Income Tax e-filing

The process of submitting income taxes electronically has never been simpler, thanks to the launch of the new Income Tax e-file website. Through this easily approachable portal, e-filing Income Tax has become effortless. When you count on ITR e-filing to pay taxes, you get a 100% secure network and unlock much quicker submission of tax returns. Compared with the in-person tax submission at the Income Tax Office, ITR e-filing is hassle-free and comes in handy. You must file your taxes for each fiscal year if you fall under the taxpayer bracket in India.

In this blog, we have summarised everything you must know about e-filing 2.0. Everything is encapsulated here, from Income Tax e-Filing and required documents to eligibility and benefits.

What is Income Tax e Filing?

An Income Tax Return, abbreviated as ITR, is a form that taxpayers use to declare the income for a given fiscal year. You must file an ITR to claim your income tax refund and deductions, carry forward the losses (if any) to the next fiscal year, and much more.

The Income Tax Department has launched a new income tax portal, also known as e-filing 2.0, to offer taxpayers much-needed convenience. With the launch of the e-Filing income tax portal, you can file tax returns electronically. Now, you can easily file your income tax returns through a  secure network from the comfort of your home. All you have to do is, prepare the required set of documents beforehand so that you can upload their scanned copy to complete the procedure.

Procedure to Follow for e-Filing ITR Online 2022

The procedure for e-filing ITR online is quite easy. Regardless, the process is handy if you are a newbie or have filed your tax returns earlier.

The following steps provide the procedure for e-filing ITR Online in 2022.

Step 1: Go through the Income Tax Rules and tax slabs and know which category you fall under. Compute your tax liabilities.

Step 2: Once you are familiar with your tax liabilities, cite Form 26AS and get a summary of TDS payment. (The summary includes TDS payments for each quarter of the given financial year).

Note: By now, you have every information that might be required for e-filing Income Tax. Be prepared with the required documents

Step 4: Visit the e-Filing 2.0 portal and log in to your Income Tax e-filing account.

Step 5: If you are an existing user, log in through the credentials; otherwise, click on the ‘Register’ option.

Step 6: Once you log in to the Income Tax e-File website, click on the tab “e-File’. Next, click on the “File Income Tax Return” option.

Step 7: You must select the category that fits you, i.e. individual, Hindu Undivided Family (HUF), to name a few.

Step 8: Select the applicable ITR and tax bracket after choosing your category.

Step 9: Now, provide the bank account details (for first-time users), or pre-validate the existing account information.

Step 10: You will be redirected to another page, listing the entire information you have entered by now. It is essential that you read through the provided information and make changes where necessary.

Step 11: If you find the information appropriate, confirm it and validate the same.

Step 12: After confirming the information, the process of filing an e-ITR is complete. All you have to do is verify the returns and, most importantly, send a copy of the returns to the Income Tax Department.

Eligibility Criteria for Income Tax e-Filing

If you adhere to any of the below-depicted conditions, you will be eligible to file an Income Tax e-Filing.

• Any firm or organization is bound to file ITR, even if they have incurred a loss for the given financial year.
• An individual looking forward to applying for a loan, mortgage, or visa.
• Individuals earning profits from foreign assets or investing in the same.
• Individuals who are willing to claim refunds from the IT Department.
• If an individual is earning income from residential or commercial property.
• If the individual’s gross annual income exceeds the specifics mentioned below:

Individual’s Age	Gross annual income (In Rs.)
Individuals whose age is below 60 years	Rs. 2.5 lakh
Individuals who fall in the age group of 60 years to 80 years	Rs. 3.0 lakh
Individuals whose age is above 80 years	Rs. 5.0 lakh

If you don’t belong to any of the abovementioned categories, your income is not taxable. So, there is no need to file an ITR.

Documents Required for Income Tax e-Filing

For e-filing income tax returns, be prepared beforehand with the following documents. You will have to upload scanned copies of the documents while filling out the ITR form.

• Individual’s Permanent Account Number (PAN)
• The Aadhaar Card number of the taxpayer. Make sure your Aadhaar is linked with the PAN card as mandated by the Government for e-Filing income tax
• Taxpayer’s bank account details, including account number and IFSC code

If you are filing the ITR based on your gross annual salary, in addition to the aforementioned documents you will need to present your salary slips, Form 16 and HRA.

If you are willing to claim deductions, be prepared with the following documents:

• Income proof is associated with capital gains or income gains from residential or commercial property
• Details correlated to deductions falling under the deduction category.
• Information related to the mortgage or insurance
• Interest associated with the deposit as well as a savings account

Income Tax e-Filing Due Date

The unsaid part about the ITR process is that you can’t file a return round the clock any time during the financial year. You must file the Income Tax Returns before the due date released by the Income Tax Department.

The dates for filing ITR for different categories of taxpayers for the financial year 2021-22 are listed in the table below.

Taxpayer Category	Deadline to File Income Tax Returns
Individual Taxpayers	31st July 2022
Body of Individuals – BOI	31st July 2022
Hindu Undivided Family – HUF	31st July 2022
Association of Persons – AOP	31st July 2022
Businesses (Along with Audit Report)	31st September 2022
Businesses (Along with TP Report)	30th November 2022

You must file your income tax return 2021-2022 before due to, else you will have to submit the same with a penalty.

New Rules for Income Tax e-Filing

With the announcement of the Union Budget of 2021, the rules for ITR  e-filing were amended. It mandated a new income tax structure that was implemented around the nation. The tax exemptions mentioned in the earlier structure are no longer exempted in the updated rules. However, the best part about the new rules for e-filing Income Tax is the tax rates have been lowered, giving a sense of relaxation to the taxpayers. Additionally, the new structure mandated the taxpayers to file income tax returns through Aadhaar Card. Furthermore, it is important to link your PAN card with your Aadhaar card to make the entire process seamless.

What Happens if I e-file Income Tax Returns With Aadhaar?

This became a better option for taxpayers who don’t have a PAN Card by now. You can now file your returns through your Aadhaar Card. However, submitting your Aadhaar Card while filing your returns is mandatory as it authenticates your identity. The new income tax rules allow taxpayers to get Permanent Account Number while filing returns through Aadhaar based on their demographic data. Data in the UIDAI database will help the officials allot the taxpayer with Permanent Account Number.

Consequences of Not Linking PAN with Aadhaar Card

Lately, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) stated the taxpayers, urging them to link their PAN card with their Aadhaar. If taxpayers fail to comply with this rule, they will not be able to file income tax returns after the date specified by the officials. The Income Tax Authority of India introduced the rule for increasing compliance while easing the income tax e-filing process.

How to Check Income Tax e-Filing Status?

The Income Tax e-Filing portal allows you to check your tax e-filing status. You get the option to track the submitted application by visiting the official website. To track the status, you can use your login credentials or count on the acknowledgment number you provided while filing your returns.

To check the status of your e-filing, follow these below-mentioned steps:

Through Acknowledgement Number:

Step 1: Visit the official website of the Income Tax Department.

Step 2: Click on the tab named ‘ITR Status’.

Step 3: Enter the acknowledgement and PAN numbers in the text area.

Step 4: Enter the given captcha and click on the ‘Submit’ option.

Step 4: Next, the status of your filed return will be displayed on the screen.

Through Login Credentials:

Step 1: Visit the official e-filing portal and log in using the credentials created during the initial registration process.

Step 2: Click on the ‘View Returns/Forms’ tab, and a dropdown menu will appear.

Step 3: Select the year of return and assessment from the dropdown.

Step 4: Now, click on ‘Submit’.

As soon as you submit the details, the status of your filed returns will be displayed on the screen.

Benefits of Income Tax Returns e-Filing

With e-Filing Income Tax, taxpayers can unlock an array of benefits. Here’s what you can expect while ITR e-filing:

Track the Status of Filed Returns

Individuals who have opted to e-file the ITR get the option of tracking the status online with utmost ease. When the process was entirely offline, checking the status of filed returns was a complete rigmarole. Additionally, taxpayers had to send details through the post. However, with the e-Filing ITR option, individuals can now check the progress from the comfort of their homes with just a few clicks.

Quick Refund Processing

Compared to the offline procedure, the refund process has become easier than ever. The e-Filing Income Tax options allow you to enter bank details and get any refunded amount directly into your account.

Negligible Errors

Manual computation of Income Tax Returns leads to human errors. With the ITR e-Filing, the errors have been reduced to almost zero. Eliminating human computation by system-based calculation has made the process error-free and accurate.

E-Verification of Income Tax Returns

The online processing of ITR allows the authorities to put forward the e-Verification of the taxpayers. Earlier, all documents associated with the ITR were sent to the Income Tax Department Centralised Processing Center in Bengaluru (CPC) for verification.

Convenient

The e-filing ITR process offers the utmost convenience to taxpayers. At the same time, the entire process, from beginning to last, is less time-consuming. The earlier one, i.e. the offline process, was tedious, as the taxpayer had to make an in-person visit to the Income Tax Department. Now, it can be done from anywhere and with ease.

Easy Access to Submitted Documents

When the taxpayers e-file the ITR, a set of documents must be uploaded. So, these documents remain online in the Income Tax Department’s database. You can access the submitted documents anytime by entering your login credentials through the official website. Additionally, such benefits were absent in the manual process.

Compilation of Records

Earlier, taxpayers had to fill and submit several forms for filing income tax returns. But, this scenario is different from the current e-Filing Income Tax option. The entire data is auto-populated initially, making the process less complex and more straightforward.

Cost-effective

Filing ITR manually made taxpayers hire professionals as the process was more complex. Additionally, sending documents through post added to the cost. The e-Filing income tax process is simple, and individuals can file it themselves. So there is no need to hire anyone or send documents through the post, making it highly cost-efficient.

Receipt of Proof

While filing income tax returns online, you get a receipt and an acknowledgment number. You will receive the receipt via mail, which acts as proof for the taxpayers.

Penalty for Late Income Tax e-Filing

The Income Tax Department assigns a due date to file tax returns for any given financial year. If the taxpayer fails to file their returns within the given time frame, they will be bound to pay the penalty.

Lately, new rules were notified associated with penalties under Income Tax Act’s Section 234F. As per the update, if you file a return after the due date, at maximum, you may have to pay a penalty of INR 5,000.

Earlier, this amount clocked in at INR 10,000. But with the new rules, this amount has been reduced to INR 5,000. No penalty charges will be levied if you file a return before the due date.

However, considering the small taxpayers’ situation, the authority has decided that the taxpayers falling within the tax bracket of INR 5 lacs will have to pay INR 1,000 as a penalty.

Penalty Details for Late e-Filing of ITR

The table below shows the charges for the late e-filing of ITR:

Date for e-FIling the ITR	Total Gross Annual Income Is Less Than Rs 5,00,000	Total Gross Annual Income is Above Rs 5,00,000
Before 31st July 2022	0	0
From 31st July onwards	INR 1,000	INR 5,000

Related Resource

Income Tax

Income Tax Slabs and Rates

Income Tax Refund Status

Deductions Under Section 80c

ITR – Income Tax Return