Why You Must File Your ITR Before March 31

31 Mar, 2022 16:10 IST|Sakshi Post

ITR Filing: The deadline to file income tax returns is March 31, 2022. Taxpayers will no longer be able to file ITRs voluntarily after this date. Check out what will happen if they don't meet the deadline.

If you haven't already done so, file your ITR (Income Tax Returns) for the years 2020–2021 before the deadline, which is today. The deadline to file income tax returns for the fiscal years 2020–21, also known as Assessment Year 21–22, is March 31. As a result, you must complete the procedure as soon as possible to avoid being penalised. The previous deadline for submitting ITRs was July 31. However, owing to COVID-19, the deadline was extended. The deadline will no longer be extended, so people should file their ITR as soon as possible today. The Income Tax Department also reminded taxpayers about the due date for filing returns via Twitter.

The Income Tax Department has extended the deadline for filing the ITR to December 31, 2021, February 15, 2022, and ultimately March 15, 2022, as a result of COVID-19. The deadline for filing ITRs has been extended until March 31, 2022. The deadline for filing a belated ITR is March 31, 2022, under an income tax statute that allows taxpayers three months to do so. March 31, 2022, comes under an income tax law that gives taxpayers a three-month window to file a belated ITR.

What is the Belated Return?

"Belated return can be seen as a last chance to voluntarily file an ITR." If you miss the due date for filing a belated return, you lose the opportunity to voluntarily file an ITR and can only file it in case of scrutiny initiated by the tax department," said Neeraj Agarwala, partner at Nangia Andersen LLP."

What happens if a taxpayer fails to file an ITR by March 31st?

If a taxpayer is unable to file their taxes by the 31st of March, he or she will be subject to a penalty. Aside from that, customers will have to pay a higher interest rate. If a taxpayer misses the deadline, he or she will not be able to file their returns voluntarily and will only be allowed to file an ITR if the I-T department sends them a notice.

Taxpayers with an annual income of more than 5 lakhs will be fined Rs 5,000 (on taxable income) if they fail to file overdue tax returns. The fee will be Rs 1,000 for people with an annual income of less than Rs 5 lakh (taxable income).

It's worth noting that the law applies to all taxpayers, and they must pay the penalty even if their return is for a non-taxable sum. In severe situations, the taxpayer may be sentenced to prison. The IT department, on the other hand, has the authority to levy a penalty of 50% of the tax due.

It should also be highlighted that the taxpayer must pay interest at the rate of 1% every month to settle the penalty. If a person fails to file their taxes, they may be subject to increased TDS (Tax Deducted at Source). Non-filers will be subject to TDS at double the regular rate, or 5%, under a provision in last year's budget.

A "non-filer" is someone who hasn't filed an ITR in the two years leading up to the year in which tax is due to be deducted.

If you want to file your ITR as well, follow the steps outlined here:

Step 1: Go to the e-Portal for Income Taxes.

Step 2: On the website's homepage, look for the "login here" option and click it.

Step 3: Now, under the "input your user ID" box, enter your permanent account number (PAN) and click "Proceed."

Step 4: The "secure access message" will now be sent to the taxpayer. They must confirm the "secure access message" after it has been received.

Step 5: The user must now select how they want to receive the six-digit one-time password (OTP). Whether you choose to get the OTP by phone or text after you've made your choice, press enter.

Step 6: It should be mentioned that an individual can log in to the income tax e-filing platform using their registered Aadhaar number or net banking.

Step 7: If the taxpayer chooses the Aadhaar option, they must submit an Aadhaar number as well as the OTP they got.

Step 8: To access their account via net banking, taxpayers must enter their user ID and password.

Step 9: After you've finished the login procedure, you'll need to process the IT returns for the fiscal years 2021–22 according to the instructions on the screen.

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