Do you need to file your income tax returns?
Yes, if you have earned taxable income in India between the financial years 2015- 2016 and 2016- 2017, and you didn’t make the July 31, 2017, deadline, you need to file your belated income tax returns by March 31 this year.
Taxes are filed on the sum total of your income, not just from the salary you earn. You can avail income tax exemption on certain investments upon filling form 80(c).
What period do I need to file my returns for?
For the financial year 2015- 2016, the assessment year is 2016- 2017.
For the financial year 2016- 2017, the assessment year is 2017- 2018.
The deadline to file your income tax returns is July 31 each year. However, the final deadline is within a year, i.e. for the year 2016-2017, the last date to file tax returns is March 31, 2018.
Therefore, income tax returns for 2015- 2016 can be filed up to March 31, 2018 and no later than that.
Earlier, the final deadline was within two years, but the rule was amended to a year in 2017.
What is belated tax filing and revised tax filing?
A belated filing refers to filing income tax returns past the due date that usually falls in July or August of the same year. The last date for filing belated returns for 2015- 2016 and 2016- 2017 is March 31, 2018.
A revised return refers to changing what you filed originally to account for any details that you may have missed or filed incorrectly. The last date for filing the revised returns for 2015- 2016 is March 31, 2018.
Where can I file it?
You can file your income tax at the Income Tax Department’s e-filing website here. If you prefer to do it in person, there is good news for you. All income tax offices and Aayakar Seva Kendra centres in the country will be open between March 29 to 31, despite the Mahavir Jayanti and Good Friday holidays.
What happens if I don’t file it?
If your income is taxable and you don’t file your returns, you will be slapped with a tax notice that comes with a penalty. You may even be asked to pay an interest for the time period during which you have delayed.
So when do I file for the current financial year?
The deadline to file taxes for the current financial year is July 31, 2018. Last year, the deadline was extended by a month. With stricter regulations, it is unlikely that the deadline will be extended this year.
The deadline for belated filing of returns for the year 2017- 2018 is March 31, 2019.
Pro tip on filing returns
According to Chartered Accountant Lavanya Mohan, “If your Aadhar card is linked to your mobile phone, then you can authenticate your return in minutes using the OTP feature. Otherwise, you will have to print, sign and send the return to the processing center in Bangalore, which can be arduous.”