What is form 16

Form 16 is a type of income tax form which is used to file IT returns by the employees. It contains all the information of the employee which is required to file income tax return. Form 16 is provided by the employer and it is considered as a proof of filing of income tax by the employees. For every employee who falls under the income tax bracket, it is mandatory to file income tax via Form 16. The income tax department verifies the details provided by the employee in Form 16 and it is ultimately used to file income tax returns.

Benefits of Form 16:

• Acts as the proof of payment of taxes by an employee

• Used by many financial institutions as a verification tool for an individual's credentials while applying for a loan 

The components of Form 16 are:

• Employee’s personal details like name, residential address, PAN, etc

• Details of the employer like name, PAN, Taxation and collection Account Number (TAN)

• Details of the salary received by the employee, i.e., aspects of gross and net salary

• Education cess and other surcharge details

• Details of the tax deductions

• Receipt of taxes paid

• Details of the tax payment like challan number, cheque number, demand draft number

Form 16 is divided into two parts, Part A and Part B. Part A contains the PAN details of the employees and the TAN details of the employers. It is more fundamental than Part B of the form. Other details that are required to be filled by the employee in Part A of the form are TDS deducted by the employer, current financial assessment year, name and residential address of the employer and the employee.

Part B of the form contains details regarding the tax deductions made by the employee in the financial assessment year. The details provided by the employee in form B must include-taxable salary, TDS provided by the employer, breakdown of the deductions made under section 80C and any form of tax rebate applicable to the person's salary.

How to verify Form 16

• Visit the website of TDS centralised processing cell (https://www.tdscpc.gov.in/app/login.xhtml)

• Click on 'taxpayer'

• Click on 'verify TDS details'

• Enter the following details-

Deductor's TAN

Employee's PAN

TDS certificate number

TDS amount deducted as per the certificate

• From the drop-down menu, choose the ‘financial year’ and the ‘source of income’

• Click on ‘validate’ 

Form 16 vs 16A 

CRITERIA	FORM 16	FORM 16A
EXPLANATION	Section 203 of Income Tax Acts provides this certificate for tax deducted at source from income chargeable under the head of ‘salaries’.	It is a certificate under Section 203 Income Tax for tax deduction at source for income other than salary.
ELIGIBILITY	Anyone who earns a steady and regular income in the form of salary.	Anyone who is either self-employed or a professional with document qualification degree.
APPLICABLE TOWARDS	Interest on securities, dividends, interest other than interest on securities, etc.	Issued against rent, commission, professional charges, building, plant, machine hired, commission agents, etc.
COMPRISES OF	Proof of income, details of tax paid by employer on behalf of the employee, PAN and TAN of employer, PAN of employee, acknowledgment of amount of tax paid, education cess and surcharges.	Name, TAN, PAN of employer; Name and PAN of all employees. Amount paid and nature of payment, receipt number of TDS payment.
ONLINE VERIFICATION PROCESS	Can be verified online	Can be verified online