18/02/2026
1st APRIL 2026 CHANGE IN INCOME TAX DEPARTMENT.
The Indian Income Tax Department is renumbering several commonly used tax forms effective April 1, 2026, as part of the transition to the Income-tax Act, 2025. These changes, currently in the draft stage, are administrative and do not alter tax calculation or payment rules.
Key Renumbered Forms
Under the Draft Income-tax Rules, 2026, many familiar documents will receive new designations:
Form 16 (TDS certificate for salary) will become Form 130.
Form 26AS (Tax credit statement/Tax passbook) will become Form 168.
Form 49A (PAN application) will become Form 93.
Form 13 (Lower deduction application) will be renumbered under the new framework.
Forms 15G and 15H will be consolidated into a simplified Form 121.
Form 16A (TDS certificate for non-salary income) will become Form 131.
The Economic Times
The Economic Times
+4
Changes for Businesses and Professionals
The renumbering also extends to specialized audit and compliance forms:
Tax Audit Reports: Forms 3CA, 3CB, and 3CD will be consolidated into a single Form 26.
Transfer Pricing: Audit reports will shift from Form 3CEB to Form 48.
MAT Certification: Companies subject to Minimum Alternate Tax will file Form 66, replacing Form 29B.
TDS Returns:
Form 24Q (Salary) → Form 138.
Form 26Q (Resident payments) → Form 140.
Form 27Q (Non-resident payments) → Form 144.
The Economic Times
The Economic Times
+2
Strategic Improvements
Unified Terminology: The 2025 Act merges "Previous Year" and "Assessment Year" into a single term, "Tax Year".
Asset Disclosure: The threshold for reporting detailed assets and liabilities (Schedule AL) will increase from ₹50 lakh to ₹1 crore of gross income.
Smart Forms: New forms will be system-driven, featuring enhanced auto-prefilling from sources like GST and AIS to reduce manual errors.
Facebook
Facebook
+2
Transition Period
Old form numbers will continue to be used for proceedings and assessments related to tax years beginning before April 1, 2026. Taxpayers should continue to use current forms on the Income Tax Department e-Filing Portal for the 2025–26 financial year.
Utpal Chaudhary & Company
Cell Number: 9820930051
