), processed value (what has been processed after any feedback you provide), and derived value (the department’s view after all corrections). When you submit feedback on AIS entries, the processed and derived values update.
How to Access AIS and TIS
Both AIS and TIS are accessible on the income tax e-filing portal:
- Log in to incometax.gov.in with your PAN and password.
- Go to “Services” in the top menu.
- Select “Annual Information Statement (AIS).”
- The AIS portal opens in a new tab showing the current assessment year’s data.
- You can download AIS as a PDF or JSON file. JSON is useful if you want to process it programmatically; PDF is suitable for manual review.
- TIS is accessible within the same AIS portal – toggle between AIS and TIS views.
AIS data for a financial year is available from around November of the same year onward. As more third parties submit their reports through the year, AIS data gets updated. The most complete AIS data for a given FY is typically available from April-May of the following financial year (after March quarter reports are submitted).
Key AIS Categories to Review Before Filing ITR
Not all AIS categories require action, but these are the most important for typical investors:
- Salary (SFT-006): Verify matches Form 16. Discrepancies between employer-reported salary and Form 16 need resolution with HR before filing.
- Interest from savings/deposits (SFT-001, SFT-002): All bank interest – savings accounts, FDs, RDs – is shown here. Cross-check with bank statements and include all interest in Schedule OS of your ITR.
- Dividends (SFT-005): Dividends from equity shares and mutual funds (IDCW option). Include in ITR Schedule OS as taxable income at slab rate.
- Securities transactions (SFT-018): Mutual fund purchases and redemptions, stock buys and sells. Cross-check redemption proceeds against your CAMS/broker statement. The AIS data is useful for verification but use official CAMS/broker capital gains statements for actual ITR filing.
- Foreign remittances (SFT-012): Bank-reported outward remittances under LRS. If you invested in international funds through LRS, this appears here.
What to Do When AIS Has Errors
AIS errors are common. Third parties sometimes misreport data – banks may report gross interest before TDS rather than net, employers may have errors in their TDS filings, or old data may persist from corrected transactions.
To submit feedback on incorrect AIS entries:
- In the AIS portal, navigate to the specific entry that is incorrect.
- Click on the entry to expand it and see the feedback option.
- Select the appropriate feedback reason: “Information is correct,” “Information is not fully correct,” “Information is not related to me,” “Information is duplicate,” or “Information is denied.”
- Provide a brief explanation where required.
- Submit. The feedback goes to the relevant reporting entity for review.
Submitting AIS feedback does not automatically correct your ITR – you must still file the ITR with the correct income figure. The AIS feedback process is for alerting the department to the discrepancy and protecting you from automated mismatch notices. If AIS shows higher income than you actually received (common with gross vs. net reporting), file your ITR with the correct net amount and submit AIS feedback explaining the discrepancy. When deciding between tax regimes, your actual income figure (not AIS’s potentially inflated figure) is what determines the better regime.
AIS vs Form 26AS: What Is the Difference?
Both AIS and Form 26AS are accessible on the income tax portal, but they serve different purposes:
| Feature | Form 26AS | AIS |
|---|---|---|
| Primary focus | TDS/TCS credits against your PAN | All financial transactions linked to PAN |
| Scope | Tax deductions and advance tax payments | Income, expenses, investments, foreign transactions |
| Key use | Verify TDS credit before claiming refund | Verify all income before filing to avoid mismatch notices |
| Feedback mechanism | No direct feedback option | Yes, online feedback on each entry |
Always check both Form 26AS (for TDS credits) and AIS (for comprehensive income verification) before filing your ITR. Form 26AS ensures you claim all TDS credits correctly. AIS ensures you have reported all income that the department is aware of. Cryptocurrency transactions reported by exchanges also appear in AIS from FY 2022-23 onward.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is all data in AIS accurate and final?
No. AIS data comes from third-party reporting and can contain errors, duplicates, or mismatches. Common errors: gross interest reported where net (post-TDS) is correct, same transaction appearing twice from two reporting entities, property transaction values based on circle rate rather than actual transaction value. Always treat AIS as a starting point for verification, not a final income figure. Your actual documents (bank statements, broker reports, CAMS statements, Form 16) are the authoritative source.
Will I get an IT notice if my ITR differs from AIS?
Potentially, yes. The IT department’s automated processing (Section 143(1)) compares filed returns against AIS data. Significant discrepancies can trigger a prima facie adjustment notice. However, if you have submitted AIS feedback explaining the discrepancy and filed with the correct figures, you are generally protected. The key is to proactively address discrepancies before the notice arrives rather than waiting for the department to raise a query. Document your reasons for any difference between your ITR and AIS.
How far back does AIS data go?
AIS currently shows data from FY 2020-21 onward. Earlier financial years’ data is available in Form 26AS for TDS credits but AIS comprehensiveness was limited before 2021. Each year’s AIS is a separate statement – you access the relevant year’s AIS when filing that year’s ITR. Historical AIS is available for reference even after the filing year passes, which is useful if you receive a scrutiny notice for past years.
What is the Taxpayer Information Summary (TIS) used for?
TIS is mainly used for a quick overall sanity check. Before filing your ITR, open TIS to see the summary figures across all income categories. Compare total salary shown in TIS with your Form 16, total interest with your bank statements, total securities proceeds with your CAMS/broker statements. If TIS figures broadly match your documents, proceed to the ITR. If you see large unexplained differences, drill into AIS for the individual transactions causing them. TIS is the “dashboard view” – AIS is the “transaction detail.”
Does AIS show PPF interest and EPF withdrawals?
PPF interest is generally not reported in AIS as it is a government scheme with its own tax treatment (exempt under Section 10(11)). EPF withdrawals may appear if TDS was deducted (TDS applies on EPF withdrawals before 5 years of service and above certain amounts). Partial EPF withdrawals exempt from tax generally do not appear in AIS as income. Always cross-check exemptions against the actual rules rather than assuming AIS coverage is comprehensive for all income types.
