ITR (Income Tax Return)

In the digitalized world, everything is gradually becoming technology focused. This is the reason why taxpayers can now file their Income Tax Return (ITR) sitting at home. For this, first of all you have to go to the website of Income Tax Department and log in. Before filing ITR, tax payers should collect information about income earned in the financial year, Aadhaar number and PAN details.

What is the process of filing ITR online?

• step 1First of all go to income tax e-filing portal eportal.incometax.gov.in
• Step 2Log in through user ID or PAN/Aadhaar.
• Step 3Select File Return.
• Step 4Select the assessment year and medium of ITR filing.
• Step 5Select 'Individual' in the application status and select ITR-1 on the landing page.
• Step 6Select the reason for filing ITR and click on 'Continue' option.
• Step 7Validate personal information, total income, tax deducted, tax paid and tax payable by going to 'Let's validate your pre-filled return'.
• Step 8If you have filled all your information correctly then click on Proceed to Validation. If an error appears, you can correct your information by selecting the 'Edit' option.

After validation, verification will now have to be done. This can be done through Aadhaar OTP, Net Banking etc. Apart from this, tax payers can get their validation done by sending the printed form through post to the Income Tax Department in Bengaluru within 120 days of filing.

Users can also download Income Tax Returns (ITR) forms. To download income tax returns forms, you have to follow these steps.

• step 1First of all, you have to go to the official website of Income Tax Department, incometaxindia.gov.in.
• Step 2After this click on Forms/Download.
• Step 3Now you have to click on Income Tax Returns.
• Step 4By reaching here you can download all the forms of Income Tax Returns.

There are different forms showing the tax liability of different categories of people. ITR 1 (Sahaj), ITR 2, ITR 2A, ITR 3, ITR 4, ITR 4S (Sugam), ITR 5, ITR 6 and ITR 7 can be downloaded from the Income Tax Department website. This form is for individuals, Undivided Hindu Family (HUF) and companies. Additionally, if you are not able to e-verify your income tax return, you can download the ITR-V and send it to the Income Tax Department after signing it. You can download the ITR-V form in this way.

• step 1First of all, open the official website of Income Tax India and login.
• Step 2After this, select the View Returns/Forms option to view the e-file tax returns.
• Step 3Now you have to click on the acknowledgment number of that ITR whose ITR V you want to download.
• Step 4Select ITR V/ Acknowledgment to download.
• Step 5After downloading the declaration, enter the password to open the document.

According to Section 139(1) of the Income Tax Act 1961, the due date for filing Income Tax Return (ITR) in the respective assessment year (AY) for all assessees except a company is 31 July. This means that for most individuals, small businesses and professionals earning salary, the due date for filing ITR for any assessment year is July 31.

Returns filed after the due date are called belated returns. Billed returns of income are filed under section 139 (4) of the Income Tax Act. Such returns can be filed any time before three months of the end of the relevant assessment year. That is, belated returns can be filed before December 31, which is 3 months before the end of the assessment year.

Belated returns are different from regular returns which are filed by July 31. Apart from other limitations, it does not allow carry forward of losses. Apart from this, there is a late filing fee under Section 234 F of the Income Tax Act. If the total income to be reported is more than Rs 5 lakh then a late filing fee of Rs 5000 is applicable. At the same time, if the total income of the person is less than Rs 5 lakh, then late fee up to Rs 1,000 can be imposed. However, if you file a voluntary return, you will not have to pay any late fee even after the due date.

It is necessary for employed people to file income tax returns. We are telling you about some sections of income tax, through which you can save tax. For example, Section 80C is part of the Income Tax Act, 1961. Under this, you can reduce up to Rs 1,50,000 from your total taxable income. Whereas, Section 80D is for deduction on medical expenses. At the same time, the limit of Section 80 D deduction for premium paid for self/family is Rs 25 thousand. If you are spending on the treatment of a disabled person, you can get tax exemption under section 80DD. The total deduction limit under this section is up to Rs 1.5 thousand. At the same time, Section 80E provides deduction in interest on education loan.

If you are going to file income tax return then some documents are necessary for this. These important documents are PAN card, Aadhar card, bank account details. In the account details, you will have to give the bank name, account number, account type and IFSC code. Apart from this, you will also need Form 16 given by the company. It contains details of employee's salary and tax deduction. You may also need Form 26AS. Through this form you can know the complete details of tax imposed on income. It can be downloaded from the Income Tax Department website. If you want, you can match the tax deduction details of Form 16 and Form 26AS.

Similarly, you need investment related documents at the time of filing ITR. This includes receipt of LIC premium and details of investment in tax saving schemes like PPF-Sukanya. Through this you can claim tax exemption. At the same time, you will also need to keep proof of income. If you are getting interest from fixed deposit or any other scheme, then its document should remain. If there is repayment of home loan or donation made somewhere, documents related to this will also be required. With its help you can also save tax. If you have earned money from shares or mutual funds, you will also have to provide its documents.

If a businessman is going to file ITR then he will need documents related to the company. Let us tell you that to file ITR, it is necessary to link PAN and Aadhaar. If there is no linking of both the documents then you cannot file ITR.

The last step of income tax return filing is e-verification. If you miss this then all your hard work in return filing may go in vain. However, some time is also given by the Income Tax Department for ITR e-verification. You can do e-verification through any one of the 6 methods during this period. According to the information given on the website of the Income Tax Department, e-verification can be done through OTP on the mobile number registered with Aadhaar. Similarly, e-verification can be done by generating an electronic verification code through your bank account or demat account. Methods of e-verification also include net banking or digital signature certificate. At the same time, this process can also be completed offline by generating electronic verification code through ATM.

At the same time, to see the ITR status, you will have to visit the website of www.incometax.gov.in. Login by entering your PAN card details here. In the next step, e-file option will appear, after clicking which, visit View Filed Return. Here you can see the status of your ITR. Here you can find out whether ITR has been filed or not. If it has not happened, then you will also get information about its reason. Many times the process of ITR filing is not completed due to lack of e-verification. At the same time, you can also check the refund status of your ITR. For this you will have to click on View Details.

If you come under the tax net, then it is very important for you to file Income Tax Return (ITR). Many times we unknowingly make many mistakes while filing ITR, due to which your ITR gets rejected or you have to face income tax notice or the refund gets delayed. Let us try to understand these mistakes in detail. CA Ajay Bagadia explains that most of the common mistakes are due to misinterpretation or ignorance of Tax Provisions.

• mistake number 1Not taking credit for tax deduction is also a common mistake. Many times we get less refund than expected. Sometimes we get demand notices instead of Refund due and the common reason for this is not getting credit due for TDS deduction. The most common mistake users make is that they do not take credit of tax deduction under the appropriate head of income.
• mistake number 2The third most common reason for delay in ITR refund is problem in bank account verification. Make sure to link PAN and Aadhaar. It helps in bank verification for faster refunds and e-verification for faster refunds.
• mistake number 3Common mistake in selecting ITR form. For example, if one owns more than one house property, one cannot file ITR-1. Therefore, there is a need to locate and file the correct ITR form.
• mistake number 4There is a big misconception in the minds of salaried individuals that tax cannot be saved beyond Form 16. They file ITR relying on the tax calculation of Form 16 without taking a fresh look at the tax deductions. We should avoid this mistake.

Your employer (where you work) or someone else has deducted some money from you in the form of TDS and if your income is not taxable then you are entitled to get this amount. For this you can claim refund by filing ITR.

The refund is directly credited to the taxpayers' account. Additionally, the refund is sent to the taxpayers' address through check or demand draft. This is available only after filing income tax return. Tax refunds can result from a variety of situations, but usually occur when you pay more tax than you actually owe during the year. For example, if you get commission in return for any service or work and TDS is deducted on it, then you can take refund. Companies deduct some money as tax every month from the salaries of their employees and deposit it in the department. While filing ITR, if your annual income is less than Rs 5 lakh after taking income tax rebates etc. then you can get the deducted amount as refund.

According to the new system of Income Tax Department, now any taxpayer can check the status of refund after 10 days of filing the return. Now most of the taxpayers have started getting refund money within 2 weeks of filing ITR.

Even if you are not subject to income tax, you should still file returns. If you file ITR, it helps you in many things like visa, taking large amount insurance, loan, home loan etc.

Talking about the benefits of ITR (Income Tax Return), it is necessary for you to file ITR to claim tax refund. If your TDS is deducted and your income is not taxable then you can get refund by filing ITR.

Its second biggest advantage is in getting a visa because visa authorities of many countries ask for ITR of 3 to 5 years for granting visa. ITR reveals your financial status. Whereas, on filing ITR, you get a certificate. Having registered proof of income helps in proving credit card, loan or your own credit. This is proof of your income. All government and private institutions accept it as income proof.

ITR receipt is sent to your registered address, which can serve as address proof. If you want to start your own business then it is very important to fill ITR. To get a contract in a government department, ITR of the last 5 years has to be given. If you want to take a term plan of Rs 1 crore, then insurance companies can ask for ITR from you.