Form 16 explained: what each part means

What Form 16 is

It's a certificate from your employer of the tax deducted from your salary (TDS) and paid to the government. Employers issue it after the financial year ends, usually by mid-June. For income from FY 2026-27 onwards, the certificate may carry a new form number under the Income-tax Rules, 2026, but it does the same job.

Part A: the tax deducted

• Your employer's name, address, PAN and TAN
• Your PAN and the period you worked there
• Tax deducted and deposited each quarter

Check that your PAN is right and the TDS matches your Form 26AS or Annual Information Statement (AIS). If it doesn't, ask your employer to correct it.

Part B: how your tax was worked out

• Gross salary, including allowances and perquisites
• Exemptions, like HRA, under the old regime
• The standard deduction and professional tax
• Deductions like 80C and 80D you declared (old regime)
• Taxable income, tax, cess and any relief
• The regime your employer used

Using it to file

1. Compare Part B with your payslips, AIS and Form 26AS.
2. Add income your employer doesn't know about: savings and FD interest, rent, capital gains, dividends.
3. Add deductions you didn't declare to HR in time, if you're choosing the old regime.
4. Pick your regime. It can be different from the one your employer used, if you have no business income and file by the due date.

Two employers this year?

You'll get two Form 16s. Both employers may have given you the standard deduction and the lower slabs, so your total tax is often higher than the TDS. Add both salaries in your return and pay the difference before you file.