Form 12B is an essential document filled out by an employee who transfers to a new organisation or company. The main purpose of this form is to attain adequate information regarding the past income and employment of the employee.
In addition, it helps verify employment information provided by the employee. Form 12B of the Income Tax Act, Rule 26A, also assists in calculating income tax. It serves as a record of your income through various jobs in a financial year.
With this information in one place, the tax calculation process gets easier and more streamlined. However, accurate filling and filing of Form 12B is crucial.
As a new employee, you need to submit your Form 12B along with supporting documents of investment by March 31st. Filing it accurately can result in quick and hassle-free processing.
As such, Form 12B contains essential information about the prior salary and other deductions of the new employee, which helps the new employer as well. This makes businesses deduct an accurate amount of the TDS from a particular employee’s gross income annually.
Form 12B includes the following content:
Your PAN/Aadhaar, residential status, and address
PAN/TAN of previous employer/employers
Previous salary breakdown (basic salary, HRA, DA, travel leave allowance, etc.)
Tax Deducted at Source (TDS) from the previous salary
Employee Provident Fund (EPF) deductions
Professional tax, if any
Other deductions under the Income Tax Act
You can fill out Form 12B after downloading it from the official website of the Income Tax Department. Here is a step-by-step overview of the steps you can following completing the Form 12B download process:
Step 1: Fill in the name and the address of your previous employment
Step 2: State the duration of your employment
Step 3: Enter total earnings in the final year prior to shifting to the current employment
Step 4: Put in the breakdown of your previous salary (basic salary, LTA, HRA, DA, etc.)
Step 5: Fill in the details regarding provident fund contributions
Step 6: State your investments and other expenses for deduction under Section 80C
Step 7: Cross-check and confirm the details
As you can see, Form 12B of the Income Tax Act, Rule 26A, has numerous advantages for both employers and employees. Even though this form is not mandatory by the government, filling it can be a smart decision.
While filling out Form 12B, you need to state the details regarding your previous income and employment. These details include the name and location of your past organisation, PAN and TAN of the employer, the duration of your employment, total earnings in the previous fiscal year, salary breakdown and more.
You are required to fill out Form 12B when you join another organisation in the middle of the year. You should fill and submit the form before the financial year ends, i.e., on or before 31st March.
In many organisations, the employers provide Form 12B to the employees. You can also download it very conveniently through the official website of the income tax department. You can download this form without any charges.
After the successful submission of Form 12B, the employee verifies the information provided by you in the form. After that, the employee issues you a Form 16.