Annual Information Statement

The Annual Information Statement (AIS) is the consolidated tax-information document published by the Indian Income Tax Department for every taxpayer with a Permanent Account Number (PAN), drawing together data reported to the department by banks, stock brokers, mutual fund Registrars and Transfer Agents (RTAs ), depositories, stock exchanges, registrars of immovable property, foreign-remittance reporters, and other categories of reporting entities. The AIS replaced the predecessor Form 26AS as the principal pre-filed information source for income tax return preparation following its phased rollout from November 2021. The statement is generated for each financial year and is accessible through the e-filing portal of the Income Tax Department; it forms the primary reconciliation source against which a taxpayer’s income tax return and the underlying transaction records are matched, with material variance triggering scrutiny under Section 143(2) of the Income Tax Act, 1961.

The AIS framework is anchored in Section 285BA of the Income Tax Act, 1961, read with Rule 114E of the Income Tax Rules, 1962, which together establish the Statement of Financial Transactions (SFT) regime under which prescribed reporting entities are required to report defined categories of transactions to the Income Tax Department. The AIS aggregates SFT reports with TDS information (Section 200), TCS information (Section 206C), refund details (Section 244A), demand notices, and a growing range of foreign-source information received under Common Reporting Standard (CRS), FATCA, and bilateral exchange-of-information arrangements. The result is a single consolidated information statement that, since 2022, has progressively superseded the more limited Form 26AS as the principal source of pre-filled return data.

The AIS interacts directly with the capital gains tax and mutual fund taxation frameworks because virtually every securities-market and mutual fund transaction made through a SEBI-regulated intermediary is reported through the SFT or analogous reporting channel. The taxpayer’s mutual fund redemptions reported by CAMS and KFin Technologies , broker capital gains statements, dividend payments, interest from term deposits, and major property transactions all flow into the AIS dataset. The Income Tax Department’s compliance algorithms compare the AIS dataset against the filed return; material discrepancies are flagged in the compliance portal and may trigger notices under Section 142(1) or Section 143(2).

History

Pre-AIS regime: Form 26AS

Before the AIS, the principal pre-filed information statement for Indian taxpayers was Form 26AS, introduced in 2008 and progressively expanded through the 2010s. Form 26AS originated as a TDS and TCS reconciliation statement (Form 26AS = “Annual Tax Statement”), reflecting taxes deducted or collected at source by deductors and collectors and credited against the taxpayer’s PAN. Through 2018 to 2020, Form 26AS was expanded to include high-value transactions reported under the SFT regime, refunds, demands, and certain other tax-relevant information. The Form 26AS mutual fund TDS reference covers the TDS-specific use of Form 26AS.

AIS introduction, November 2021

The AIS was formally introduced through CBDT notification on 1 November 2021 as a supplement to Form 26AS, with the explicit policy intention of progressively replacing it as the principal information document. The first version of AIS published in 2021 covered approximately 50 categories of information. The framework has been substantially expanded each year since, with the 2025 version including approximately 70 categories covering domestic securities transactions, mutual fund subscriptions and redemptions, dividend and interest income, salary and pension, business turnover (for high-value transactions), foreign-source income under CRS and FATCA, virtual digital asset transactions under Section 194S, and major immovable property transactions.

Form 26AS continuation

Form 26AS continues to exist alongside the AIS but is now positioned as a TDS-focused statement, while the AIS is the broader information document. For most taxpayers, the AIS is the primary source for return preparation, with Form 26AS used as a secondary reconciliation for TDS-specific matters.

Statutory framework

The AIS framework derives from several layered provisions:

Reporting entities include scheduled commercial banks, NBFCs, stock brokers and depositories, mutual fund AMCs and RTAs, registrars of immovable property, post offices, sub-registrars, foreign remittance reporters, and similar entities. Each category of reporter is bound by transaction-class-specific reporting thresholds and timelines (typically by 31 May of the year following the financial year).

AIS structure and components

The AIS is organised as a single PDF document accessible through the e-filing portal of the Income Tax Department, with two principal layers:

Part A: Personal information

Basic taxpayer information including:

• Permanent Account Number (PAN)
• Aadhaar (where linked)
• Name
• Date of birth or incorporation
• Address as per the e-filing portal records
• Mobile and email contact details

Part B: Information categories

Part B is the substantive content, organised into approximately 70 categories as of FY 2025. The principal categories include:

The thresholds vary by category. Cash deposit reporting, for example, applies if aggregate cash deposits in a bank account exceed Rs 10 lakh in a financial year. Mutual fund subscription reporting applies if aggregate subscription to a single AMC exceeds Rs 10 lakh.

AIS and Taxpayer Information Summary (TIS)

The Income Tax Department publishes both the AIS (the granular transaction-level statement) and a Taxpayer Information Summary (TIS), which is a category-wise summary derived from the AIS. The TIS rolls up the granular AIS entries to produce a single processed value for each information category, which is then pre-filled into the income tax return.

The TIS is a derived document; corrections submitted by the taxpayer through the AIS feedback mechanism flow into the TIS, which is then used to update the pre-filled return data. The detailed mapping between mutual fund AIS entries and the TIS is at the AIS-TIS mutual fund mapping reference.

AIS for mutual fund transactions

Mutual fund transactions appear in the AIS through several distinct categories, reported principally by CAMS and KFin Technologies as RTAs and by the AMCs themselves:

• Mutual fund subscriptions: Aggregate subscription value per AMC, where total subscription in a financial year exceeds Rs 10 lakh.
• Mutual fund redemptions: Per-folio aggregated redemption value, used for capital gains computation. Detailed in the AIS mutual fund reference.
• Dividend (IDCW) payments: All IDCW distributions made by mutual fund schemes are reported, with the post-2020 abolition of DDT (under Section 115R ) making these taxable in the investor’s hands at slab rate.
• TDS on NRI mutual fund redemptions: TDS deducted under Section 195 is reported separately.
• STT on equity-mutual-fund redemptions: STT paid on equity-MF redemptions appears in the supporting detail.

The AIS reflects the AMC and RTA reporting; the taxpayer’s actual income for tax-return purposes is computed from the underlying transactions (using the capital gains statement from CAMS and KFin), but the AIS provides the reconciliation totals. Discrepancies between the AIS aggregate and the taxpayer’s computed gains are flagged in the compliance portal.

AIS for capital gains

Capital gains transactions are among the most extensively reported categories in the AIS:

• Listed equity capital gains: Reported by stock exchanges (via brokers’ STT reporting under Section 285BA). The exchange-broker channel produces a comprehensive record of every STT-paid equity transaction.
• Mutual fund capital gains: Reported by CAMS and KFin Technologies on behalf of the AMCs, with FIFO-applied per-folio detail.
• Immovable property capital gains: Reported by sub-registrars under Section 285BA, with the stamp duty value and the actual sale consideration both captured.
• Foreign asset capital gains: Increasingly captured through CRS and FATCA exchange-of-information; manual entry may still be required for certain non-CRS jurisdictions.

The taxpayer’s reported capital gains must reconcile with the AIS aggregate. Material variance, particularly under-reporting, is flagged in the compliance portal. The capital gains tax in India reference treats the substantive tax computation; the AIS is the reconciliation source.

Accessing the AIS

The AIS is accessed through the e-filing portal of the Income Tax Department at incometax.gov.in. The access path is:

1. Log in to the e-filing portal using PAN credentials.
2. Navigate to the Services menu and select “Annual Information Statement (AIS)”.
3. Select the relevant financial year.
4. Download the AIS PDF or view the online interactive version.
5. The TIS is accessible from the same menu and is automatically generated from the AIS.

The PDF download is password-protected with a combination of PAN (in lowercase) and date of birth or date of incorporation. The interactive online version offers category-wise drill-down and submission of feedback.

Feedback mechanism

The AIS framework provides a structured feedback mechanism through which the taxpayer can respond to each information entry. The principal feedback options for any AIS entry are:

Feedback submitted through the AIS flows into the TIS recomputation. The reporting entity is also notified and may correct its source SFT report. Once corrected at source, the AIS is updated in subsequent refreshes (typically the next monthly cycle).

The feedback mechanism is the principal investor-protection feature of the AIS framework: it ensures that mis-reporting by an SFT-reporting entity is not taken as conclusive without the taxpayer’s opportunity to respond.

Reconciliation with the income tax return

The principal use of the AIS for the typical taxpayer is the reconciliation against the filed income tax return. The reconciliation flow is:

1. The taxpayer downloads the AIS for the relevant financial year.
2. Each category of income or transaction in the AIS is matched against the corresponding category in ITR-2 or ITR-3 .
3. Variances are investigated: missing income in the return, missing in the AIS, or quantitative discrepancies.
4. Where the AIS is wrong, feedback is submitted; the AIS will refresh in the next cycle.
5. Where the return is wrong, the return is revised under Section 139(5) or corrected through a rectification application.

The pre-filled return data on the e-filing portal is now populated principally from the AIS, with the taxpayer expected to validate or correct each pre-filled entry before final submission.

Compliance implications

Scrutiny triggers

Material variance between the AIS and the filed return is a principal trigger for scrutiny. The Income Tax Department’s risk-management algorithms compare:

• Aggregate income reported in the return versus the AIS aggregate.
• Capital gains computation in the return versus the AIS capital gains aggregate.
• Foreign-source income reporting versus CRS and FATCA receipts.
• Cash deposit reporting versus declared income (the cash-deposit-versus-business-turnover test).

Variance above defined thresholds produces a Section 143(2) notice (limited scrutiny) or a Section 148 notice (reassessment).

Late filing implications

The AIS is generated regardless of whether the taxpayer has filed a return. If the AIS shows substantive transactions but no return has been filed, this is a non-filer signal that may produce a Section 142(1) notice or, in egregious cases, a non-filer prosecution.

Updated return mechanism

The taxpayer may file an updated return under Section 139(8A) within 24 months of the end of the relevant assessment year, addressing the additional tax liability flagged by AIS reconciliation, on payment of additional tax under Section 140B (25 per cent or 50 per cent of the tax due, depending on the timing). The updated return is a substantive route through which AIS-driven additional disclosure is being absorbed without formal scrutiny proceedings.

Foreign-source information

The AIS now includes a growing range of foreign-source information received through:

• Common Reporting Standard (CRS): Multilateral framework for automatic exchange of financial account information between OECD member jurisdictions. India is a signatory and receives data on Indian-resident-held foreign accounts annually.
• FATCA: Bilateral framework with the United States covering US-source income and US-accounts held by Indian residents.
• Bilateral DTAA exchange-of-information: Information received under specific double-taxation-avoidance agreements with non-OECD partners.

Foreign-source income that should have been reported under Schedule FA of the income tax return is now visible to the Income Tax Department through these exchange channels. Non-reporting of Schedule FA when corresponding entries appear in the AIS is a principal driver of recent black-money-related enforcement.

Common discrepancies

The most common AIS discrepancies for retail investors are:

• Mutual fund redemption reporting at gross rather than gain: The AIS shows the redemption value, not the capital gain; the taxpayer must compute the gain from the capital gains statement.
• Equity dividend duplicate reporting: Where the same dividend is reported both by the company and through the broker’s IDCW reporting.
• Inter-account transfers reported as transactions: Cross-account transfers within the same PAN occasionally appear as income.
• Old PAN linkages: Transactions linked to a closed or merged PAN appear in the new PAN’s AIS without proper attribution.
• Joint-account allocation issues: Joint bank accounts and joint demat accounts may produce duplicate reporting across the joint holders.
• Mutual fund SIPs split across years: SIP transactions executed near a financial year boundary may be reported in different years by the AMC and the bank.

The feedback mechanism is the principal remedy in each case.

Recent developments

Expansion of categories

The number of AIS categories has expanded from approximately 50 in 2021 to approximately 70 in 2025. The principal additions are virtual digital asset transactions under Section 194S, expanded foreign-source categories, and detailed mutual fund SIP reporting at the per-instalment level.

Integration with compliance portal

The Income Tax Department’s compliance portal, accessible from the e-filing dashboard, now aggregates AIS-driven compliance flags, allowing the taxpayer to see consolidated reconciliation issues in a single interface. The flags are categorised as significant, moderate, or low, with response timelines varying by category.

Pre-filled return improvements

The 2024 to 2025 enhancements to the pre-filled return populate substantially more fields from the AIS. For most salaried taxpayers with simple capital gains, the pre-filled ITR-2 now arrives nearly complete, with the taxpayer required only to validate or correct.

Real-time AIS updates

Historically, the AIS was updated quarterly; recent enhancements have moved to a monthly refresh cycle, with the intention of moving to near-real-time updates by 2027. The faster refresh reduces the lag between transaction and reconciliation visibility.

Limitations and criticism

Several limitations of the AIS have been documented in industry submissions and in tax-practitioner commentary:

• Reporting errors: The AIS is only as accurate as the SFT reports it aggregates; reporting entity errors flow through to the AIS without independent verification.
• Granularity for capital gains: The mutual fund redemption reporting does not always provide adequate detail for the FIFO computation; the taxpayer must rely on the CAMS-KFin capital gains statement for the final number.
• Pre-filled return over-reliance: Taxpayers who accept the pre-filled return without validation may miss errors. The pre-fill is a starting point, not a final number.
• Feedback latency: Corrections submitted through the feedback mechanism take several weeks to reflect in the refreshed AIS, which can produce timing issues near return-filing deadlines.
• Inter-financial-year boundary issues: Transactions executed near 31 March commonly produce reporting-period mismatches that require manual reconciliation.

See also

• Capital gains tax in India
• Income tax in India
• AIS mutual fund
• AIS-TIS mutual fund mapping
• Form 26AS mutual fund TDS
• Permanent Account Number (PAN)
• ITR-2
• ITR-3
• Mutual fund
• Mutual fund industry in India
• Mutual fund RTA
• CAMS
• KFin Technologies
• CAMS-KFin capital gains statement
• Mutual fund ITR capital gains statement
• Zerodha ITR capital gains statement
• How to download Form 26AS matching Zerodha
• Grandfathering rule for LTCG
• NRI MF TDS Section 195

References

1. Income Tax Act, 1961, Section 285BA (Statement of Financial Transactions) and Section 285BB (AIS framework).
2. Income Tax Rules, 1962, Rule 114E (categories of reportable transactions).
3. Central Board of Direct Taxes Notification No. 30/2020 dated 28 May 2020, Form 26AS revised.
4. Central Board of Direct Taxes Notification dated 1 November 2021, Annual Information Statement framework.
5. Income Tax Act, 1961, Section 194S (TDS on virtual digital asset transfers).
6. OECD Common Reporting Standard for Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information.
7. Income Tax Department, AIS User Guide, incometax.gov.in.
8. Finance Act, 2022, Section 115BBH and Section 194S (virtual digital assets).
9. Finance (No. 2) Act, 2024, Sections 51 to 56 (capital gains tax regime).
10. SEBI Master Circular on Mutual Funds, SEBI/HO/IMD/IMD-PoD-1/P/CIR/2024/137, 27 May 2024.