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What are Financial Year (FY) and Assessment Year (AY)?
The return you are currently filing is for income earned in FY 2022-23, i.e. for income earned between 1 April 2022 and 31 March 2023. The assessment year is the review year for the financial year 2022-23; You file your returns and declare your investments for tax assessment. For income earned during the financial year (here FY 2022-23), the assessment year will be the later year, i.e. 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024. Therefore, the assessment year will be the assessment year 2023-24.
Earlier, the government extended the due dates for ITR filing for various reasons. However, this year it is expected that the date will not be extended. This is also because the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has notified the new ITR form for the assessment year 2023-24 more than a month in advance. The new ITR forms were notified by the CBDT on February 10 and are available on the Income Tax website.
When can you file ITR for AY 2023-24
Since the assessment year 2023-24 is starting from April 1, taxpayers will be able to file returns of income made in the financial year 2023-24 from April 1. Return filing facility will be available till 31st July, failing which you will have to file a belated ITR, which comes at a certain cost.
Who is required to file ITR?
Anyone with income above the basic exemption limit of Rs 2.5 lakh must file an ITR. Individuals with taxable income up to Rs 5 lakh do not pay any tax. From the assessment year 2024-24, the basic exemption limit under the new tax regime will be Rs 3 lakh.
What is New in ITR Form?
The new ITR form notified by the tax department includes a separate schedule for income from crypto and other virtual digital assets. The government announced rules for the taxation of crypto income in Budget 2022.
Steps To File an Income Tax Return AY 2023-24
Since the assessment year begins on 1 April, taxpayers would be able to file their income tax returns from 1 April onwards and the deadline for filling ITR for the FY 2023-24 is 31 July.
Visit the official website, incometax.gov.in.
Log in with your personal credentials like User ID and Password. If you are doing this for the first time, sign up as a new user to create login details.
Now go to the homepage, and click on the e-file menu.
Click on the direct link for the income tax return.
An online ITR form will appear on the screen.
Enter all the required details.
Now go to the section ‘Tax Paid and Verification’.
You have to either opt for e-verify or not.
Preview and submit your details.
What happens if you miss the ITR filing deadline?
Interest: If you file your return after the due date, you will be required to pay interest under section 234A at 1% per month or part of the month on the unpaid tax amount.
Late fee: Late fee of Rs 5,000 has to be paid under section 234F. This will be reduced to Rs 1,000 if the total income is less than Rs 5 lakh.
Loss Adjustment: If you have incurred a loss in the stock market, mutual funds, properties, or any of your business, you can carry it forward and adjust it against next year’s income. This helps in reducing your tax liability significantly. The loss set-off is allowed only if you declare the loss in your ITR and file it with the Income Tax Department before the deadline.
Belated Return: If you miss the due date to file ITR, you can file the return after the due date, which is called a belated return. However, you will still have to pay the late fee and interest, and will not be allowed to carry forward the loss for future adjustments. The Income Tax Department has also specified the due date for filing belated returns which is 31st December of the assessment year (unless extended by the government). For this year you can file a late return till 31 December 2023.
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