Indian tax, GST and EPF forms, explained

Form 16

TDS certificate on salary

The certificate your employer issues showing the salary paid to you and the tax deducted from it. Part A comes from TRACES and carries the quarterly TDS summary; Part B is the salary breakup and the deductions your employer allowed.

Form 16A

TDS certificate on income other than salary

The TDS certificate for income that is not salary — bank interest, professional fees, rent, commission. Issued quarterly by whoever deducted the tax.

Form 26AS

Annual tax statement

Your consolidated tax statement: every rupee of TDS credited against your PAN, advance tax and self-assessment tax you paid, and refunds issued.

Annual Information Statement (AIS)

AIS and TIS

A much wider statement than Form 26AS: interest, dividends, securities and mutual fund transactions, foreign remittances and more, gathered from the entities that reported them. The TIS is its summarised sibling.

ITR-1 (Sahaj)

Sahaj

The simplest return form, meant for a resident individual with salary or pension, one house property, and other income such as bank interest, within the prescribed income limit.

ITR-2

The return for individuals and Hindu Undivided Families who do not have income from a business or profession — capital gains, more than one house property, foreign income or foreign assets all land here.

ITR-3

The return for individuals and HUFs carrying on a business or profession, including partners in a firm. It carries full financial statements and, where applicable, an audit report.

ITR-4 (Sugam)

Sugam

The return for those declaring income on a presumptive basis under the relevant sections, rather than maintaining full books.

Form 15G

declaration to avoid TDS on interest

A self-declaration that your total income for the year will be below the taxable limit, so the bank should not deduct tax from your interest.

Form 15H

senior citizen declaration to avoid TDS

The senior citizens' version of Form 15G: a declaration that the tax on your estimated total income will be nil, so no tax should be deducted from your interest.

Form 10E

relief for salary arrears

The form that supports a claim for relief where salary arrears or advance salary have pushed you into a higher bracket in the year you received them.

Form 12BB

employee investment declaration

The statement you give your employer listing the deductions and exemptions you intend to claim — rent, home loan interest, investments, leave travel — so the right amount of TDS is deducted from your salary.

Form 15CA

declaration for a foreign remittance

The declaration filed before money is remitted to a non-resident, stating the nature of the payment and the tax deducted on it.

Form 49A

PAN application for Indian citizens

The application for a Permanent Account Number by an Indian citizen, and the same form used to request corrections to an existing PAN.

Form 49AA

PAN application for foreign citizens

The PAN application for individuals and entities who are not Indian citizens, including foreign companies and certain investors.

Aadhaar enrolment form

new Aadhaar application

The application for a new Aadhaar number, completed at an enrolment centre where your photograph, fingerprints and iris scan are captured on the spot.

Aadhaar update / correction form

Aadhaar name, address or date of birth change

The request to change details already recorded against your Aadhaar — name, address, date of birth, gender, mobile number or email.

GSTR-1

outward supplies return

The return reporting your outward supplies — invoice-level sales data that flows into your buyers' input tax credit.

GSTR-3B

summary return and tax payment

The summary return where tax is actually paid: outward supplies, input tax credit claimed, and the liability discharged for the period.

GSTR-9

annual GST return

The annual consolidation of the returns you filed during the year, reconciling outward supplies, input tax credit and tax paid.

GST REG-01

GST registration application

The application for GST registration: business details, place of business, bank account, and the authorised signatory, with documents uploaded in support.

EPF Form 19

PF final settlement

The claim to withdraw the full provident fund balance when the account is being closed — typically after leaving employment and not rejoining.

EPF Form 10C

pension withdrawal benefit

The claim relating to the pension portion of your PF — the withdrawal benefit or the scheme certificate, as opposed to the provident fund balance itself.

EPF Form 31

PF partial withdrawal / advance

The claim for a partial withdrawal from your PF while still employed — for specified purposes such as housing, medical treatment, education or marriage.

EPF Form 13

PF transfer on changing jobs

The request to transfer a provident fund balance from a previous employer's account to the current one, rather than withdrawing it.

SPICe+ (INC-32)

company incorporation form

The integrated form that incorporates a company and, in the same filing, reserves the name and applies for PAN, TAN, EPFO and ESIC registration, a bank account and, where applicable, professional tax.

DIR-3 KYC

annual director KYC

The annual confirmation of a director's own details against their Director Identification Number, filed by the individual rather than by the company.

AOC-4

annual filing of financial statements

The filing of a company's financial statements with the Registrar — balance sheet, profit and loss, the auditor's report and the board's report as attachments.

MGT-7 / MGT-7A

annual return

The company's annual return: shareholding, directors, meetings held and changes during the year. MGT-7A is the abridged version for small companies and one-person companies.

Bank KYC update form

re-KYC / periodic KYC

The periodic re-confirmation of your identity and address that banks are required to carry out on existing customers, with fresh proof where anything has changed.

FATCA / CRS declaration

tax residency self-certification

A self-certification of where you are tax resident, so financial institutions can report accounts to the right jurisdiction under the international exchange-of-information arrangements.

Bank nomination form

DA-1 / nomination in a bank account

The form recording who receives the balance in an account, deposit or locker if the holder dies, so the bank can release it without a court process.