AIS and TIS are two acronyms that sound intimidating but represent a simple idea: the tax department already has a record of your financial year, and it compares your return against it.
AIS is the Annual Information Statement. TIS is the Taxpayer Information Summary. Both come from the Income Tax Department, not from your bank, and both are worth reading before you file.
What is AIS (Annual Information Statement)?
AIS is the department's compilation of everything that has been reported about you during the year by third parties. Banks, TDS deductors, mutual funds, registrars, the GST system and others file information under your PAN, and AIS is where it all lands.
For a freelancer with foreign clients, AIS typically shows:
- TDS deducted by Indian clients
- Interest on savings and deposits
- GST turnover, if you are registered
- Foreign remittance information reported by your bank
- High-value transactions such as property purchases or large deposits
It does not show every deposit and withdrawal, and it does not show balances. It shows what reporters are required to report.
What is TIS (Taxpayer Information Summary)?
TIS is the same data, summarised. For each category (interest, TDS, remittances) it shows the value reported and a processed value after any feedback you have given. It is the quick-read version. AIS is the line-by-line version.
Why AIS and TIS matter
The department's processing system checks your return against AIS. Where your return says less than AIS shows, an intimation or a notice follows.
Say your bank reported ₹50 lakh of foreign inward remittances against your PAN. Your ITR declares ₹35 lakh of gross receipts. The system flags a ₹15 lakh gap, and you receive a notice on the portal asking you to reconcile it.
Now you gather invoices and FIRAs, explain the difference (or discover the mistake), and respond online by the deadline. It is manageable if your documents are in order, and slow if they are not.
How to read your AIS
- Log in at incometax.gov.in.
- Go to Services, then Annual Information Statement.
- Download AIS as PDF or JSON. Download TIS alongside it.
- Go through each category and match it to your own records.
How to prevent an AIS mismatch
Tally foreign remittances against FIRAs
Every remittance entry in AIS should correspond to a FIRA and an invoice. The INR credit on the FIRA is the number to declare.
Check TDS
Every Indian client who deducted should appear with the correct amount. If someone deducted but is missing, they have not filed, and you cannot claim that credit yet.
Match GST turnover
If you are registered, AIS shows the turnover from your GST returns. It should line up with your declared receipts.
Timing
Payment credited on 2 April belongs to the next financial year even if you invoiced it in March. Note these so you can explain them.
Real reconciliation example
Your AIS shows three foreign remittance entries:
- January: ₹4,50,000 (invoice for $5,000 at an illustrative ₹90)
- February: ₹9,00,000 (invoice for $10,000)
- March: ₹4,50,000 (invoice for $5,000)
Total reported: ₹18,00,000
Your FIRAs: three, totalling ₹18,00,000. Your ITR-4: gross receipts ₹18,00,000, presumptive income ₹9,00,000.
The numbers agree in three places. There is nothing to ask.
What to do if AIS is wrong
AIS has a feedback option on every entry. If a client reported a TDS amount that does not match, or a remittance is duplicated, or an entry belongs to someone else, select the entry, choose the relevant feedback (information is not correct, relates to another PAN, duplicate, and so on), and submit. The processed value in TIS updates once feedback is accepted. Do this before you file, not after a notice.
Common AIS mistakes
- Ignoring small gaps: a ₹50,000 difference from timing still gets flagged. Reconcile it and keep the explanation ready.
- A domestic payment with no invoice: an Indian client transfers ₹2 lakh to your account and you never invoiced it. If it reaches AIS through their TDS filing or a high-value report, you need to show what it was.
- Forgetting a second bank account: AIS aggregates every account under your PAN. Reconcile all of them.
- Claiming TDS that is not in 26AS: the certificate from the client is not enough. The credit has to be in the department's records.
How AIS helps you when the documents match
AIS is not an adversary. When your foreign remittances, FIRAs, invoices and declared receipts agree, AIS is the department's own confirmation that your income is what you said it was. Any later question about a payment is answered by pointing at the same three documents.
When to review AIS and TIS
- Before filing, every year, without exception
- After any notice, to see what triggered it
- Quarterly if you have many clients, so the year-end check is short
Takeaway: AIS is your early warning
Download AIS and TIS before you file. Match foreign remittances to FIRAs, TDS to 26AS, GST turnover to receipts. Give feedback on anything wrong. If it all lines up, your return will process without a question.
How DashX helps with the reconciliation
DashX operates through RBI-authorised AD Category I banks (JP Morgan and HDFC) and PA-CB licensed partners. Every foreign payment settles into your own Indian bank account as an inward remittance with a FIRA, which is exactly what you are matching AIS against.
- One FIRA per payment, with the INR credit that goes into gross receipts
- Purpose code on each FIRA so the payment is described the same way everywhere
- Payment history and export documents downloadable from one dashboard
DashX doesn't give tax advice or file your return. The reconciliation is for you and your CA. We make sure the FIRA side of it is complete and documented. Try DashX.
For filing context, see our ITR-4 guide and FIRA guide.
