Cbdt Expands Form 26as Information List

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has expanded the Form 26AS information list to include more information such as off-market transactions, mutual fund purchases, foreign remittances, and more. CBDT on October 26 issued an order under Section 285BB of the Income Tax Act expanding the scope of the information reported in new Form 26AS. This is aimed at helping the taxpayer file their returns correctly and assisting the department in detecting discrepancies in taxpayers’ returns. Click here to know more about Matching Form 26AS & Form 16

Synopsis of CBDT Notification

The income tax department will now provide full details of their financial transactions such as foreign remittances, purchase, and receipt of dividends on mutual funds and other off-market transactions reported by depositories in Form 26AS. This information would be auto-populated in Form 26AS when the taxpayer is filing an income tax return. The official order pertaining to the Form 26AS Information List is attached here for reference:

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has expanded the

Form 26AS -Annual Information Statement

Form 26AS is an annual consolidated tax statement that can be accessed from the income-tax website by taxpayers using their Permanent Account Number (PAN). The Budget 2020-21 had introduced a new Section 285BB in the Income Tax Act, to revamp Form 26AS to an 'Annual Information Statement' which apart from TDS/ TCS details, would contain comprehensive information of specified financial transactions, payment of taxes, demand/ refund and pending/completed proceedings undertaken by a taxpayer in a particular financial year that has to be mentioned in income tax returns.

Revised Form 26AS

Following that, in May last year, the CBDT had notified the revised Form 26AS, including information on high-value financial transactions undertaken during a financial year, a move which also facilitated voluntary compliance and ease of e-filing of I-T returns. Click here to know more about Revised Form 26AS effective from 1st June 2020 With this October 26 order, the list of details to be available in Form 26AS has been expanded further.

The objective of Updating Form 26AS

The objective of updating the Form 26AS is to ensure voluntary compliance by taxpayers.

The taxpayers can identify incorrect information reflected in Form 26AS and take corrective action.
The tax authorities can compare the information reported by taxpayers in ITR with the information available in Form 26AS and identify mismatches if any.

Form 26AS - Updated Information List

The annual information statement (26AS), will now include the following features as well:

Foreign remittance information reported in Form 15CC
Information in Annexure-II of the 24Q TDS Statement of the last quarter
Information in ITR of another taxpayer
Interest on Income Tax Refund
Information in Form 61/61A where PAN could be populated
Off Market, Transactions Reported by Depository/ Registrar and Transfer Agent (RTA)
Information about dividend of mutual fund reported by Registrar and Transfer Agent (RTA)
Information about purchase of mutual fund reported by Registrar and Transfer Agent (RTA)

Foreign Remittance Information

The Form 26AS will now report the Foreign remittance information as reported in Form 15CC. Form 15CC is a quarterly statement to be furnished by an authorized dealer in respect of quarterly remittances.

As per Section 195 of the Income Tax act, every authorized dealer making a payment to a non-resident, not being a company or to a foreign company, is required to furnish a statement of such payments Form 15CC.
It is required to be furnished to the competent authority of the Income Tax Department electronically within fifteen days from the end of the quarter of the financial year to which such statement relates.

Information Related to Salary Income

The Form 26AS will now report the Information in Annexure-II of the 24Q TDS Statement of the last quarter.

Annexure-II for the 4th quarter of the TDS returns in Form No. 24Q contains the computation of salary income or total income as computed by the employer for deduction of income tax from the salary income of the employee.
Presently, from this order, the ITR is pre-filled for Salary Income. Henceforth, the employee can see the information in his Form 26AS.

Information from Other ITRs

There are many instances where a taxpayer is required to report the PAN of other persons with whom he has carried a transaction. Now, the information will reflect in the Form 26AS of the tenant/buyer. Note: Information will come in Form 26AS only after the return ID is filed by the landlord/seller.

Interest on Income-tax Refund

The information related to income-tax refunds is already given in Form 26AS. Now, CBDT announced that the interest income of income tax refund will be given separately in Form 26AS.

Off-market Transactions

Off-market transactions of shares will be reported in Form 26AS as reported by the Registrar and Transfer agents.

Information related to Mutual Funds

Information related to dividends on Mutual Funds and purchase of mutual fund units as reported by the Registrar and Transfer agents shall be available in Form 26AS.

Presently, the purchase of mutual fund units over Rs. 10 Lakh is reported in Form 26AS.
Now, all the purchases of mutual funds, irrespective of any amount, shall be reported in Form 26AS.

Other Announcement of CBDT

In order, the CBDT said that it is authorizing the Director-General of Income Tax (Systems) to upload additional information in their possession in the annual information statement in form 26AS in the electronic filing account registered by the assessee in the designated portal, within three months from the end of the month in which the information is received.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about Form 26AS Expanded Information by CBDT.

Form 26AS is an annual consolidated tax statement that provides comprehensive information about a taxpayer's financial transactions, taxes paid, demands or refunds, and pending or completed proceedings in a particular financial year. It is accessible to taxpayers on the income tax website using their Permanent Account Number (PAN).

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has expanded the Form 26AS information list to help taxpayers file their returns correctly and assist the income tax department in detecting discrepancies in taxpayers' returns. The objective is to ensure voluntary compliance by taxpayers.

The revised Form 26AS will now include foreign remittance information reported in Form 15CC, salary details from Annexure-II of the 24Q TDS statement, information from other taxpayers' ITRs, interest on income tax refunds, off-market transactions reported by depositories, dividend and purchase details of mutual funds reported by Registrar and Transfer Agents (RTAs).

Taxpayers can cross-check the information reflected in Form 26AS with their own records and take corrective action if any incorrect information is reported. This will help them file their income tax returns accurately and avoid discrepancies.

Yes, previously only purchases of mutual fund units above Rs. 10 Lakh were reported in Form 26AS. Now, all purchases of mutual funds, irrespective of the amount, will be reported in Form 26AS as per the details provided by the Registrar and Transfer Agents (RTAs).

Off-market transactions of shares will be reported in Form 26AS based on the information provided by the depositories or Registrar and Transfer Agents (RTAs).

The Director-General of Income Tax (Systems) has been authorized to upload additional information in the annual information statement (Form 26AS) in the electronic filing account registered by the assessee within three months from the end of the month in which the information is received.

Taxpayers can access their Form 26AS on the income tax department's website by logging in with their Permanent Account Number (PAN) and following the instructions for viewing the annual information statement.

Yes, the existing information in Form 26AS, such as TDS (Tax Deducted at Source) and TCS (Tax Collected at Source) details, will continue to be available in addition to the newly added information.

While it is not mandatory, it is highly recommended for taxpayers to cross-check the information in Form 26AS with their own records and income tax returns to ensure accuracy and avoid discrepancies. The expanded Form 26AS is aimed at facilitating voluntary compliance by taxpayers.