File your income tax returns and keep these Do’s and Don’ts in mind

File on time and keep your documents safe even after filing in case your ITR is scrutinised later on

 

Income Tax News : The deadline for filing your income tax returns for the FY 2016-17 is the 31st July, 2018. It is, therefore, necessary that all taxpayers be aware of the essential dos and don’ts of tax filing so that they can avoid last-minute errors.

Take a look at our list below:

DO’s

1. Organize

It is important to keep your documents ready at the go. For filing, you will need all your old tax receipts, receipts of income and investments, Form 26AS, Form 16 etc. Keep these documents handy when filing for a quicker process; and also remember to keep them safe after you are done filling out the form online. You might need them in case your return is called out for scrutiny later.

2. Check your calculation

Go over your tax documents and do your calculations. Then, go over your math once again to ensure that all your calculations are correct. If you want help, you can always turn to an expert who will help you check your calculations and ensure accuracy. Besides, e-filing is highly recommended since that itself eliminates the chance of error. Those with income in excess of Rs 500,000 or those seeking a refund, must mandatorily e-file.

3. Report all your income

It is important to disclose all income that you earn from all sources, irrespective of whether the income is taxable or exempt. Not disclosing information can lead to legal consequences later on, and it would be wiser to be honest while filing.

4. Verify ITR after e-filing

After you have successfully e-filed your income tax return, you should e-verify your ITR-V via Netbanking, Aadhaar Card or through the EVC process on your mobile number and email. This is important because the IT department will start processing your returns post receiving the verification. Alternatively, you can sign and send the ITR-V to the CPC (via ordinary or speed post only). This has to be done within 120 days from the date of e-filing of tax return.

Read the Don’t List → Income Tax Return

Made a mistake while filing tax returns? Here’s how you can fix it

While filing these returns, there is always the possibility of an unintentional or arithmetic error or an omission of details creeping into the return.

Income Tax News : Every individual whose income exceeds the basic exemption limit of Rs 250,000 must file an income tax return. This limit is Rs 300,000 for those who are older than 60 years but less than 80 years, and Rs 500,000 for those who are more than 80 years old.

While filing these returns, there is always the possibility of an unintentional or arithmetic error or an omission of details creeping into the return. This could be because of lack of taxpayer’s knowledge in tax laws or can be attributed to insufficient information while filing the return.

In such a case, does the income tax law provide for correction of such mistakes? Yes, Income tax law does have a provision for correcting or rectifying such errors. This can be done by filing a revised return.

Revising the return of income

As per the law as it stands today, from the Assessment Year (AY) 2018-19, a return of income filed within the due date i.e. the original return of income (generally 31 July for individuals) or a return filed after the due date called the belated return, can be revised if a taxpayer discovers any omission or wrong statement in the return filed. Such revision has to be done before the end of the assessment year for which return was filed. For example, if a revision is required to be done for a return filed for Assessment Year 2018-19, such revision can be done anytime on or before 31 March 2019.

However, for returns filed prior to AY 2018-19, one has a time limit of 1 whole year form the end of an AY to file a revised return i.e for AY 2017-18 and prior years, a revised return could be filed anytime on or before 31 March 2019.

Another significant point to be noted is that the facility to revise a return filed late(belated return), is available only from AY 2017-18 onwards prior to which this was not possible.

→ Filing Tax Returns Mistake ←

Over 20 lakh biz due to file final GST returns in 6 days

The final GSTR-3, matching GSTR-1 and 2, is to be filed by November 10

 

 

As the deadline for filing the final GST returns for the first month of GST nears, the Sushil Modi-led Group of Ministers has asked the IT backbone provider GSTN to send reminder text messages to 20 lakh businesses which are yet to submit the tax forms.

In its second meeting, the Group of Ministers (GoM) asked the GST-Network to brace for the rush of last-minute filers.

The last date for filing of final sales returns for July in GSTR-1 form is October 10, while the date for uploading of purchase returns in GSTR-2 is October 31.

The final GSTR-3, matching GSTR-1 and 2, is to be GST filing by November 10.

"So far 33 lakh businesses have filed GSTR-1 for July, while 53 lakh had filed the initial GSTR-3B returns.
So 20 lakh more businesses have to file in the next six days," GoM Chairman and Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Modi said.

"We appeal to people to file the returns on time. Infosys has prepared a list of businesses who are yet to file returns. GSTN will be sending out mobile messages to these 20 lakh businesses reminding them to file returns," he said.

Besides, the GoM has also asked Infosys, which has prepared the back-end of the GST Network portal, to be prepared to handle the load that would come for GSTR-2 filing between October 11 to 31.

The GST Council in its meeting on October 6would be apprised of the deliberations of the GoM and the improvement in... Read Full Article

Cafe Coffee Day raids: Income tax dept detects Rs 650 cr concealed income

Searches concluded with the group's officials admitting to concealed income exceeding Rs 650 crore

 

 

The Income Tax Department raids on Cafe Coffee Day (CCD) retail chain since Thursday found Rs 650 crore concealed income from the documents seized, said an official on Sunday.

"Documents seized from the search operations at 25 places of Cafe Coffee Day and its group companies in Karnataka, Mumbai and Chennai have revealed concealed income of over Rs 650 crore," a senior tax official told IANS here.

The search and seize operations, which began on September 21, concluded on Sunday evening in the offices of the group involved in coffee, tourism, IT Return and other areas.

"The searches concluded with the group's officials admitting to concealed income exceeding Rs 650 crore and the detection of undisclosed income, which is expected to be a much higher figure," said another tax filing official in an e-mail to IANS.

The offices and residence of CCD's founder-owner V G Siddhartha and its other officials in Bengaluru, Chikkamagaluru, Hassan and Mysuru across Karnataka were also searched during the last four days. Siddhartha is the elder son-in-law of former External Affairs Minister S M Krishna, who was also Chief Minister from 1999 to 2004 but earlier this year left the Congress to join the Bharatiya Janata Party.

"There are a number of other issues, including violations of other statutes on which there is no disclosure but relevant evidence has been found. These will be pursued effectively as part of our investigation," added the official in.... Read Full Article

One nation, one tax: Nearly 3 million GST returns filed in August

Almost half came on final day; Network chief says system stood up to huge test and all glitches would be soon resolved

 

 

As many as 2.97 million assessees have filed the summary input-output return under the new goods and services tax (GST) for the month of August (‘GSTR 3B’), much less than the 4.6 million that came for the month of July.

As many as 46 per cent of filers — 1.37 million — submitted Income tax return on Wednesday, the deadline for doing so.

However, the July returns had risen after an extension of five to eight days was given to assessees, depending on whether they wanted to claim input tax credit for pre-GST stocks or not. The GST Network (GSTN), the entity handling the information technology backbone for the new structure, is hopeful that return filing would equal the tally of July.

→ Income Tax Filing ←  → Income Tax efiling ←

Even if the same number of filers are there for the month of August as in July, proportionately it would be much less. This is so because there were only 5.95 million registrations under the GST in July, excluding those opting for the composition scheme. Now, a little over nine million businesses have registered under the GST. Of this, around one million was for the composition scheme; these may file quarterly returns.

Taxes to the tune of Rs 95,000 crore were collected in the maiden month of the roll-out. The central GST (CGST) and state GST (SGST) laws mandate an interest levy at 18 per cent for delayed payment of tax. And, Rs 100 a day will be levied for... Read Full Article

All eyes on black money: I-T even looking into FY11 cash deposits, realty purchases

I-T dept may order reassessment if no response is given or the response is found to be unsatisfactory

 

Cash deposits made even before the Modi government's demonetisation drive that began in November last year are under the income tax (I-T) department's scanner, reported the Economic Times on Thursday.

According to the financial daily, income tax efiling sleuths have gone as far back as financial year 2011 in their hunt for suspicious cash deposits and sought explanations from the depositors in question. Further, the I-T department has sent notices to home buyers where the declared value of the purchase was found to be lower than the prices that prevailed in past transactions in that area.

In fact, according to the financial daily, income tax filing authorities have classified cases from FY11 as high priority since they would become time-barred soon. In case the tax sleuths don't receive a response regarding the cash deposits under their scanner or the response is not found to be satisfactory, they can order a reassessment.

According to the report, the I-T department has asked individuals and entities involved in the transactions in question to provide their permanent account numbers and the returns they filed for the financial year in question. → Efiling of Income Tax ←

The move comes at a time when the I-T department is moving ahead with concluding investigations into high-risk category individuals suspected of evading taxes. In an interview with Livemint, Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) Chairman Sushil Chandra said that his department would conclude its investigations into the financial dealings of close to 100,000 individuals who were suspected of tax evasion... Read Full Article

Rs 2.89 lakh cr deposited post note ban by 0.97 mn people under I-T radar

I-T says 14,000 properties of over Rs 1 crore each under scrutiny as owners have not filed returns

 

 

The Income Tax Department (ITD) today said that about 14,000 properties worth over Rs 1 crore each are under its scrutiny as their owners have not filed income returns.

Using data analytics, 13.33 lakh accounts of some 9.72 lakh persons with unusual cash deposits of around Rs 2.89 lakh crore was identified and response sought.

The resource was captured "within a short span of 3-4 weeks," the statement said, without saying how many of them were genuine deposits and how many were unaccounted money. → Income Tax Filing ←

It also did not give details of tax collected on unaccounted money.

The Operation Clean money has since moved into the next phase that "includes enforcement actions in high risk cases, taxpayer engagement through a dedicated website in medium risk cases and close monitoring in low risk cases.

"The exercise has also unearthed large number of persons and clusters having suspect transactions. These include about 14,000 properties of more than Rs 1 crore each where persons have not even filed Income Tax Return.

"The investigations are in progress," the statement said.

The high, medium and low risk cases have been identified through the use of advanced data analytics, including integration of data sources, relationship clustering and fund tracking.... Read Full Article

It pays to be honest, I-T dept will go after evaders

He asserted that the government over the last 2-3 years has made tax evasion difficult

 

 

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Wednesday said the government will adopt a carrot-and-stick policy on taxation, saying post GST tax authorities will go after evaders whose invoices do not match tax payment. → Income Tax Return ←

He asserted that the government over the last 2-3 years has made tax evasion difficult that has come as a "rude shock" to many, and GST will help expand the direct tax base in line with increase in indirect tax collection.

"Even in the case of GST now, we are just having the initial voluntary compliance today going on. When the matching of bills takes place, whether that voluntary compliance is fair and to what extent will become clear," he said while speaking at a book launch event organised by Wolters Kluwer. → Income Tax ←

"The experiment of first 1-2 months will demonstrate to assessees that today the mantra as far as taxation is concerned is 'it pays to be honest'. The queries will only be addressed to those whose vouchers don't match," he added.

Under the Goods and Services Tax (GST), which was rolled out from July 1, in order to claim the benefit of input credit, businesses have to disclose the volume of transaction in the form of an invoice. → Income Tax Department ←

"You need to be reasonable in your rates, you need to be reducing the compliance burden as far as procedures are concerned, you need to use more technology in order to ensure the physical contact between the assessee and the assessing authority is minimised. But at the same time you need to carry the stick if somebody still tries to evade the law," Jaitley warned.... Read Full Article

Over 1.9 million file GST returns

GSTN hopes number will double by deadline

 

As many as 19,42,354 taxpayers have till Wednesday filed IT return for July under the new goods and services tax (GST) regime. Officers of the GST Network (GSTN), responsible for the information technology (IT) backbone of the GST, said they hoped 2.8 million more would do so by the deadline in the next two days.

Those who have filed returns constitute over 22 per cent of total assessees (8.7 million) under the GST regime. However, of the 8.7 million assessees, 2.2 million are yet to complete the migration process to the new indirect income tax regime.

The GSTN, also managing the tax filing apparatus, has geared up the income tax return network to handle the rush, its Chairman Navin Kumar said. A last-minute rush caused the GSTN portal to crash last week, forcing the government to extend the deadline by five days to August 25.

Those who wish to claim transitional input tax credit can file returns by August 28.

Sudhir Singh, MD of Marg ERP, a solution provider for GST returns, said over 1.9 million filers was not really a big number, but the numbers would swell by the deadline. He added that his clients were finding it difficult to file returns....Read Full Article

No escape for firms as tax information pours in from other countries

India has tax information exchange agreements with 130 countries 

Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) Chairman Sushil Chandra on Wednesday said that the tax exchange agreements with other countries was resulting in information pouring in at a fast pace, thus there was no escaping for the multi-national companies (MNCs) from fair tax filing.

"We have got wide (tax) information from countries. We have agreements with 130 countries. It's like a global hub. Information on tax transparency is coming at a fast pace. It is a thing of past that any information can be hidden," Chandra said here at the 14th International Tax Conference organised by Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham).

"Each company/MNC thus should believe in fair taxation," he added.

Referring to the Panama Papers disclosures, he said that the information has been received on it from various countries. → Income tax Filing ←

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley earlier had said that in some cases of Panama Papers details have been received and criminal proceedings will be carried out.

"In cases of which we are receiving details, we send notices, assess their income tax filing details and raise tax demand. According to the law, criminal proceedings are also carried out. In HSBC and now in Panama Papers, the proceedings will be carried out. In some cases details are received. It is now a disincentive and a risky business," Jaitley had said in the Lok Sabha on ..... Read Full Article

I-T dept may lower withholding tax for foreign firms having income in India

They are required to withhold taxes on payment to another party and deposit that tax with the govt

 

The income tax department is open to lowering the withholding tax rate for foreign companies which have income in India, a senior official said on Wednesday.

Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) Chairman Sushil Chandra also urged firms and MNCs operating in India to pay their due share of taxes and said adequate safeguards have been put in place to ensure that anti-abuse provisions like GAAR are not misused.

He also asked industry experts to come forward with suggestions on withholding tax. →Efiling Of Income Tax ←

"I would like to be informed in which areas the TDS (tax deducted at source) is high so that we can think of reducing that also. We are absolutely open to any suggestions which can make the life of a genuine taxpayer easy," he said speaking at an International Tax Conference organised by Assocham here.

Foreign entities having income in India, as well as domestic companies, are required to withhold taxes on any payment to another party and deposit that tax with the government. Companies usually have to withhold taxes interest, royalties or fees paid for technical services.

Assocham Chairman National Council on Direct Taxes Rahul Garg said the tax department issues refunds to the tune of Rs 40,000-60,000 crore every year and hence the industry chamber has suggested a relook of the withholding tax scenario .....Read Full Article

Shah Rukh Khan gets tax relief on Dubai villa

Tribunal upholds actor's claim that it was gift

 

 

A Dubai villa owned by Shah Rukh Khan was out of the tax ambit, the Income Tax Filing Appellate Tribunal (I-TAT) has ruled.

Called Signature Villa, the property was gifted to him by Nakheel Public Joint Stock Company. The dispute was over whether this was a gift or payment for services Khan had rendered to the company.
Since the villa was gifted in the assessment year (AY) 2008-09, it was tax free, ruled the I-TAT. The I-T Act was amended in October 2009 to include any gift valued more than a certain amount to be taxable.

An I-T officer assessing Khan’s 2008-09 income had revised it to Rs 144.17 crore against Rs 126.31 crore declared by him. The difference of Rs 17.9 crore was the value of the villa.

The assessing officer had contended the value of the property was the “professional receipts” taxable under Section 28 (iv) of the Efiling Of Income tax Act, 1961.

Khan, in a letter on November 11, 2010, denied rendering any professional services to Nakheel PJSC. He said Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, a senior executive of the company and his friend, had gifted him the villa. Khan also said there was no contractual agreement.

The assessing officer had argued that a major source of Khan’s income was endorsing products and performing in stage shows. In 2008-09, the actor had charged Rs 6.5-8 crore for each endorsement. He said the Nakheel PJSC was using the actor’s image to endorse its Palm Project since 2004 on its official website and other media.

Khan had visited the project in 2004 and 2005, and had taken part in an annual day celebration there in 2007, said the ... Read Full Article

10,000 property deals under I-T scanner

The tax dept is expected to launch Project Insight next month to make evasion even tougher

 

 

The income tax department has identified over 10,000 individuals who have bought properties but have not paid tax.

Part of the second round of Operation Clean Money, the tax department is examining property transactions worth over Rs 1 crore. The department has roped in four global data mining companies to profile taxpayers and map their transactions.

“We have identified cases where people have bought property but have not paid taxes. These cases are across the country. More than 10,000 people have come under scrutiny,” said a tax official. → Income tax efiling ←

The department is also investigating if these properties are benami holdings. The government has identified cases based on the income declared by individuals.

“We are following a non-intrusive approach, relying solely on the data mined. Notices have been sent out. Many firms and companies have also been identified, taking the number of cases higher than 10,000,” the official added.

The probe will be widened to examine property transactions of less than Rs 1 crore.

By next month, the tax filing department is expected to launch Project Insight in collaboration with L&T infotech, which will make evasion even tougher. It will collate information from various sources and profile people using their PAN details....Read Full Article

More shell firms found: PAN deactivation jolt for tax evaders in stock market

High-value transactions of more than Rs 50,000 and above require PAN details

 

 

Of the 1.1 million permanent account numbers (PAN) that the government deactivated last month, income-tax (IT return) sources say a majority were duplicates and were being used to open share-trading and demat accounts, transact on the stock markets, and operate in shell firms.

The I-T department has discovered one individual could have five to seven PAN cards, each with a slightly different spelling of the holder’s name.

According to I-T officials, such people, who have been identified as small- and medium-sized stock brokers, sub-brokers and their clients, have evaded taxes.

They could have evaded so by using one card for filing income tax return, and others for investing in financial instruments or making high-value transactions, said a senior tax official.

High-value transactions of more than Rs 50,000 and above require PAN details. During demonetisation, PAN was required to be quoted in the case of cash deposits of more than Rs 2 lakh in savings accounts.

Sources said that the income tax department had used data analytics to track down evaders by collecting information such as common addresses, mobile numbers, and emails to establish the relationship among multiple PANs.

The exercise is continuing since demonetisation, at the time of which the department matched the databases of third parties such as banks and financial institutions with its own database and other details like know your customer (KYC), tax deducted at source (TDS), and payments made overseas. This is how it got a comprehensive profile of taxpayers.

A senior tax official said the department identified the link between PAN holders through their business associations, assets and associated transactions, and compliance history in the various databases....Read Full Article

Soon, I-T dept to file criminal prosecution against Lalu's family members

Prosecution to be in connection with I-T dept's probe into land deals worth Rs 1,000 crore

The Income Tax (I-T) Department will soon file a prosecution complaint against some family members of Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad, including his daughter Misa Bharti, in connection with its probe into land deals worth Rs 1,000 crore, officials privy to the investigation said.

 

They said the agency will file the complaint in a competent court against at least six family members of Lalu, against whom it recently slapped charges under the new and stringent anti-benami assets act.
Some of them, including Bharti and her husband Shailesh, may also be summoned again for further questioning in the case, they said.

The Tax filing department had served notices of attachment of assets in June to Lalu, his wife and former Bihar chief minister Rabri Devi, son and former Bihar Deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav, daughters Chanda and Ragini Yadav, MP daughter Bharti and son-in-law Kumar.

The Income tax filing department had attached about a dozen plots and buildings in Delhi and Bihar including a farm house and land in the Palam Vihar area, a residential building in the upmarket New Friends Colony area of south Delhi, nine plots on a 256.75 decimal land area in Phulwari Sharif area in Patna, where a shopping mall was being constructed, among few others in the same area in Bihar's capital.

The department has said these alleged benami assets bear a "deed" value of about Rs 9.32 crore but the taxman has estimated their current market value at Rs 170-180 crore...Read Full Article

Rs 13,715 cr undisclosed income detected, 126 bn taxpayers added in FY17

After demonetisation, the taxman launched Operation Clean Money to clamp down on unaccounted money

 

 

The income tax department detected undisclosed income of Rs 13,715 crore through surveys in 2016 -17, Minister of State for Finance Santosh Gangwar said on Tuesday.

Also, as many as 126 billion new taxpayers were added in the last financial year, he said in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha.

Last financial year, the income tax department conducted searches at 5,102 premises of 1,152 groups during which undisclosed income of Rs 15,496 crore was admitted.

"During the same period, 12,526 surveys led to the detection of undisclosed income of Rs 13,715 crore," Gangwar said.

He said a total of 196 billion income tax returns were filed between November 9, 2016, to March 31, 2017, compared with 163 billion returns filed during the same period of 2015- 16.

In a separate reply, Gangwar said that during phase one of 'Operation Clean Money' launched on January 31, about 18,00,000 persons were identified whose cash transactions did not match their tax profiles.

More than 9.27 lakh responses were received giving information on 13,33,000 accounts, involving cash deposits of around Rs 2.89 lakh crore, he said.

To fight the menace of black money, the government had on November 8, 2016, demonetised old 500 and 1,000 rupee notes and asked holders of such notes to deposit the same in bank accounts.....Read Full Article

Get ready to file first returns before Aug 20: GST chief tells companies

Navin Kumar said, 'We are working on the assumption that 50% of the people will come on last day'

 

 

Millions of companies in India are still not ready to file their first IT return under the new Goods and Services Tax (GST) ahead of 20 August deadline, a top official told Reuters, urging them not to leave things to the eleventh hour.

Navin Kumar, chairman of the GST Network, also said barely half of the 34 service providers accredited to help firms bulk-file invoices online had received approval to go live.

Yet he gave an assurance that the huge IT back end that is designed to crunch up to 3 billion invoices a month and calculate companies' taxes would be stable, even if there is a last-minute rush to file. → Efiling Of Income Tax  ←

"It will not crash," he told Reuters in an interview. "We are working on the assumption that 50 per cent of the people will come on the last day."

Billed as India's biggest-ever tax reform, the GST has replaced a slew of federal and state levies. It has also cleared barriers between India's 29 states, uniting its 1.3 billion people into a common market for the first time.   → Income Tax Efiling ←

Yet the complexity of the tax - which has main rates of 5, 12, 18 and 28 per cent and multiple exceptions - has raised concerns that companies will struggle to comply and file their monthly returns on time.

Even before the GST filings kick in, business surveys showed both the services and manufacturing sectors contracting at their fastest rate in years, heralding a likely dip in indirect tax revenues.......Read Full Article

Over 93 million PAN cards linked with Aadhaar so far; last date is Aug 31

About 3 crore linkages were done in June and July

 

 

More than 9.3 crore Permanent Account Numbers (PAN) have been linked with Aadhaar, a senior Income Tax Department officer said.

Of the total PAN-Aadhaar seeding, which is nearly 30 per cent of the total about 30 crore PAN holders, about three crore linkages were done in June and July.

"By August 5, which was the last date for filing Income Tax Returns (ITRs), over 9.3 PAN-Aadhaar linkages have been registered by the I-T department," he said...→ Tax Filing ←

According to the officer, the tally is expected to grow as the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), the policy-making body of the department, has already extended the last date for linking the two unique numbers till August 31.

The government had madethe PAN-Aadhaar linking mandatory for filing ITR and obtaining a new Permanent Account Number (PAN) from July 1.

The CBDT has said that for the purpose of income tax filing of returns (by August 5), it would be sufficient to quote Aadhaar or acknowledgement number of having applied for Aadhaar, on the e-filing website of the department.

"The actual linking of PAN with Aadhaar can be done subsequently, but any time before August 31, 2017," the CBDT had said.

It had also cautioned taxpayers that ITRs would not be processed "until the linkage of Aadhaar with PAN is done".... Read Full Article

Aadhaar now mandatory to identify deceased while registering death

The new rule is said to be applicable starting October 1, 2017.

 

 

According to the latest guidelines, the families of a deceased will now have to produce his/her Aadhaar number for establishing his/her identity in order to register the death and proceed with the norms to obtain a death certificate.

The new rule is said to be applicable starting October 1, 2017.

On June 10, the Supreme Court had ruled that from July 1 onward, every person eligible to obtain Aadhaar card must quote their Aadhaar number or their Aadhaar Enrolment ID number for filing of Income Tax Returns as well as for applications for Permanent Account Number (PAN).

Following this, the apex court pronounced its order on mandatory requirements of Aadhaar card for Income Tax Return (I-TR).

The Income Tax Department has stepped up its efforts to encourage people to link their PAN with Aadhaar.

On July 12, the top court decided to constitute a five-judge bench to hear whether there is a right to privacy or not.  → Tax Filing ←

The matter was mentioned before a bench comprising of Chief Justice J.S. Khehar and Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, which said its five-judge Constitution Bench will hear Aadhaar-related matters.....Read Full Article

Missed the ITR deadline? Here's what you need to do next

Filing returns after the due date can have repercussions even if there are no pending liabilities

Income Tax Filing (I-T) returns on time is every taxpayer’s responsibility and there are several benefits extended to the individual for the same. On the other hand, filing returns after the due date can have repercussions for the taxpayer even if there are no pending tax liabilities. However, if you have missed the deadline, you can file a belated return.

 

What is a belated return?

A belated IT return can be filed after the due date but before the end of the assessment year. Belated returns have to be filed within one year from the end of the relevant financial year. Hence, if you need to file your return for financial year 2015-16, the assessment year will be 2016-17 and the belated return can be filed by March 31, 2017. Similarly, if you must file your return for financial year 2016-17, you must do so by March 31, 2018 — the end of assessment year 2017-18.

The procedure to file a belated return is the same as Income tax efiling the return within the due date. Log into your e-filing account on the I-T department’s website, select the applicable ITR form and assessment year, and proceed. For example, if you are filing the return for financial year 2015-16, select assessment year 2016-17.

Consequences of filing late returns