Summary of this article
Income tax return due date is less than a week away. With rush of ITR filing, even small omissions, like a few thousand rupees of interest, can cause avoidable hassle. Cross-checking your return with AIS before filing is the safest route.
Taxpayers should treat AIS like a checklist, not an afterthought. If you align every entry, from FD interest to TDS credits, with what the system already knows, the chances of receiving that dreaded notice fall dramatically.
It doesn't always take big mistakes to catch the Income Tax Department's eye. Recently, a taxpayer received a notice simply because she forgot to declare interest income of Rs 5,000. The issue was picked up through the mismatch found in the Annual Information Statement (AIS) and the filed ITR, which now works as a detailed record of nearly every financial transaction linked to your PAN.
This case, shared by Sujit Bangar, founder of TaxBuddy.com, is a reminder that the tax system is increasingly data-driven. Even small gaps between what you report in your return and what the AIS shows can trigger a mismatch.
It is particularly important to take caution now, since many taxpayers are already running behind the income tax return due date this year. The Income Tax Return Filing deadline is September 15 2025, an extension from the July 31 deadline every year.
The deadline was extended to accommodate the delay in releasing ITR forms and utilities this year, which were updated and revised to incorporate the income tax-related changes in Budget 2024 and 2025.
As many taxpayers could be filing their ITRs in a hurry now, with the deadline approaching in less than a week, some may overlook cross-checking details in AIS and ITR. To avoid any notices later, here are some common mismatches that one should look out for.
Where do most people slip up? Bangar points out a few areas that often trip up taxpayers:
Bank and dividend income
Interest from savings accounts, fixed deposits or recurring deposits has to be reported under "Income from Other Sources." The common error is declaring only the net amount after TDS, while AIS reflects the gross figure. Dividends work the same way. If the numbers don't match, the return can get flagged under section 143(1)(a).
Capital gains on shares and mutual funds
Every sale, whether at a profit or loss, shows up in AIS. These need to be captured when you return them. Even corporate actions like stock splits or bonus shares should be adjusted correctly in the cost of acquisition to avoid wrong entries.
Rental income
If your tenant has deducted TDS, it automatically reflects in AIS. You must then report the rent under "Income from House Property" and claim the TDS credit. Missing either side of this creates a mismatch.
Interest on refunds
Many taxpayers overlook the small interest the Income Tax Department pays along with refunds. AIS lists it, and it is taxable in the year you receive it. Leaving it out can lead to unnecessary queries.
Business income and GST turnover
For self-employed taxpayers, AIS now picks up data from GST filings. This has to tally with the turnover declared in ITR forms. If there are differences because of exempt supplies or reverse charge, they should be backed with proper working notes.
Cash deposits, credit card spends and foreign remittances
Large cash deposits and high-value credit card spends are reported under the Statement of Financial Transactions (SFT). These are not directly entered in the return, but they must make sense in relation to your income. Foreign remittances under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) also appear with TCS entries, and if they result in overseas assets, additional disclosure schedules apply.
Property deals and assets
The sale of property needs to be reported in the capital gains schedule, while purchases require a funding trail. For individuals with income above Rs 1 crore (Rs 50 lakh in earlier years), filling out the Assets and Liabilities schedule is now compulsory.
The broader lesson is that the AIS is no longer just a reference point; it's a mirror of your financial life to which the tax department already has access. As Outlook Money has explained in its tax guides, cross-checking your return with AIS before filing is no longer optional if you want to avoid those auto-generated notices.
In other words, even a Rs 5,000 slip can cause trouble. A careful reconciliation takes a little more time but saves a lot of stress later.
