If a taxpayer is unable to file income tax return by 31 July, then the Income Tax Department gives him a chance to file ITR by 31 December. This is called belated return. Taxpayers filing belated return have to pay a penalty
If for some reason you missed filing Income Tax Return (ITR) by 31 July, then you have a chance till 15 January to file belated ITR. If you want to revise your ITR, then you also have a chance till 15 January for this. Generally, the last date for filing belated return and revised return is 31 December. But, this time the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has extended this deadline till 15 January after the order of the Bombay High Court.
What is Belated Income Tax Return?
If a taxpayer is unable to file Income Tax Return by 31 July, then the Income Tax Department gives him a chance to file ITR till 31 December. This is called Belated Return. Taxpayers filing belated return have to pay a penalty. The penalty for income more than Rs 5 lakh annually is Rs 5,000. For people with an annual income of less than Rs 5 lakh, the penalty is Rs 1,000. Apart from this, interest is also charged on the tax of the taxpayers.
What does Revised Income Tax Return mean?
If a taxpayer feels that wrong information has been entered in his Income Tax Return, he can file a revised return. Usually its deadline is 31 December. This time the deadline has been extended by 15 days for this as well. This means that a taxpayer can revise his Income Tax Return till January 15, 2025. This facility has been provided by the Income Tax Department keeping in mind such taxpayers who inadvertently forget to mention any income related information in ITR.
What will happen if a belated return is not filed?
If a taxpayer does not file a belated income tax return by January 15, 2025, then he is allowed to file ITR-U under section 139(8A) of the Income Tax Act. For this, he will have to pay a penalty of Rs 5000. Apart from this, additional tax of 25 percent or 50 percent will also have to be paid on the tax amount. This will depend on when the taxpayer files ITR-U. ITR-U for FY24 can be filed till March 31, 2027. Actually, it has to be filed within 2 years of the end of the relevant financial year.
What are the benefits of filing returns by 31 July?
Tax experts say that CBDT has allowed those taxpayers to file income tax returns even after the deadline, who for some reason miss filing ITR by the last date. But, taxpayers do not get many facilities on filing belated or ITR-U. Therefore, taxpayers should try to file income tax returns by the due date i.e. 31 July.
