To submit investment proof to your employer, upload the receipts, statements and certificates for every claim you declared in April (rent, LTA tickets, home-loan interest certificate, section 123 investments, health insurance and NPS) on your company's payroll portal before HR's cut-off, usually in January or February. For tax year 2026-27 the declaration that used to be Form 12BB is Form No. 124 under the Income-tax Rules, 2026. If you are in the new regime, which is the default, you have almost nothing to prove.
Below: what the form is now called, which proof goes with which claim, what a missed deadline costs in rupees, and how to fix it in your return.
What replaced Form 12BB in tax year 2026-27?
The Income-tax Act, 2025 came into force on 1 April 2026, so tax year 2026-27 is the first year under it. The old Rule 26C and Form 12BB have been replaced by Rule 205 and Form No. 124 of the Income-tax Rules, 2026. The department's 2026 forms list describes Form 124 as the "statement showing particulars of claims by an employee" for salary TDS under section 392(5)(b).
Section 392(5)(b) of the new Act is the reason HR asks at all. It says your employer must obtain "the evidence or proof or particulars" of your claims before it uses them to work out TDS. No proof, no deduction in the payroll calculation.
Two related forms changed number too:
- Form 122 (formerly Form 12B): details of salary from a previous employer in the same tax year. You need this in both regimes if you changed jobs.
- Form 130 (formerly Form 16): the TDS certificate your employer issues after the year ends. It shows which of your claims were accepted.
Most companies collect all this through a payroll portal rather than a paper form. The portal is simply Form 124 in digital form.
Do you need to submit proofs in the new regime?
Mostly no. Section 202(2) of the Act computes new-regime income without HRA, LTA, home-loan interest on a self-occupied house, and all of Chapter VIII except a few sections. So rent receipts, ELSS statements and health insurance premiums do nothing for your TDS in the new regime.
What still applies in the new regime:
- Standard deduction of ₹75,000 (section 19). Automatic, no proof.
- Employer's contribution to NPS, section 124(1) (formerly 80CCD(2)), up to 14% of salary. It runs through payroll, so there is nothing to upload.
- Agniveer Corpus Fund, section 125(2): the government's contribution, for those enrolled under the Agnipath Scheme.
- Previous-employer salary in Form 122, so the new employer deducts the right TDS.
Professional tax is a small trap. In the old regime it is deductible from salary, but section 202(2) switches that deduction off in the new regime.
If you are not sure which regime suits you, settle that before you hunt for receipts. Our new vs old tax regime guide for 2026-27 has the break-even table.
Investment proof checklist for 2026-27
Rule 205 sets the minimum evidence for four kinds of claim. Employers often ask for more, and that is their call, since they carry the risk of short-deducting TDS.
| Claim (new section, old section) | Proof employers usually want | Regime |
|---|---|---|
| HRA: Schedule III, Sl. No. 11 (formerly 10(13A)) | Rent receipts or bank transfer record, rent agreement. Landlord's name and address, and PAN if annual rent is above ₹1,00,000. Relationship with the landlord, if any. | Old only |
| LTA: Schedule III, Sl. No. 8 (formerly 10(5)) | Tickets, boarding passes or travel invoices for a trip within India. The rule asks for "evidence of expenditure". | Old only |
| Home-loan interest, self-occupied house: section 22(1)(b) with the ₹2 lakh cap in 22(2) (formerly 24(b)) | Lender's interest certificate for the year. Lender's name, address and PAN. | Old only |
| Section 123 (formerly 80C), up to ₹1.5 lakh | PPF passbook or challan, ELSS account statement, life insurance premium receipts, tuition fee receipts, NSC, 5-year tax-saver FD receipt, principal part of the home-loan certificate. Your own EPF is already in payroll. | Old only |
| Health insurance: section 126 (formerly 80D) | Premium receipt showing a non-cash payment. Preventive check-up bills can be cash. | Old only |
| Own NPS contribution: section 124(3) (formerly 80CCD(1B)), up to ₹50,000 | NPS Tier I contribution receipt or transaction statement. | Old only |
| Employer's NPS contribution: section 124(1) (formerly 80CCD(2)) | None. It is in your salary structure. | Both |
| Education-loan interest: section 129 (formerly 80E) | Interest certificate from the bank. | Old only |
| Donations: section 133 (formerly 80G) | Receipt with the charity's registration details. | Old only |
| Salary from a previous employer | Form 122 (formerly 12B), or that employer's Form 130. | Both |
The limits did not change with the new Act. Health insurance is ₹25,000 for you and your family plus ₹25,000 for parents, each rising to ₹50,000 for senior citizens. Home-loan interest on a self-occupied house is capped at ₹2 lakh.
HRA: the landlord PAN rule
If the rent you pay across the tax year is more than ₹1,00,000, about ₹8,333 a month, Rule 205 requires the landlord's PAN. The rule also asks for your relationship with the landlord, which matters if you pay rent to a parent. That can be a valid claim if the arrangement is real; our guide on HRA when you pay rent to parents covers what makes it hold up. If the landlord has no PAN, ask HR what declaration they accept.
Your exempt HRA is the lowest of three numbers under Rule 279: the HRA you received, rent minus 10% of salary, and 50% of salary in Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi, Chennai, Hyderabad, Pune, Ahmedabad and Bengaluru (40% elsewhere). The HRA calculator does this for you.
LTA: which trips count
Rule 278 allows the exemption for two journeys in a block of four calendar years. The current block began on 1 January 2026 and runs to 2029. Only travel within India counts, and only the fare (by the shortest route, capped at your entitled class) is exempt. Hotels and food are not.
When is the deadline?
There is no deadline in the Act. Each employer sets its own cut-off, typically in January or February, so payroll can recalculate TDS before March salaries. Check the HR email for your company's date.
Two things to keep straight:
- The investment deadline is 31 March 2027. Section 123 counts only amounts "paid or deposited in the tax year". Something you buy after your employer's cut-off still counts for 2026-27 if you pay by 31 March.
- Missing HR's cut-off doesn't lose the deduction. Your employer will deduct more TDS, but you can claim the deductions in your return and get the excess back as a refund, provided you choose the old regime in that return. For salaried people without business income, section 202(4)(b) says that choice is made along with the return under section 263(1), so file it on time.
Worked example: what skipping proofs costs
Illustrative. Assumptions: ₹15 lakh gross salary in a metro, old regime, age under 60. Basic pay ₹6 lakh, HRA ₹2.4 lakh, rent ₹25,000 a month. Own EPF 12% of basic (₹72,000). Declared in April: ₹78,000 more in section 123 investments, a ₹25,000 health insurance premium and ₹50,000 in NPS. Professional tax is ignored. Tax includes 4% cess. Figures computed with a script.
| No proofs submitted | All proofs submitted | |
|---|---|---|
| Standard deduction | ₹50,000 | ₹50,000 |
| HRA exemption | Nil | ₹2,40,000 |
| Section 123 | ₹72,000 (EPF only) | ₹1,50,000 |
| Section 126 + section 124(3) | Nil | ₹75,000 |
| Taxable income | ₹13,78,000 | ₹9,85,000 |
| Tax for the year | about ₹2,34,900 | about ₹1,13,900 |
Submitting proofs cuts this person's TDS by about ₹1.21 lakh for the year.
The cash-flow hit is what people notice. If payroll took about ₹9,500 a month from April to December based on the declaration, and the proofs never arrive, the shortfall is pulled into January to March. TDS jumps to roughly ₹49,800 a month for those three months. You can recover it through your return, but only after you file and the refund is processed.
One more thing the script showed. In the new regime this same salary would pay about ₹97,500, less than the old regime even with every proof submitted. The deductions here total ₹5.15 lakh, which is below the old regime's break-even at ₹15 lakh. Run your own numbers in the tax saving calculator before you buy anything to save tax.
Common mistakes
- Paying rent in cash. Cash leaves no trail. A bank transfer gives you a record if the claim is ever questioned.
- Forgetting the landlord's PAN when rent crosses ₹1 lakh a year. Payroll can refuse the HRA claim without it, because Rule 205 makes the PAN part of the evidence.
- Uploading the home-loan EMI schedule instead of the interest certificate. The certificate splits interest from principal. You need both numbers, because principal goes under section 123.
- Paying health insurance in cash. Section 126(9) allows cash only for preventive check-ups.
- Claiming LTA for a foreign trip or for hotel bills. Only fares within India count.
- Hiding the previous employer's salary. Both employers then apply the lower slabs and you end up with a tax bill at filing time. Submit Form 122.
- Buying ELSS or insurance in a hurry while on the new regime. It saves no tax. Our ELSS vs PPF comparison explains how each works if you are on the old regime.
What to do this week
- Confirm your regime for 2026-27.
- If it is the old regime, list what you declared in April and gather the matching proof from the table above.
- Get your landlord's PAN and your lender's interest certificate now. These take the longest.
- Upload before HR's cut-off, and keep copies. You will need the same documents if the department asks about your return.
For the other tax-year deadlines and how each deduction works under the new section numbers, see the income tax hub.