Important Documents Needed for Income Tax Returns (2023–2024)

Documents that taxpayers who do not need to audit their financials may need when filing their income tax return (ITR) must be noted.
Dr. Suresh Surana, the founder of RSM India, stated that as income tax return filing season approaches, these are the essential documents that filers need to have in order to properly furnish their tax returns.
According to Section 139(1) of the Income Tax Act, all taxpayers are required to provide their income return by the specified deadline, which is either the 31st of July, the 31st of October, or the 30th of November of the relevant Assessment Year.
The following papers may be needed by individual taxpayers who are not obligated to audit their financial statements when completing their tax returns:
Aadhaar Card and Permanent Account Number (PAN Card)
According to Section 139A(5) of the Income Tax Act, each individual must include their PAN on all returns, challans, and other documents that the Act may specify. According to Section 139AA(1) of the I-T Act, any individual who qualifies for an Aadhaar card must include a quote for the same in their income return. In order to obtain an income tax refund and interest on it, taxpayers must also link their PAN card to their Aadhaar card.

Form 16 and Form 16A

Form 16A is issued by TDS deductors, such as banks, contractors, etc., and includes information pertaining to TDS deducted on payments other than salaries, such as income from recurring deposits, fixed deposits, etc. Form 16 is issued by the employer and contains all the details pertaining to salary and TDS deducted on the same.

Information Statement (TIS)/Annual Information Statement (AIS)/Form 26AS

The financial year’s worth of real estate purchases, high-value investments, and TDS/TCS transactions are shown in full on Form 26AS. In addition, international remittances, interest from savings accounts, dividends, rent earned, and the buying and selling of securities and real estate are all included in AIS.

Additionally, TIS compiles the tax data that is kept on file with the ,for a specific person, which includes information about the taxpayer’s submitted tax returns, taxes paid, refunds obtained, and other pertinent data.

It is recommended that taxpayers reconcile these papers. If there is a disparity between the information they retain and Form 26AS, they can address it by asking the deductor to file a TDS/TCS rectification statement. Additionally, the taxpayer can update any inaccurate information in AIS by submitting comments through the Income Tax Portal.

The specifics of any additional passive income, including capital gains (if any), as well as the dividend statement and rental income

When submitting their income tax returns, taxpayers who get dividend income and/or rental income should have their demat account summary or dividend statement, details of their rental income, and details of any other income—including any capital gains, if applicable—available. These records should be kept for future use even though they are not needed to be turned in to the Income Tax Department.

Certificate of Interest
Taxpayers would need to keep interest certificates relevant to the same in order to claim tax benefits on interest on home loans, etc.