ITR Filing Guide for Salaried Taxpayers: Documents, Form and Deadlines

Short answer: for most salaried employees, filing means four things — reconcile Form 16 with AIS and Form 26AS, pick the right regime by computation, file on the correct form (usually ITR-1 or ITR-2) by the due date, and e-verify within 30 days. Everything below is the detail behind those four steps.

On this page

• Do you have to file at all?

• Start with Form 16

• Choosing the regime

• Picking the right ITR form

• Documents to keep ready

• Deadlines and verification

• Mistakes that cost salaried filers most

• Points that need professional confirmation

• FAQs

Do you have to file at all?

Filing is required where total income, before Chapter VI-A deductions, exceeds the basic exemption limit, and in a number of specified situations such as holding foreign assets, high-value deposits or large expenditure on foreign travel or electricity. Even where it is not mandatory, a return is the only way to claim a refund of excess TDS.

Start with Form 16

Form 16 summarises salary paid, exemptions allowed, deductions considered and TDS deducted. Check Part A against Form 26AS for the TDS figures and Part B against your own salary records. Then reconcile with the Annual Information Statement, which also captures interest, dividends and securities transactions your employer never sees.

Choosing the regime

• The new regime under Section 115BAC is the default; the old regime has to be opted for in the return.

• Standard deduction on salary is Rs 75,000 under the new regime and Rs 50,000 under the old regime.

• A salaried taxpayer with no business or professional income can choose afresh each year, in the return, provided it is filed within the due date under Section 139(1). If you also have business or professional income, the choice is governed by Form 10-IEA and the switching restrictions that go with it.

• The choice is arithmetic, not preference — compute both. See Old vs New Tax Regime, or have it planned properly through Tax Planning & Advisory.

Picking the right ITR form

Form eligibility is notified afresh for each assessment year, so there is no permanent rule that fits every salaried taxpayer. The conditions below are those applicable to AY 2026-27 (FY 2025-26); check the forms and instructions notified for the year you are actually filing.

• ITR-1 (Sahaj): resident and ordinarily resident individual, total income up to Rs 50 lakh, from salary or pension, one house property and other sources — and, from AY 2025-26, long-term capital gains under Section 112A within the Rs 1.25 lakh exemption, where there is no loss to carry forward under that head.

• ITR-2: capital gains beyond that, more than one house property, non-resident or RNOR status, foreign income or foreign assets, ESOPs in an unlisted company, directorship in a company, agricultural income above Rs 5,000, losses to be carried forward, or total income above Rs 50 lakh.

• ITR-3: where there is business or professional income, including derivative trading, alongside salary.

A single item outside the ITR-1 conditions — a second property, an unlisted shareholding, a directorship, a carried-forward loss — takes a salaried taxpayer to ITR-2 even where income is well below Rs 50 lakh. Filing on the wrong form can render the return defective under Section 139(9).

Documents to keep ready

• Form 16 from every employer during the year

• Form 26AS, AIS and TIS

• Bank and post office interest certificates

• Capital gains statement from your broker or fund registrar

• Rent receipts and the landlord's PAN where HRA exemption is claimed

• Housing loan interest and principal certificate

• Section 80C and 80D payment proofs, if you are on the old regime

• Pre-validated bank account details for the refund

Deadlines and verification

• For a salaried taxpayer with no audit requirement, the due date under Section 139(1) is 31 July following the end of the financial year — but that is category-specific, and the CBDT has extended it in several recent years. Where the taxpayer also has income from an entity whose accounts are audited, a later date can apply. Confirm the date notified for your category in the year you are filing.

• Any self-assessment tax payable is due before filing; interest under Sections 234A, 234B and 234C runs regardless of an extension of the filing date.

• Belated or revised returns can generally be filed up to 31 December of the assessment year, with a late fee under Section 234F.

• E-verify within 30 days of filing. An unverified return is treated as never filed.

Mistakes that cost salaried filers most

• Not reporting fixed deposit or savings interest because TDS was already deducted

• Claiming HRA without rent actually paid or supporting evidence

• Missing Form 16 from a previous employer after a job change

• Choosing the regime out of habit instead of computing both

• Submitting the return and forgetting to verify it

The full list, with the check that prevents each one, is in 7 common ITR filing mistakes.

Points that need professional confirmation

Verification note for review: the due date in force for your category in the year being filed, the ITR form eligibility notified for that assessment year, and the treatment of any employer-specific allowance or perquisite should each be confirmed against current CBDT notifications for your own facts. The Income-tax Act, 2025 also renumbers many of the provisions cited here for later years.

Have it filed under review

If your return involves more than salary — capital gains, a second property, ESOPs or foreign income — our chartered accountants can handle it end to end: Income Tax Return filing.