ITR deadline over, now what? File with late penalty or face these consequences

The government did not extend the deadline to file income tax return (ITR) for the financial year 2022-23 as the deadline passed on July 31. If you have failed to file ITR, you can still file a belated return till 31 December, but with a penalty.

Data from Income Tax Department showed that more than 6.77 crore ITRs for the assessment year 2023-24 were filed till July 31. Of these, over 64.33 lakh were filed on the last day.

What to do if missed July 31 ITR deadline?

Anyone whose total income from all sources is higher than the exemption limit must file their income tax returns. If the deadline is missed, taxpayers can file a ‘belated return’ which will be subjected to a penalty.

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What are the consequences of not filing ITR?

1. Taxpayers who fail to file their ITR by the deadline may incur a penalty of ₹5,000 under Section 234F. However, for individuals with an income of less than ₹5 lakh, the penalty will be a reduced amount of ₹1,000, reported Mint.

2. A minimum penalty is only one of the negative consequences of filing your IT returns late. You are also required to pay interest on the tax due at the rate of 1% per month, a note from HDFC Bank said. This is applicable until you file your tax returns. So, the sooner you submit your ITR, the lesser you will have to pay as interest.

3. Generally, when you file your IT returns on time, you are eligible for an income tax refund and an interest payment on the refund. However, you forfeit this benefit in case you missed the deadline, HDFC Bank added.

4. When you file your IT returns, it is possible to make a reporting error. In such a case, you can revise the mistake so that the filed returns are accurate. However, this option is only available to those who submit their returns within the due date, the note added.

In case you are filing a belated ITR, ensure there are no errors.

Here are some highlights of the AY 2023-24 ITR filing

1. More than 6.77 crore ITRs for AY 2023-24 were filed till July 31, 16.1% more than the ITRs filed in the corresponding period last year.

2. Over 64.33 lakh ITRs were filed on a single day i.e., July 31

3. Around 53.67 lakh ITRs were filed by first-time filers, a fair indication of the widening of the tax base.

4. 5.63 crore returns e-verified. Of the e-verified ITRs, 3.44 crore ITRs were processed (61%) by July 31.

5. Over 32 crore successful logins on the e-filing portal (01.07.23 to 31.07.23). 2.74 crore successful logins on July 31 itself.

6. Over 1.26 crore challans were received through the TIN 2.0 payment system in July itself.

7. The e-filing Helpdesk handled more than 5 lakh queries in July itself.