Freelancers usually file from books, invoices and bank statements, while the tax portal receives data from deductors, banks, payment gateways and other reporting entities. The result: AIS may not match books rupee-for-rupee — and that is exactly why reconciliation is required.
AIS may show TDS-reported gross receipts, interest, securities transactions, foreign remittances or other reported data. Books may show invoices net of discounts, GST, reversals, credit notes or timing differences. The job is to bridge the two, not blindly copy one into the other.
| AIS item | Books item to compare | Control note |
|---|---|---|
| TDS by client | Client invoice ledger and Form 26AS. | Check gross receipt and tax credit. |
| Bank interest | Interest income ledger. | Include even if no TDS was deducted. |
| Foreign receipts/remittances | FIRC/bank advice/invoice. | Check exchange rate and nature of receipt. |
| Securities/capital market data | Broker statement. | Do not mix business receipts with capital gains. |
| GST turnover | GSTR data and sales ledger. | Income-tax and GST turnover may have timing/classification differences. |
Do not change books merely because AIS reports a wrong, duplicate or another-person transaction. Submit feedback where appropriate and keep evidence. Conversely, if AIS reveals income missed from books, correct the books and tax computation.
This Finin2min article is drafted only from official/government source material. Re-check the live source before publishing if the law, form, threshold, section mapping or portal workflow has been updated.