Q1. What is Income Tax return?
Ans – Income Tax Return (ITR) is a tax form that contains details of income earned during a financial year, tax payable for the applicable fiscal and tax paid/refund applicable to an income tax assessee for the applicable financial year. ITR needs to be submitted every year with the tax authorities and the process of submission is termed as ITR filing.
Q2. Do I have to file my Income Tax Return if I have a PAN card?
Ans – While having PAN does not make filing of Income Tax Return a mandatory requirement, there are some cases in which you need to mandatorily file an income tax return. Some cases that require you to mandatorily file ITR include:
- If you are seeking a refund for excess tax paid
- If you have income in excess of the basic exemption limit
- If you are planning to carry forward losses from the current fiscal, etc.
Q3. What is the tax rate of the financial year 2023-24?
Ans – Individuals and HUFs can opt for either the Existing Tax Regime or the New Tax Regime with lower rate of taxation (u/s 115 BAC of the Income Tax Act) for FY 23-24 (AY 24-25). In case you opt for concessional rates under the New Tax Regime, you cannot avail certain exemptions and deductions (like 80C, 80D, HRA, 80TTB) available under the Existing Tax Regime. However, the New Tax Regime can be beneficial for those who invest less in tax-saving options.
Given below are the income tax slabs for individuals, both residents and non-residents (less than 60 years old) and HUFs for FY 2021-2023-24:
| Existing Tax Regime | New Tax Regime | ||
| Income Slab | Income Tax Rate | Income Slab | Income Tax Rate |
| Up to Rs. 2,50,000 | Nil | 0 – Rs. 3,00,000 | Nil |
| Rs. 2,50,001 – Rs. 5,00,000 | 5% above Rs. 2,50,000 | Rs. 3,00,000 – Rs. 6,00,000 | 5% |
| Rs. 5,00,001-Rs. 10,00,000 | Rs. 12,500 + 20% above Rs. 5,00,000 | Rs. 6,00,000 -Rs. 9,00,000 | 10% |
| Above Rs. 10,00,000 | Rs. 1,12,500 + 30% above Rs. 10,00,000 | Rs. 9,00,00 – Rs. 12,00,000 | 15% |
| Rs. 12,00,000 – Rs. 15,00,000 | 20% | ||
| Above Rs. 15,00,000 | 30% | ||
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Income tax slabs for individuals, both residents and non-residents (aged 60 years or more but less than 80 years) and HUFs for FY 2023-24:
| Existing Tax Regime | New Tax Regime | ||
| Income Slab | Income Tax Rate | Income Slab | Income Tax Rate |
| Up to Rs. 3,00,000 | Nil | 0 – Rs. 3,00,000 | Nil |
| Rs. 3,00,001 – Rs. 5,00,000 | 5% above Rs. 3,00,000 | Rs. 3,00,000 – Rs. 6,00,000 | 5% |
| Rs. 5,00,001-Rs. 10,00,000 | Rs. 10,000 + 20% above Rs. 5,00,000 | Rs. 6,00,000 -Rs. 9,00,000 | 10% |
| Above Rs. 10,00,000 | Rs. 1,10,000 + 30% above Rs. 10,00,000 | Rs. 9,00,00 – Rs. 12,00,000 | 15% |
| Rs. 12,00,000 – Rs. 15,00,000 | 20% | ||
| Above Rs. 15,00,000 | 30% | ||
Income tax slabs for individuals, both residents and non-residents (aged 80 years and above) and HUFs for FY 2023-24:
| Existing Tax Regime | New Tax Regime | ||
| Income Slab | Income Tax Rate | Income Slab | Income Tax Rate |
| Up to Rs. 5,00,000 | Nil | 0 – Rs. 3,00,000 | Nil |
| Rs. 5,00,001 – Rs. 10,00,000 | 20% above Rs. 5,00,000 | Rs. 3,00,000 – Rs. 6,00,000 | 5% |
| Above Rs. 10,00,000 | Rs. 1,00,000 + 30% above Rs. 10,00,000 | Rs. 6,00,000 -Rs. 9,00,000 | 10% |
| Rs. 9,00,00 – Rs. 12,00,000 | 15% | ||
| Rs. 12,00,000 – Rs. 15,00,000 | 20% | ||
| Above Rs. 15,00,000 | 30% | ||
Q4. I do not have PAN card. Can I file ITR?
Ans – No. Having a valid PAN is mandatory for filing ITR online or offline.
Q5. My employer deducts and deposits TDS on my behalf. Do I need to still file my income tax return?
Ans – Yes. If TDS is being deducted from your salary, your annual income exceeds the basic exemption limit as per computations made by your employer. Thus, you are mandatorily required to file your income tax return in such a situation. Alternately, if you are eligible for a refund in case your employer deducted excess tax, you will have to file ITR to claim the refund amount that’s due.
Q6. Is e-Filing mandatory?
Ans – Under existing ITR rules, e-Filing is mandatory except in the following cases
- The assesse is a super senior citizen (aged 80 years or more during the fiscal)
- The assesse is an individual/HUF with total income not exceeding 5 lakh for the applicable fiscal.
Such individuals have the option of filing their ITR offline.
Q7. How can I e-file my return?
Ans – You can e-file your Income Tax returns through the Income Tax e-Filing website. You can alternately seek help of a third party such as a Chartered Accountant (CA), e-Return intermediary (ERI) or an authorised representative who has substantial knowledge of current Income Tax Rules to file your ITR easily.
Q8. I am a salaried individual. What are the documents that I need to file my ITR?
Ans- If you are a salaried individual, the primary documents that you need in order to file your taxes correctly are – Form 16 and Form 26AS. Form 16 is provided to salaried tax payers by their employer and Form 26AS can be downloaded from the TRACES website. You can alternately use your payslip if Form 16 is not available, but the process will be more time consuming.
Q9. What is Form 16?
Ans- Form 16 is a tax document provided by employers to salaried employees after the end of each financial year. The key details available in Form 16 include tax deduction details along with details of salary, allowances, etc. as submitted by you to your employer. Employers typically provide Form 16 to their employees after the end of the financial year. Having the Form 16 handy can help you file your ITR with ease.
Q10. What is Form 26AS?
Ans- Form 26AS is a statement maintained and generated by the Income Tax Department for each individual assesse. Key details included in Form 26AS are:
- TDS (Tax Deducted at Source)
- TCS (Tax Credited at Source)
- Advance Tax/Self-Assessment Tax
- 15 G/H Details
- Details of refund pay out
Q11. Do I need to submit any documents along with my ITR?
Ans – No. You do not need to submit any documents along with your ITR. Specific documents may however be required if the Income Tax Department asks for it.
Q12. I am a pensioner receiving monthly pension from my bank. Do I get a Form 16?
Ans- For the purpose of income tax, monthly pension is treated as salary. Thus, as a pensioner, you can get your Form 16 from the bank through which you receive your pension.
Q13. Are there any benefits of filing ITR online?
Ans- While it is currently mandatory to e-file your ITR in case your annual income exceeds Rs. 5 lakh, there are various benefits of e-filing too. The key benefits of e-Filing over the earlier paper-based systems are that returns can be submitted faster and more accurately. Returns submitted online are automatically processed by systems and thus refunds too are issued faster if you are file ITR online.
Q14- What is the Last Date for e-filing ITR?
Ans- The Last Date for e-filing ITR (for the previous FY) was 31st July 2022. ITRs filed beyond this date are classified as late filings.
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Late Filing and Revised Filing
Q 1- I missed the last date to file my ITR. Can I still file my return?
Ans- Yes. You can make a late filing of returns. However, you have to pay the applicable late filing fees in such circumstances.
Q2- What are late filing fines?
Ans- As of AY 2024-25, the following late filing charges have been introduced:
| Date of ITR Filing | Late Filing Charges for Income up to Rs. 5 lakh | Late Filing Charges for Income over Rs. 5 lakh |
| For late ITR filing (i.e. after last date) but before/on 31st December | Rs. 1,000 | Rs. 5,000 |
| Late ITR filing between 1st January and 31st March | Rs. 1,000 | Rs. 10,000 |
Q3- If I make a mistake while filing my return. Can I make a correction later on?
Ans- Yes you can make corrections to your already submitted ITR by filing a revised return. However, a revised return is possible only if you have filed your original ITR within the due date.
Post Tax Filing
Q1. How long do I need to keep my income tax documents after filing ITR?
Ans – Under normal circumstances, the Income Tax Department can ask for Income Tax Return-related documents for a period of up to 6 years prior to the current fiscal. This is the minimum period for which you must retain your tax filing related documents. However, as the IT Department may ask for such documents at a later date as well, it is advisable you hold on to the documents beyond this 6-year period.
Q2. When will I get my tax refund?
Ans- Typically an income tax refund gets processed and credited within 20-45 days from the date of e-verification of ITR. The refund period is however longer in case you have verified your return using physical signed ITR-V sent to CPC Bengaluru. You can also check the status of your refund on the Income Tax Department e-filing website and know the reason for delays, if any.
Q3. What is ITR-V?
Ans- ITR-V is a one-page acknowledgement issued automatically after completion of e-filing ITR. Subsequently you need to complete e-verification of ITR-V using EVC or Aadhaar OTP or send a signed copy to CPC Bengaluru to complete the ITR filing process.
Q4. What happens if I do not e-verify/send copy of ITR-V?
Ans- ITR-V e-verification/sending signed physical copy to CPC Bengaluru is the final step for completion of ITR filing and acts as documentary proof that you have filed your return. If you do not e-verify ITR-V or send the signed copy to CPC Bengaluru within 120 days of tax filing, you have to file a fresh return and begin the ITR filing process from the start.