Come the month of July, all of us will get busy with filing Income Tax Returns or as they are popularly known as, ITR. But what exactly is an ITR and why should one bother about it? Well, in simple words it is a form that an individual taxpayer must file at the end of a fiscal year, to the Income Tax Department. And there are various types of ITR forms such as ITR 1, ITR 2, ITR 3, all the way up to ITR 7.
Why should you file one? Well, the Income Tax Act of 1961 mandates you to do so. If you are an individual taxpayer and your annual income exceeds INR 2,50,000 you must file your tax returns. And it must be done before the due date to avoid any unwanted outcomes. For income tax return apply, there are a few pre-requisite documents that you must possess. To ensure a smoother tax return filing season, you can keep these documents ready in advance.
- Form 16
Individuals who are salaried employees, this is one of the most important documents that they need for filing their returns. The organisation for which you work would provide you with Form 16, which comprises of information such as the salary that you have earned, the TDS or tax deducted at source, your PAN details, TAN details of your employer, breakdown of the salary and its different components etc.
If an organisation deducts TDS from your salary, they must provide you with Form 16. Inclusion of standard deductions to Form 16 means that you will have access to a modified form for the current year. When you receive the form, ensure that your PAN and other details are accurate.
- Form 26AS
It is a consolidated document that contains your tax statement. The information in the form includes TDS that your employer has deducted, TDS that your bank has deducted, TDS that any other organisation has deducted, any advance taxes that you have paid, self-assessment taxes that you have paid. To download Form 26AS, you must visit the TRACES website. Alternatively, you can log in to e-filing website and it will, in turn, redirect you to TRACES website. For more information on Form 26AS please visit the link “provide link for our article on How to view download Form 26AS”.
- Investment Proofs
All the investment that you have made through the year which qualifies for tax deduction under Section 80C, 80CCC and 80CCD (1) will help you bring down your tax liability for the year. Some of the most popular investment modes include Public Provident Fund (PPF), Employee’s Provident Fund (EPF), the premium paid towards life insurance policies, Equity Linked Saving Schemes (ELSS), National Pension Scheme (NPS) etc.
Once you have figured out all the details about filing your tax returns, it is important to stay on the top of it. One of the easiest ways is to keep a tab on income tax return e-filing status. Keeping an eye out on income tax e return status will ensure you are prepared for any surprises that the income tax department might throw at you.
There are different income tax return file status and they give you an indication as to how your return filing is going on. If you get a status of ITR status processed, there is no action needed from your end. However, ITR status defective means that there was an error in your income tax filing. Some common reasons for it include Non-disclosure of taxable income or partial disclosure of taxable income in the return for getting refunds, etc.
Similarly, if you get ITR status transferred to AO status it usually means, your return has been transferred an assessing officer. Usually returns that are a bit complicated need human intervention and AO takes over such cases. If you want to check your income-tax refund status, here are the steps to do the same.
You can check the status of your Income-tax Return from your Income-tax website login.
The steps for this are as given below:
Step 1: Login/Register on Income-tax website click here.
Step 2: After Login click on My Account >> e-Filed Returns/Forms.
Step 3: Click on Ack. No. of concerned Assessment Year.
Step 4: View the Return Status.
The status of Income-tax return varies from case to case. To know more, click here.
If you still aren’t sure if you should or should not file your tax returns, here are some requirements to help you out.
- Anyone who possesses a valid credit or
- Owns a vehicle or
- Occupies an area of immovable property or
- Is responsible for paying for foreign travel either for himself or someone else or
Filing your tax returns also keeps you away from paying hefty penalty as well. If you fail to file your tax returns within the deadline of 31st July but do so before the 31st of December, you must shell out INR 5,000 as fine. And if you miss the deadline of 31st December, you will have to pay INR 10,000 as fines. However, if your annual income doesn’t exceed INR 5,00,000, the maximum penalty that can be imposed on your is INR 1,000.
There are some other incentives of filing your tax returns as well. For starters, you can get easy approval for your loans, refund claims are easier, in the event of losses you can carry forward the same, it helps in quicker processing of visas as well and so on.
Thus, it is essential to keep an eye on the ITR status refund status. The steps mentioned above will help you verify ITR status by PAN number. Due diligence in getting all the documents right before filing your returns will ensure no issues. The presence of a simple mechanism to check income tax return status check by pan no will aid you in getting to know the status and act accordingly.
FAQ
- Which ITR status can I check online?
You can check the status of income tax returns online if only the same was filed online. Or otherwise referred to as e-file. - Is there any other way of checking the status?
Yes. You can visit the income tax’s e filing portal and check the status online. The website would expect your Pan number and acknowledgement number before it can provide you with your ITR status. - What is the next step?
It would largely depend on the type of status that you are able to see. If it shows as processed, It is recommended to go through the ITR intimation u/s 143(1) and if there is a change in the demand/refund (increase or fall), the assessee must take further action on the same. However, if there is a status such as defective, you need to file a rectification return. - When can I expect a refund?
It usually takes anywhere between 20-45 days from your e-verification date to complete the income tax refund. However, it might take a bit longer than that as well. Thus, you must first file your return and then verify the return to enable any refunds.
Comments
8 comments
Pls provide my acknowledgment receipt on my mail id vijupapu@gmail.com
Alpesg
Alpesh Bharatkumar trivedi
Please provide acknowledgement receipt of return filled FY 2015-2016.akil@quantinsti.com
how to pay the tax amount..
How to check my Income tax refund status
Plz send acknowledge ment on my e mail.
bholaGupta054@Email .com
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