Due dates for filing Income Tax Returns

By filing your Income Tax Return, you might be eligible to receive an income tax refund if you have overestimated and paid excessive taxes to the government. Your Income Tax Return (ITR) also plays an important role when applying for credit cards, loans, etc. But when is the ITR filing date?

What are Income Tax Returns?

The Income Tax Return (ITR) is a form submitted to the government reporting the details of your total income earned from different sources throughout the year, after which you pay taxes. The ITR contains complete information on all incomes and tax-saving investments of an individual/organization in a particular financial year. 

What do Financial Year (FY) and Assessment Year (AY) mean?

These two simple terms are often confused. The tax returns you are filing right now are for the income you earned in the financial year 2021-22, i.e., for the income you earned between 1st April 2021 and 31st March 2022. 

On the other hand, the assessment year will be the year you declare your income and file your returns for tax assessment. Thus, for the income made during the FY (in this case, FY 2021-22), the immediate next year would be the assessment year (1st April 2022 to 31st March 2023). Hence, in this case, the assessment year would be AY 2022-23.

Below we will highlight the due dates of the income tax returns (ITR) for the FY 2021-22.

Income Tax Return filing due dates for FY 2021-22 (AY 2022-23)

Category of Taxpayer	Last Date for ITR Filing – FY 2021-22
Individuals/HU/AOP/BOI(books of accounts not required to be audited)	31st July 2022
Businesses That Require Auditing	31st October 2022
Businesses that Require TP Reporting	30th November 2022

What happens if you miss your income tax return’s last date?

Interest: If you file your ITR after the last due date, you will have to pay interest on the unpaid tax amount.

Late fee: For Indians, under Section 234F, a late fee of Rs. 5000 will have to be paid. It can be reduced to Rs 1,000 if the income totals less than Rs 5 lakh.

Loss Adjustment: A loss adjustment can significantly reduce your tax liability. If you experience losses in the stock market, business, mutual funds, or property, you can carry them forward and adjust them in next year’s income. It is allowed if you inform the income tax department by claiming the loss on your ITR and filing it by the last date.

Belated Return: After missing the last due date for filing the ITR in 2022, you can still file an income tax return. It is called a belated return. However, you will have to pay the extra interest and late fees, and you will also not be allowed to carry forward your losses for future adjustment. 

The income tax department has specified the last date for filing a belated ITR in 2022 as 31st December of the assessment year (unless the government grants an income tax due date extension). For this year’s tax returns, you can file a belated return before 31st December 2022.

Important due dates of income tax return filing for FY 2021-22

Regarding income tax, certain compulsory formalities must be completed within the given due dates. These include due dates for filing your income tax returns (ITR), paying the advance tax on time, etc. 

Following are the important tax dates for the FY 2021-22 (AY 2022-23):

Deadline	Nature of Compliance	Compliance Details	Forms/documents
15/06/2022	Advance taxes	First installment for FY 2022-23	Challan No./ITNS 280
31/07/2022	ITR filing for non-audit cases	ITR filing for FY 2021-22	Applicable ITR Form
15/09/2022	Advance taxes	Second installment for FY 2022-23	Challan No./ITNS 280
30/09/2022	Tax audit report(not including transfer pricing)	Tax audit report for FY 2021-22	Form 3CA/3CB and 3CD
31/10/2022	Transfer Pricing Report (any international or special domestic transactions)	Submission of reports for FY 2021-22	Form 3CEB
31/10/2022	ITR filing for audit cases without transfer pricing	ITR filing for FY 2021-22	Applicable ITR Form
30/11/2022	ITR filing for transfer pricing cases	ITR filing for FY 2021-22(if having international or specified domestic transactions)	Applicable ITR Form
15/12/2022	Advance taxes	Third installment for FY 2022-23	Challan No./ITNS 280
31/12/2022	Belated return or amended return filing	Belated return or revised return for FY 2021-22	Belated/revised return
15/03/2023	Advance taxes	1. Fourth installment for FY 2022-232. The single and final installment for taxpayers opting for the presumptive taxation scheme for FY 2022-23	Challan No./ITNS 280

Do stay on top of the latest news to be aware of any income tax due date extensions.

The bottom line

The last date is crawling in, and it is never a good idea to leave the work for later, hoping for ITR date extensions. So get the forms relevant to you or your business and start the process as soon as possible!

FAQs

How to claim an income tax refund once the due date has passed?

You need to file an ITR to claim any kind of income tax refund. In case you do miss the tax department’s deadline for filing your ITR, you can still file a belated return by 31st December of the same assessment year. A fine of Rs 5,000 and interest will be charged for the delay in filing the return. However, if the person’s total income comes out to less than Rs 5 lakh, then the fine can be brought down to Rs 1,000.

How can I file an income tax return after the due date has passed?

You can still submit a belated return by the 31st of December of the same assessment year.

How to pay income taxes after the due date?

If you miss the due date for paying your taxes and filing your return, a late filing penalty and interest will be levied against you while submitting a belted return. The penalty is Rs 5,000 for the delay in filing the return, but if the person’s total income is lower than Rs 5 lakh, the fee payable is brought down to Rs 1,000.

Under which section can income tax returns be filed after the due date?

Section 139 (4) allows people to file a belated return after the due date. It also states a penalty of Rs 5,000 would be charged for the delay in filing the return, but if the total income of the person is lower than Rs 5 lakh, the fee payable is Rs 1,000.

What is the last date for filing an income tax return?

The due date to submit an income tax return is usually the 31st of July for individuals and non-audit cases. While for audit cases, the tax return due date is the 31st of October. These dates are of the relevant assessment year. 

However, the government often provides extensions to these ITR due dates to encourage more people to pay their taxes on time.

How to revise my income tax returns before the due date?

In case a taxpayer wants to amend the original return due to some changes or miscalculations, they can do so by using the revised return option under Section 139 (5). The revised return has to be filed as per the standard procedure that was followed for the original tax return filing. However, the ITR has to be submitted by the taxpayer under Section 139 (5). The entire e-verification process will have to be completed while amending the return.

How to correct income tax returns after the due date?

In the case the taxpayer wants to revise their original return after the due date due to some amendments, they can do so using the revised return under section 139 (5). A belated return may be filed by 31st December of the assessment year.

However, taxpayers cannot file an updated return once this date is passed. In deadlines missed due to extreme situations, taxpayers can lodge a request to their AO for permission to file past tax returns under Section 119.

What is the last date for filing tax returns for Trusts?

The due date for submitting the tax return of trusts for FY 2021-22 depends on whether their accounts need auditing. For accounts that do not require a tax audit, the deadline is 31st July 2022, unless a due date extension is given. On the other hand, if the accounts of the trust have to be audited, the last date to file the ITR will be 31st October 2022.

Lastly, if the trust has to furnish a report in Form No. 3CEB under section 92E along with their income tax returns, the due date for filing their ITR would be 30th November 2022.

What is the due date for companies to file their tax returns?

The last date for local companies to file their tax returns for FY 2021-22 is 31st October 2022. For companies having any international transaction or special domestic transactions and who are required to submit a report in Form No. 3CEB under section 92E, the due date to file their ITR would be 30th November 2022.

What is the due date to file ITR?

The last due date to file the ITR is 31st July of the relevant assessment year for individuals and 31st October for taxpayers who have to submit an audit report with their tax returns.

How long is the income tax return due date extension for FY 2021-22, AY 2022-23?

For most individual taxpayers, the last date for filing their income tax returns for FY 2021-22 is the 31st of July 2022. Returns filed after the deadline would be considered belated returns and can be fined up to Rs 5,000. In case the person’s total income is lower than Rs 5 lakh, the fee payable is brought down to Rs 1,000.