Quick answer: Form 12BB, the statement in which an employee tells the employer what tax-saving claims to allow, is now Form No. 124 for tax year 2026-27 under the Income-tax Act, 2025. You give it to your employer, not to the tax department, usually as a declaration in April and with proofs between December and February. It is optional: without it, TDS is deducted with no deductions or exemptions. Under the new tax regime there is usually little to declare.
Every year salaried employees are asked twice for the same thing: in April, "declare your investments", and around January, "submit your proofs". Both are the employer collecting the information it needs to deduct the right TDS from your salary, and the legal vehicle for it, Form 12BB, has been renumbered Form 124 from April 2026. This guide covers what the form is, whether you need it under each tax regime, the declaration and proof timeline, what you can claim with which documents (with the new section numbers), how to fill the form, what happens if proofs fall short, and the mistakes that cost employees money. How TDS itself is worked out each month is covered in our guide to TDS on salary.
What is Form 12BB, and what is Form 124?
Form 12BB was the statement of claims an employee gave the employer under rule 26C of the Income-tax Rules, 1962, for TDS under section 192. From 1 April 2026 it is replaced by Form No. 124, a "statement showing particulars of claims by an employee for deduction of tax" under section 392(5)(b) of the Income-tax Act, 2025, read with rule 205 of the Income-tax Rules, 2026 (Income Tax Department FAQ on Form 124).
Its purpose has not changed: it lets your employer take your deductions, exemptions and allowances into account when it works out the tax on your salary for the year and divides it into monthly TDS. Form 12BB still applies to 2025-26 and earlier; Form 124 applies to tax year 2026-27 onwards.
What changed from Form 12BB to Form 124
The substance is the same: the same claims, the same evidence, the same employer-to-employee flow. The visible changes are the legal references (section 392 and rule 205 instead of section 192 and rule 26C), the use of "tax year" instead of "financial year", the new section numbers for each deduction, and a field for the employee's relationship with the landlord in the house rent annexure. If your employer's portal still shows "12BB" for 2026-27, the content should match Form 124; ask HR to update the label.
Form 124, Form 122, Form 123 and Form 130: which is which?
| Form (2026 Rules) | Earlier form | Who gives it to whom | What it does |
|---|---|---|---|
| Form 124 | Form 12BB | Employee to employer | Claims for HRA, LTA, home loan interest and deductions, with evidence |
| Form 122 | Form 12B (and 12BAA) | Employee to new employer | Salary and TDS from a previous employer in the same year |
| Form 123 | Form 12BA | Employer to employee | Statement of perquisites and their value |
| Form 130 | Form 16 | Employer to employee | Annual certificate of salary paid and tax deducted |
So Form 12BB (124) and Form 16 (130) are opposite ends of the same process: the first goes in at the start of the year, the second comes out after it. Our Form 16 and Form 130 guide covers the certificate.
Do you need Form 124? Old regime vs new regime
Form 124 is not mandatory. The Department's FAQ says it is filed only if the employee wants the claims considered; if no claim is made, the employer deducts TDS without allowing any deduction or exemption. Whether it is worth filing depends on your regime:
| New tax regime (default) | Old tax regime | |
|---|---|---|
| Standard deduction | ₹75,000, automatic | ₹50,000, automatic |
| HRA, LTA | Not allowed | Allowed, with proof |
| Home loan interest (self-occupied house) | Not allowed | Up to ₹2 lakh, with proof |
| Investments and insurance (old 80C, 80D etc.) | Not allowed | Allowed within limits, with proof |
| Employer's NPS contribution | Allowed (handled by employer) | Allowed (handled by employer) |
| Need to file Form 124? | Usually no claims to make | Yes, to reduce TDS during the year |
Whatever your regime, tell your employer your choice at the start of the year, because TDS is worked out on it; many employers collect the choice together with the Form 124 declaration. Our old vs new regime guide and the income tax calculator help you choose.
Changed jobs during the year? Form 122
If you joined a new employer part-way through the tax year, give it your salary and TDS from the previous employer in Form 122, with the previous employer's details. The new employer then works out your tax on the whole year's salary, applies the standard deduction and slab benefits once, and deducts the balance; otherwise each employer applies the basic exemption, slab benefits and standard deduction separately, and your TDS falls short. The Department's Form 124 FAQ points job-changers to Form 122 for this. Skipping this often leaves employees who change jobs with tax to pay when they file their return.
Declaration and proof submission: the yearly timeline
- April: regime choice and declaration. Tell your employer your tax regime and, if you are in the old regime, declare the amounts you expect to claim for the year: rent, investments, insurance, home loan interest.
- April to November: TDS on declared amounts. The employer spreads the estimated tax over the remaining months using your declaration, without asking for proof yet.
- December to February: proof submission. The employer opens a window, usually in December or January, for evidence of the claims. Dates are set by each employer, not by law.
- February and March: final calculation. Claims without proof are dropped, the year's tax is recalculated, and any shortfall is deducted from the last salaries of the year.
- By 15 June: Form 130. The employer issues the annual certificate showing the deductions allowed, which you use for your return.
The proof deadline exists because the employer must report each employee's salary, exemptions and deductions in the fourth-quarter TDS statement, Form 138, by 31 May (Form 138 FAQ); our Form 138 guide explains that statement. Make declared investments before your employer's proof deadline; anything paid after it cannot be proved in time, so TDS rises in February and March.
What you can claim, and the proofs needed (old regime)
Section numbers changed with the Income-tax Act, 2025, but the limits did not. The main claims made through Form 124:
| Claim | Section (2025 Act, earlier) | Limit | Proof usually needed |
|---|---|---|---|
| House rent allowance | Section 11 and its schedule (earlier 10(13A)) | Formula-based | Rent receipts or agreement; landlord's name, address and PAN if rent exceeds ₹1 lakh a year; relationship with landlord |
| Leave travel allowance | Section 11 and its schedule (earlier 10(5)) | Actual fare, within the rules | Tickets, boarding passes or invoices |
| Home loan interest (self-occupied) | Section 22 (earlier 24(b)) | ₹2 lakh | Lender's certificate of interest; copy of the loan agreement; lender's details |
| PPF, ELSS, life insurance, tuition fees, home loan principal, EPF/VPF | Section 123 (earlier 80C) | ₹1.5 lakh in total | Statements, receipts or premium certificates (EPF from payroll needs none) |
| Additional NPS contribution | Section 124(3) (earlier 80CCD(1B)); not to be confused with Form 124 | ₹50,000 | NPS contribution statement |
| Health insurance and preventive check-ups | Section 126 (earlier 80D) | ₹25,000; ₹50,000 for senior citizens | Premium receipts |
| Education loan interest | Section 129 (earlier 80E) | Interest paid | Lender's interest certificate |
| Donations | Section 133 (earlier 80G) | 50% or 100% of the donation, with or without a qualifying limit, depending on the fund | Donation receipt with the donee's details |
The HRA exemption itself is worked out by the usual formula; the HRA exemption calculator applies the 2026 city list. Form 124's house rent section also asks for your relationship with the landlord, so rent paid to a parent or relative must be genuine and documented.
How to fill Form 124
The form has two parts. Part A is your details: name, address, PAN and the tax year. Part B lists the claims, with annexures for the evidence: house rent (with landlord details), leave travel, interest on a housing loan (with lender details), and deductions for investments and expenditure, each with the amount. You sign the verification that the information is true. The form can be given to your employer electronically or on paper and is not uploaded separately on the income tax portal.
Many employers do not hand out a blank Form 124; they collect the same information through their payroll or HR portal, which produces the form. What matters is that the amounts you declare match the proofs you will be able to give later.
Tips for the April declaration
- Declare what you will actually pay or invest, not the maximum limits; over-declaring only means a TDS shock in March.
- Include amounts already deducted through payroll, such as EPF, only if your employer asks; most payroll systems add them automatically.
- If your rent, loan or insurance changes during the year, update the declaration so monthly TDS follows.
Form 12BB and Form 124 format: where to get it
The official format can be downloaded from the Income Tax Department's website: Form 124 for tax year 2026-27, and Form 12BB for 2025-26 and earlier years. In practice many employers collect the same details through their HR or payroll portal, which generates the form from what you enter.
What employers check, and what happens if proofs fall short
Employers check that each claim is backed by evidence for the tax year, that HRA claims include landlord PAN where rent exceeds ₹1 lakh, that home loan interest is supported by the lender's certificate, and that totals stay within the limits. Where a proof is missing, the claim is not allowed for TDS, and the tax for the whole year is recalculated. Because only a few months remain, the extra TDS can be large in February and March.
A claim the employer did not allow is not lost: if the investment or expense is genuine and eligible, you can claim it in your income tax return and receive any excess TDS as a refund. Equally, a claim the employer allowed without proper evidence can be questioned in your assessment, so keep the documents for several years.
Worked example: proofs short by ₹50,000
Priya works in Bengaluru under the old regime on a gross salary of ₹12 lakh a year, with basic of ₹4.8 lakh and HRA of ₹2.4 lakh. She pays rent of ₹25,000 a month. In April she declares rent, ₹1.5 lakh under section 123 and ₹25,000 of health insurance.
| On declaration | On proofs | |
|---|---|---|
| Gross salary | 12,00,000 | 12,00,000 |
| Less HRA exemption (least of HRA ₹2,40,000, rent less 10% of basic ₹2,52,000, 50% of basic ₹2,40,000) | 2,40,000 | 2,40,000 |
| Less standard deduction and professional tax | 52,500 | 52,500 |
| Less section 123 (old 80C) | 1,50,000 | 1,00,000 |
| Less section 126 (old 80D) | 25,000 | 25,000 |
| Taxable income | 7,32,500 | 7,82,500 |
| Tax including 4% cess | 61,360 | 71,760 |
On her declaration, TDS is about ₹5,113 a month, so ₹51,130 is deducted from April to January. In January she can prove only ₹1 lakh of section 123 investments. Her tax for the year rises by ₹10,400, and the ₹20,630 still due is recovered from February and March salary, about ₹10,315 a month, double her usual TDS. If she made the other ₹50,000 of investments but missed the proof window, she can claim them in her return and get the ₹10,400 back as a refund. (Old-regime slabs used: nil up to ₹2.5 lakh, 5% to ₹5 lakh, 20% to ₹10 lakh.)
For employers: running the proof window
- Announce the window and the last date early, with a checklist of acceptable proofs for each claim.
- Accept digital copies through the payroll portal, and record who verified each claim.
- Reject claims without landlord PAN where rent exceeds ₹1 lakh, and claims above the statutory limits.
- Recalculate tax as soon as proofs are verified, so the extra deduction can be spread over February and March rather than taken in one month.
- Keep declarations and proofs for each employee, because they support the figures reported in Form 138 and Form 130.
Common mistakes
- Not stating the regime: the employer then applies the default new regime, and old-regime claims are ignored.
- Missing landlord PAN where rent exceeds ₹1 lakh a year.
- Fake or inflated rent receipts: HRA claims carry the landlord's PAN and can be checked, and a wrong claim can bring tax, interest and penalty in your assessment.
- Ignoring a previous employer: not declaring earlier salary in Form 122, so too little tax is deducted.
- Counting EPF twice: adding the payroll EPF again in the section 123 declaration.
- Leaving proofs to the last day: missing the employer's window means the claim waits for your return.
Related reading: HRA exemption calculation · Standard deduction · Tax-free salary allowances · TDS on salary calculator
Run declarations and proofs smoothly every year. The Practical Payroll Management e-Book covers TDS on salary, regime choice, declarations, proof verification and year-end certificates with worked examples.
Frequently asked questions
Is Form 12BB (now Form 124) mandatory?
No. You submit it only if you want your employer to allow deductions or exemptions, such as HRA, LTA, home loan interest or old-regime investments, while working out monthly TDS. If you do not, the employer deducts TDS without allowing any of those benefits, and you can still claim eligible deductions in your income tax return.
Is Form 12BB required in the new tax regime?
Usually there is little to declare. The new regime does not allow HRA, LTA, home loan interest on a self-occupied house or most investment deductions, and the ₹75,000 standard deduction is applied automatically. You should still tell your employer which regime you choose, and declare any income from a previous employer in the same year.
What happens if I do not submit proofs?
Your employer will treat the unproved claims as not made and recalculate your tax for the year, usually recovering the shortfall from the remaining months' salary, often in February and March. If you did make the investments, you can still claim them in your income tax return and get a refund.
Is Form 12BB the same as Form 16?
No. Form 12BB, now Form 124, goes from the employee to the employer at the start of the process, listing the claims. Form 16, now Form 130, goes from the employer to the employee after the year, certifying the salary paid and the tax deducted.
Do I need to upload Form 124 on the income tax portal?
No. The Income Tax Department's FAQ says Form 124 is given to the employer, electronically or on paper, and is not uploaded separately on the income tax portal. Keep a copy with your proofs for your return.
When is the landlord's PAN required for HRA?
When the rent you pay is more than ₹1,00,000 in the year, which is about ₹8,334 a month. Form 124 also asks for the landlord's name and address, and your relationship with the landlord if any; Aadhaar is not required unless your employer asks for it.
Position as of 14 November 2026. Based on the Income-tax Act, 2025, the Income-tax Rules, 2026 and the Income Tax Department's Form 124 FAQ. Section numbers follow the 2025 Act; limits are those in force for tax year 2026-27. Proof dates are set by each employer. General information, not legal or tax advice.