What your CA actually needs in March

1 · Salary

• Form 16 from every employer you had during the yearThe taxable salary figure and the TDS already deducted on it.
• March payslip, and payslips either side of a job changeCatches what Form 16 flattens, and stops a job change losing a month.

2 · Side income

• Side-income list for the year: every invoice or payment, with dates and clientsThis is your gross receipts figure. Keep it apart from salary credits, which are already taxed.
• Bank statements for all accounts, 1 April to 31 MarchYour CA reconciles what you declared against what actually landed.
• Form 26AS and AIS downloaded from the income-tax portalShows the TDS already deposited against your PAN. Guessing this costs refunds.
• TDS certificates (Form 16A) from anyone who deducted taxCross-checks 26AS; mismatches are the most common filing delay.

3 · Which basis the side income sits on

Presumptive means no expense records are needed for tax. Regular books means every expense needs paper.

• Decide with your CA: presumptive (44ADA, now section 58) or regular booksIt changes what you gather, and it changes your advance-tax dates.
• Categorised expense list with a receipt or invoice behind each entryEvery claimed expense needs paper behind it if it is ever questioned.
• Invoices for big purchases: laptop, camera, equipment, furnitureCapital assets are claimed through depreciation, not as one-shot expenses.
• Rent agreement and payment proof, if you claim workspace rentCommonly asked for in scrutiny, and easy to have ready.

4 · Deductions

Only worth gathering if you might file under the old regime. Everyone still says 80C and 80D; the new Act calls them sections 123 and 126.

• 80C proofs: PPF, ELSS, LIC premiums, principal repaymentsUp to 1.5L off taxable income, but only with proofs.
• 80D health-insurance premium receiptsYours and your parents' policies both count, with separate limits.
• NPS contribution statement (80CCD(1B))An extra 50k deduction that gets missed every year.

5 · The rest

• Advance-tax challans for instalments paid during the yearSo payments are credited against this year's liability, not stranded.
• Last year's return and computationCarried-forward losses and consistency checks.
• PAN, Aadhaar, and pre-validated bank details for the refundRefunds only land in a pre-validated account.