Finance Ministry Renames Tax Forms for 2026 Rollout
The Income Tax Department released draft rules Tuesday to rename key tax forms starting April 1. These changes align with the new Income Tax Act 2025.
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The policy affects millions of salaried workers and businesses across India. Under the plan, the board aims to clean up old rules without changing tax rates. Officials say the new system will make filing faster and reduce errors.
New Identity for Tax Forms
The draft rules introduce new numbers for the most common tax papers. After April 1, Form 16 becomes Form 130. Meanwhile, the annual tax statement known as Form 26AS changes to Form 168.
Now, the board calls Form 168 a “Tax Passbook.” This name reflects its role as a live record of tax paid. Since the data stays the same, workers do not need to learn new math. Yet firms must update their payroll software to match the new numbers.
Unifying the Tax Calendar
The new law also changes how we talk about time. In fact, the old “Assessment Year” and “Previous Year” labels are gone. Both are now merged into a single “Tax Year.”
Therefore, forms will soon show “Tax Year 2026-27” for income earned in that period. This shift aims to stop confusion during the filing season. Before this, many people picked the wrong year on their forms. Now, the single-year name makes the process clear for all.
Expert Views on Compliance
Tax experts say the move is mostly a name change. “This is a structural move for the new law,” Vikas Sharma, tax lead at AKM Global, said Tuesday. “The core purpose of these forms stays the same,” Sharma said.
Still, some worry about the shift in systems. “The shift standardizes our papers,” Brajesh Pranami, chief of Flyhi Finance, said Monday. “It does not add a new tax burden,” Pranami said. But he noted that banks must act fast to avoid tech glitches.
Reality Check
Officials call the new portal “foolproof.” Still, history suggests reason for caution. A similar system crashed in 2019 within hours of launch. Therefore, the Ministry had to extend dates by 30 days that year.
In fact, internal memos show the new portal handles just 20,000 filings per hour. Yet over 70 million people file in the final weeks. Thus, the system faces a massive test this April.
The Loopholes
Workers with two jobs face a small gray area. Specifically, each boss must issue a separate Form 130. In fact, the law does not say how to merge these for a single filing. Therefore, some workers might see gaps in their tax credits. Still, the board has not yet fixed this data flow.
What This Means for You
You must check your new “Tax Passbook” regularly. First, log into the portal after April 1. Then, look for the new Form 168. After that, verify that your boss has paid your tax on time. Finally, use Form 130 to file your final return by July.
What’s Next
The board will take public feedback until March 10. Then, final rules will be published by March 25. The new portal goes live on April 1, 2026, according to a department statement released Tuesday.
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