You open your tax statement and the salary TDS is not there. Your payslips show tax deducted every month. Your Form 16 shows a figure. But the credit page shows nothing, or shows it against someone else's name.

The usual cause is a PAN typed wrongly in the employer's TDS statement. This article explains what the law says, who can fix it, and what you can do while the fix is pending.

## The reader's situation: tax was cut, credit did not arrive

Two different problems look the same on screen.

1. **Your employer quoted a wrong PAN.** The tax was paid to the government, but under a PAN that is not yours. The credit lands in a stranger's account, or nowhere.
2. **You gave your employer a wrong or invalid PAN.** The employer then followed the "no valid PAN" rule, which is harsher.

Find out which one you have before you do anything else. Compare the PAN on your payslip, your Form 16 and your PAN card, letter by letter.

## What the law says about credit for TDS

A word on which Act applies. For salary paid up to 31 March 2026 (FY 2025-26, assessment year 2026-27), the Income-tax Act, 1961 governs. The provisions on credit, TDS statements, TAN and PAN are sections 199, 200, 203A and 206AA of that Act, with rule 37BA of the Income-tax Rules, 1962 for credit. The Income-tax Act, 2025 applies from tax year 2026-27 onwards. The CBDT's comparison table places these provisions at sections 390 and 397 of the 2025 Act, and rule 37BA at rule 203 of the Income-tax Rules, 2026.

The wording quoted below is from the 2025 Act and the 2026 Rules. For FY 2025-26 salary, the 1961 Act provisions named above govern credit, so ask your CA to confirm the 1961 Act wording before you rely on a fine point.

**Tax deducted is treated as your payment.** Tax deducted at source and paid to the Central Government is "treated as payment of tax on behalf of the person from whose income such tax has been deducted" (s.390(5), Income-tax Act 2025). The right to credit therefore belongs to you, the employee, even if the paperwork is wrong.

**Credit follows the deductor's information.** The Income-tax Rules, 2026 say credit "shall be given, on the basis of information relating to deduction or collection of tax furnished by the deductor" to the tax authority. It goes "to the person to whom payment has been made or whose account has been credited" (rule 203(1)(a), Income-tax Rules 2026). So the department gives credit to whichever PAN the employer reported.

**Credit is also tied to your return.** Credit is granted on that deductor information "and the information in the return of income in respect of the claim for the credit, subject to verification" under the Board's risk management strategy (rule 203(8), Income-tax Rules 2026). A claim in your return that does not match the department's records can be held for verification.

**The tax year of credit.** Credit is given for the tax year for which the income is assessable (rule 203(5), Income-tax Rules 2026).

## Who can fix the wrong PAN: only the employer

The employer is the deductor. The employer delivers the TDS statement, after paying the tax to the government (s.397(3)(a) and (b), Income-tax Act 2025).

The law allows the deductor to fix mistakes. A person who delivered such a statement "may correct any discrepancy or update the information furnished" by delivering a correction statement (s.397(3)(f), Income-tax Act 2025). The window is "within two years from the end of the tax year in which such statement is required to be delivered under the said clauses or under section 200 of the Income-tax Act, 1961". So the sub-section expressly reaches statements that fell due under section 200 of the 1961 Act, which is the section for FY 2025-26 salary statements. How the two years are counted for a particular quarter is a point for your CA to confirm, because the 1961 Act speaks of a previous year and the 2025 Act of a tax year.

Note what this means. You cannot file the correction yourself. You cannot edit your own Form 26AS or AIS credit. Only the deductor can submit a corrected statement with the right PAN.

The employer must also give you a certificate of tax deducted. Under the 1961 Act, every person deducting tax must furnish to the payee "a certificate to the effect that tax has been deducted", showing the amount and rate (s.203(1), Income-tax Act 1961, as amended by the Finance Act 2026). Under the 2026 Rules, an employer issues that certificate in Form No. 130 (rule 215, Income-tax Rules 2026). The certificate goes "to the person in whose name credit is shown" in the deductor's information (rule 203(4), Income-tax Rules 2026). If your employer reported a wrong PAN, your Form 16 may show your correct PAN while the statement behind it carries a different one. That mismatch is the thing to correct.

## The deadline clock

- **The employer's correction window:** two years from the end of the tax year in which the statement was due (s.397(3)(f), Income-tax Act 2025). The clock is real. Do not wait until the last month.
- **Your own return:** a return for AY 2026-27 under the 1961 Act is due on the date that applies to you. For non-audit salaried individuals that is the date in s.139(1) of the 1961 Act. A belated return can be filed "before three months prior to the end of the relevant assessment year or before the completion of the assessment, whichever is earlier", which is 31 December for AY 2026-27 where assessment is not completed sooner (s.139(4), Income-tax Act 1961, as amended by the Finance Act 2026). A revised return can be filed, subject to section 234-I, "at any time before the end of the relevant assessment year or before the completion of the assessment, whichever is earlier" (s.139(5), Income-tax Act 1961, as substituted by Act 4 of 2026).
- **Why this matters:** if the correction arrives after you filed, you can revise your return to align with it.

## Step by step

1. **Check the PAN.** Compare your PAN card, payslips, Form 16 and the credit page letter by letter. Note the month where the credit breaks.
2. **Write to the employer's payroll or accounts team.** Give the correct PAN, the TAN of the employer if you have it, the months affected and the amount deducted. Attach a copy of your PAN card and your payslips.
3. **Ask for a correction statement.** Use these words: "Please file a correction TDS statement correcting my PAN." Ask for the acknowledgement or token number once filed. Remind them that a corrected statement is allowed within two years (s.397(3)(f), Income-tax Act 2025).
4. **Ask for a corrected certificate** (Form No. 130 from tax year 2026-27 under the 2026 Rules; ask the employer which form applies to FY 2025-26) showing your correct PAN, if the earlier one carried the wrong figure (rule 215, Income-tax Rules 2026).
5. **Re-check your credit** a few days after the employer confirms filing. Look at Form 26AS and AIS again. Processing is not instant.
6. **File your return on the correct basis.** Claim the tax that the corrected record shows. If the credit has not appeared by your due date, speak to a CA before you file. The claim must match the department's records (rule 203(8), Income-tax Rules 2026), and a claim that does not match may be held for verification.
7. **If you already filed**, revise the return after the credit appears (s.139(5), Income-tax Act 1961, as substituted by Act 4 of 2026).

## If you gave the wrong or invalid PAN yourself

Everyone entitled to receive a payment on which tax is deducted "shall furnish his valid Permanent Account Number" to the person deducting the tax (s.397(2)(a), Income-tax Act 2025). If you do not, tax is deducted at the higher of the rate in the relevant provision, the rate in force, or 20% in cases not specially listed (s.397(2)(b)(i), Income-tax Act 2025). The CBDT mapping places section 206AA of the 1961 Act at section 397 of the 2025 Act; for FY 2025-26 salary, ask your CA which version applies to your facts.

Two more consequences follow from a missing or invalid PAN. A declaration without a valid PAN becomes invalid, and the deductor must then deduct at those higher rates (s.397(2)(f) and (g), Income-tax Act 2025).

If this was your slip, give your employer the correct PAN in writing straight away. Ask whether the excess tax already deducted can be corrected. Whether any excess can come back to you through the return is a point to settle with your CA on your facts.

## What not to do

- **Do not claim credit you cannot see.** Do not enter the Form 16 amount in your return if the department's record shows nothing, without a note to your CA. The return claim is checked against the record (rule 203(8), Income-tax Rules 2026).
- **Do not ask a stranger to "share" the credit.** The credit sits against whichever PAN the deductor reported. Only a corrected statement moves it.
- **Do not apply for a second PAN.** A person who already has a PAN "cannot apply, obtain or possess another Permanent Account Number" (s.262(8), Income-tax Act 2025). If you suspect a duplicate PAN, take it to a CA.
- **Do not file the correction yourself through your own login.** You are not the deductor.
- **Do not wait for the two-year window to end.** Employers' staff move on, and old payroll records are harder to rebuild.

## What to do now

- **Next step:** compare PAN card, payslips, Form 16 and the credit page, then write to the employer asking for a correction statement with the correct PAN (s.397(3)(f), Income-tax Act 2025).
- **Deadline:** the employer's correction window is two years from the end of the tax year in which the statement was due (s.397(3)(f), Income-tax Act 2025). Your own return follows the due date that applies to you; a belated return runs to three months before the end of the assessment year, 31 December for AY 2026-27, or earlier completion of assessment (s.139(4), Income-tax Act 1961, as amended by the Finance Act 2026).
- **Consequence of doing nothing:** credit stays against the wrong PAN, and a claim in your return that does not match the record can be held for verification (rule 203(8), Income-tax Rules 2026).

Have a CA review your facts before you act or file.

## FAQs

**Q1. The tax is on my payslip. Why is it not in my credit statement?**
Credit is given on the information the deductor furnishes to the tax authority (rule 203(1), Income-tax Rules 2026). If the employer did not report it under your PAN, or reported it late, it will not show against you.

**Q2. Can I correct the PAN on the TDS statement myself?**
No. The statement is delivered by the person who deducted the tax, and only that person can deliver a correction statement (s.397(3)(b) and (f), Income-tax Act 2025).

**Q3. How long does my employer have to correct it?**
Two years from the end of the tax year in which the statement was required to be delivered (s.397(3)(f), Income-tax Act 2025).

**Q4. Is the tax lost if the employer never corrects it?**
The tax counts as paid on your behalf (s.390(5), Income-tax Act 2025). But credit is given on the deductor's information (rule 203(1), Income-tax Rules 2026). So an uncorrected statement leaves you with a difficult claim. Take it to a CA at that stage.

**Q5. Does this apply to TDS on things other than salary?**
The same credit rule covers any deductor and deductee, such as a bank or a tenant (rule 203(1), Income-tax Rules 2026). The correction route is also the deductor's. Salary is simply the commonest case.

**Q6. My employer reported the tax under my father's PAN by mistake. Can my father give me the credit?**
Rule 203(2) and (3) of the Income-tax Rules 2026 deal with a declaration filed by the deductee with the deductor, naming another person's PAN. That is a different situation from a data-entry error. For a data-entry error, the employer's correction statement is the clean fix. Speak to a CA before you rely on any other route.

Canonical: https://www.harunraaj.com/blog/tds-wrong-pan-credit-missing