ITR filing 2024: How to file income tax return without Form 16? Here’s what experts say

If you have yet to file your income tax return (ITR) for FY2023-24, be sure to do so before the deadline, which expires on July 31. And even if you don’t have Form 16 in your possession, fret not! You can still file the return by using information available in other relevant documents, say experts. 

These documents include bank statements, salary slips, interest certificates and other income-related documents.

It is vital to remember that a taxpayer may have a slew of income sources. These sources typically include the following:

A. Salary: One can ascertain salary income with the help of salary slips.

B. Interest income: You can add the interest income accrued on your savings accounts, fixed deposit (FD) accounts and other investments.

C. House rent: Income earned from your rented property is rental income which needs to be added to your total income.

D. Other sources: There could still be other income such as earning through freelance work.

“One should ideally insist on receiving the Form 16, but in case you don’t have it, you can rely on salary slips,” says Chirag Chauhan, a Mumbai-based chartered accountant.

“If the employer has deducted TDS (Tax Deducted at Source), he is bound to issue Form 16 as per the Income Tax Act. But what if the employer has not deducted TDS as your salary was not taxable and, therefore, has not issued Form 16? Not having Form 16 doesn’t mean you cannot file ITR. In this case, you should file ITR using documents like your salary slips, bank statements, Form 26AS, Annual Information Statement etc. You should also check for rent and interest receipts for income taxable under other heads,” says chartered accountant Pratibha Goyal, partner of PD Gupta and Company, a Delhi-based firm.

“Form 16 entails the detailed information pertaining to a salaried taxpayer’s tax liability. It is highly unlikely to not have it, but in case one does not have the document, one can rely on Form 26AS for the same purpose,” says Deepak Aggarwal, a Delhi-based chartered accountant and financial consultant.