The Central board of Direct Taxes (CBDT)  has expanded scope information included in Form 26AS to include more high-value financial transactions and additional information. As per the rules reformed by the taxman, the Form 26AS will include details of mutual fund purchases, foreign remittances, as well as information in income tax returns of other taxpayers.

The new Form 26AS will now have information about foreign remittances made by the taxpayer, which the authorised dealer will report in Form 15CC. It will also include information about off-market transactions reported by Depository/Registrar and Transfer Agent (RTA), details of mutual fund purchases and dividends received from mutual funds reported by RTA.

The new Form 26AS shall include information on money sent abroad, details of salary along with TDS deduction claimed by the employee, information in ITRs of other taxpayers, interest on refund for the previous financial year, if the taxpayer gets PAN after submitting Form 61, then it has to be given, off market (not settled) transactions, mutual fund dividend details and information regarding purchase of mutual funds.

Form 26AS is an annual consolidated tax statement that can be accessed from the income-tax website by taxpayers using their Permanent Account Number (PAN).

The CBDT authorized “Director General of Income-tax (Systems) to upload information in her/his possession, in the Annual Information Statement in Form 26AS in the electronic filing account registered by the assessee in designated portal, within three months from the end of the month in which the information is received by her/him.” The Budget 2020-21 had introduced a new Section 285BB in the Income Tax Act, to revamp Form 26AS to an ‘Annual Information Statement’ which apart from TDS/ TCS details, would contain comprehensive information of specified financial transactions, payment of taxes, demand/ refund and pending/completed proceedings undertaken by a taxpayer in a particular financial year that has to be mentioned in income tax returns.

This new reporting in Form 26AS will help taxpayers and tax authorities in assessing a taxpayer’s profile and bring better flow of information between taxpayer and the tax authorities.