When filing income tax returns at the last minute, it’s easy to make mistakes. Do not worry if you overlooked something or made a mistake and only realised it after filing your income tax return with the official portal of the Income Tax Department.
By filing a revised income tax return, you can correct the mistakes that were committed while filing the ITR under the Income Tax Act of 1961. The deadline to file a revised ITR for AY 2021-22 is currently the 31st of March 2022 or before the assessment is completed, whichever comes first. It is not suggested that you wait until the due date, which is 31st of March 2022, to file your updated or the revised or changed return, as that will be the last day to revise your return once the Income Tax Department has completed the evaluation.
Committing of Errors in the Filing of Original Return
Below are some of the major errors which are committed by the assesses filing the ITR:
- Providing the wrong bank details,
- Providing personal information of the person or the assessee which is wrong,
- Furnishing of details and filing the same in an incorrect ITR,
- A major mismatch of income between the ITR and 26AS,
- Missed to furnish details of certain incomes or applicable deductions,
- There was a major error in missing the report and carrying forward losses committed.
This is not an exhaustive list and can be understood to be some of the frequent ITR problems that can be addressed by filing a Revised Return.
Statutory Provision
If a taxpayer or an assessee for that matter discovers that he can committed an omission or a false statement in his or her initial or original ITR or return, then he or she may file a revised return at any time until the end of the relevant assessment year or the conclusion of the assessment, whichever is coming or occurring first as per provisions stated under section of Income Tax Act namely, Section 139(5).
Last Date for Filing ITR
The deadline or the final date for filing an amended ITR is 31st of December of the assessment year which is relevant or in question. But considering the current pandemic situation which was caused due to the outbreak of Covid-19, the government has extended the deadline for filing changed or revised or updated ITRs for the relevant FY 2020-21 from 31st of December to 31st of March 2022.
Steps to be Followed for Filing a Revised Return
The following steps should be followed for filing a revised Income Tax Return:
Step 1: Access the online portal of the Income Tax Department at www.incometax.gov.in.
Step 2: After login using your credentials, check the status of your initial filed return which in fact is the original return. For this use the path: e-file – Income Tax Return – View Filed Returns. It is not possible to change the status of a return that has been processed already by the portal or the department.
However, even for taxpayers whose return status is “Processed,” the opportunity to alter the return is available for the relevant FY 2020-21.
The reason for this could be that many taxpayers have already submitted their returns by the time the Annual Information Statement or the AIS, is made available on the portal. They are expected to update the return depending on the information in AIS that is already furnished.
Step 3: The original return’s acknowledgement contains a 15-digit Acknowledgement number or a number which acknowledges the filing and receipt of the ITR. And in case of revised return filing, Receipt No. will be auto-populated, and the filed under the section namely, 139(5) will be underlined and highlighted.
The number on the receipt and the number on the acknowledgement are and will be the same. The same path applies to the TAB filing status as it does to the initial ITR.
Step 4: Now, fill in the right details, taking into account the inaccuracies that were committed while filing the original return, and file the return in the same manner as the original return was filed. Filing a revised ITR follows the identical steps as filing an original ITR by the assessee.
Step 5: Next step would be to verify the return or the revised return which was filed by the person. After you’ve filed your updated ITR, complete the verification of your return to ensure that it’s accurate and no further errors have been committed. Your updated tax return will not be accepted by the Income Tax Department unless it is confirmed. It is important to note that if your initial return was not e-verified, filing an amended or revised ITR will indicate an error. So, please complete the e-verification of your original return prior to filing the revised or amended return.
Step 6: The final step is to validate the return that was revised and filed as the revised return cannot be submitted unless the same is validated.
When an assessee files a revised return the Income Tax Department will retrieve from tis database the original return filed by the assessee on the basis of the Acknowledgement Number issued. And then this will be replaced with the new or revised return that was filed by the assessee.
Fine or Penalty for Filing a Revised Return
The Income Tax Department shall not levy any fine, penalty or even fees for filing the revised return by the assessee.
Other Important Points to be Noted
The following points shall also be noted as additional ones with respect to the filing of a revised return for the year of 2021-22:
- The filing or the revised return can be done on the same ITR Form as the original return or on a different and completely new ITR Form.
- As long as you file a revised return within the time limits that are specified by the Act and allied circulars regarding the same, there is no limit to how many times you can file the same. However, it should be noted that returns that have been amended multiple times have a great chance of receiving a letter instigating scrutiny from the Department of Income Tax.
- A return which falls into the Belated Return category can also be revised or amended.
- Even if you have received an income tax refund, you can amend or make changes to your tax return. The receipt of a refund does not imply that your evaluation has been completed. In the case of an income tax refund, an intimation is provided under Section 143(1), which is distinct from the Assessment indicated above.
- Even after receiving an intimation under section 143(1), a revised return might be filed.
- If you get a notice under section 148, you can update your ITR since section 148 of the Income Tax Act states that all of the provisions of section 139 apply to such a return. There is no penalty if the ITR is amended and updated before the Section 148 notification is issued.
So, we can now conclude that, prior to receiving any notice or intimation for rectification from the Income Tax Department, it would be a better option to file a revised return on your own. And on the first place, it would always be wise to ensure that the original return is cross verified thoroughly prior to the same being submitted to the Income Tax Department for any errors.
But there are certain cases which may arise after the filing of the return making you amend and file a revised return and in either case ensure that it is done duly without committing more errors again.
