Filing taxes is a mandatory affair in the country, as long as you meet some basic eligibility criteria. Being a resident of the country along with earning more than the minimum threshold of INR 2,50,000 during a fiscal year are the most prominent ones.

However, that is not where it all ends. There are three major steps when it comes to filing of your taxes and when done in the same order, you have a higher chance of completing your tax-related duties. These actions do not only ensure that your tax return is complete without any roadblocks but also make sure that your return is not tagged as invalid.

Firstly, you need to file your tax returns within the stipulated deadline, which usually is the end of July. The income tax department would then send an acknowledgment that they have received your return. On successful verification of the return from your end, the income tax department would start processing the return.

What is ITR-V?

The income tax department has done well to convert most of the steps associated with tax return filing into electronic format. When you are ready with your tax return, you can visit the income tax department’s e-filing website to file your returns. It can be a bit time consuming and requires inputs from your end.

Alternatively, you can use myITreturn’s platform t quickly file your tax returns. Once you do, the income tax department will provide you with an acknowledgement or ITR-V. Now it is your responsibility to download ITR-V and print ITR-V. 

You must then sign the document, which essentially confirms that have initiated a tax return process and are aware of the same. The obvious next question would be, where to send ITR-V? Well, the Income Tax department has made it easier.

At the bottom of your ITR-V, you can see the address of the Centralized Processing Centre, Bengaluru. You must post the form within 120 days of receiving ITR-V from the income tax department. 

There have been several instances where taxpayers have not received ITR-V in registered email id. What should be the next course of action in such cases? The income tax department usually takes about 2-3 days to post the ITR-V. But if you haven’t received it, you can manually download the form. How to download ITR-V you ask? Here are the steps to do the same.

Irrespective of which method you choose, it is important that a taxpayer files his/her return and verifies the return as well. While this might seem as a non-significant step in the process, but it can halt your tax return process temporarily or even permanently.

If you fail to verify your returns, the income tax department would consider your return filed as invalid. This means, that you will have to redo the entire process all over again. Start from uploading your Form 16 and filing your returns. To avoid duplicating your efforts and even throwing away your time and efforts invested the first time around, it is recommended to verify your returns.

Once a return is e-filed, Income-tax Department sends the ITR-V to the registered Email ID available in their database for that particular PAN.

You need to check in your Email first in order to download the ITR-V. Sometimes it take 2-3 days to receive the ITR-V. If you wish to download the ITR-V manually, please follow below steps:

Step 1:

Visit https://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in and click on "Login Here" option in case you already have an account on this website or click on "Register Yourself" button to create a new account.

Step 2:

Enter your credentials to login to the portal. 

Step 3:

After login click on "e-Filed Returns/Forms" under "My Account" section from top menu.

Step 4:

Select "Income-tax Return" from the drop-down and then click on 'Submit' button.

Step 5:

Click on the "Ack. No." to open the option to download ITR-V. Click on "ITR-V / Acknowledgement" to get your ITR-V. The password of your ITR-V is the combination of PAN (in lower case) and Date of Birth (in ddmmyyyy format). For example, if your PAN is AAAPA1111A and Date of Birth is 28/12/1986, then your password will be aaapa1111a28121986

You need to print this ITR-V. Sign it and post it to CPC, Bangalore to complete your e-filing process. Address of CPC is given at the bottom of every ITR-V, or you can also E-verify your return to complete your return filing process.

Please visit the below link to know the steps of E-verification process:

Steps to E-Verify your return  

Your responsibility just doesn’t end at filing your tax return. You must ensure that the verification is done and that you keep an eye on the status of your tax return. This will ensure that you are on the top of any unwanted situation. If your tax return needs some update, modification or explanation, you will be better prepared to do the same.

It is during the processing of your tax return, that the income tax department might come across any discrepancies or issues with your returns. In such scenarios, they would set the appropriate status to your income tax return and revert to you. You can then go ahead and make necessarily modifications and submit your tax return.

Usually, you can expect the return acknowledgement form in your mailbox within a couple of days of filing your returns. If you haven’t received, you can use the above steps to download the form manually and sign the printed copy and send it to CPC, Bengaluru. It is important that you do not forget to send your ITR-V, else your return processing would never begin. And the final status that you would be hoping to see in the e-filing website of income tax department is, ITR Processed.

FAQs

1. Is it mandatory to send ITR-V to CPC?
   Yes, it is. Only after you send the ITR-V to the CPC, will the income tax department start processing your return. If they do not receive your ITR-V within 120 days of issuing the return acknowledgement, your return would be deemed as invalid.
   
   
2. What is an invalid return?
   In simple words, it is equivalent to a taxpayer not filing a return for a fiscal year. You might end up filing your returns again, which defeats the purpose of filing on time.
   
   
3. It there a timeline that I must adhere to?
   Yes. The income tax department expects the ITR-V from your end within 120 days of sending the income tax return acknowledgement. 
   
   
4. Is taking a printout and sending the signed copy the only way to verify returns?
   No. Here are some other ways by which you can verify your returns. These include verification via Aadhar number and OTP, generating EVC via your net banking, generating EVC via your bank account, generating EVC via your demat account etc.