Income Tax e-Filing Portal Displays Form 26AS and Form 168 for Different Tax Years

The Income Tax Department’s e-Filing portal is now showing both Form 26AS under the Income-tax Act, 1961 and Form 168 under the Income Tax Act, 2025. The availability of both forms on the portal has led to queries among taxpayers regarding the correct statement to be used for income tax return filing.

The applicable form will depend on the financial year or tax year for which the return is being filed. Taxpayers are required to refer to the statement relevant to the applicable assessment year while preparing and filing their income tax return.

For the current ITR filing cycle relating to Financial Year 2025-26 and Assessment Year 2026-27, taxpayers should continue to rely on Form 26AS. This form remains applicable under the existing Income-tax Act, 1961 for returns connected with FY 2025-26.

Form 168 will become applicable from Tax Year 2026-27 under the new Income Tax Act, 2025. Accordingly, taxpayers filing returns for earlier financial years should not treat Form 168 as a replacement for Form 26AS for the ongoing filing period.

Tax professionals have clarified that there is no change in the applicable form for FY 2025-26. Form 26AS will continue to serve as the relevant tax credit and information statement for the present assessment year, while Form 168 will be relevant only from the tax year covered under the new law.

Taxpayers should carefully verify the relevant assessment year, tax credits, TDS details, advance tax payments, self-assessment tax, and other tax-related information before filing their ITR. Referring to the correct form will help avoid mismatch issues, filing errors, and compliance-related complications. CA sANSAAR