The term income tax return can be described as a form or a group of forms that you file online with income tax authority of your country. In case of India it is the Income Tax Department. This includes necessary details such as how much you are earning and how much you are spending.
With the help of income tax returns you are able to calculate the amount of tax that you have to pay, request refunds in case you have paid more taxes than what you should have, and schedule tax payments if needed.
In India the income tax has to be filed once a year. This is applicable if you are an individual or a business that has income that is worthy of being reported.
This includes categories such as the following:
The term e-filing can also be expressed as electronic filing. This is the process where you submit your income tax returns online. There are two ways in which this can be done.
In the last few years e-filing has become a lot more popular simply because of the fact that it is a lot more convenient. You can do it for free and you also do not require to print a lot of documents as well.
Budget 2020 has announced new tax slabs with reduced rates for those previous exemption and deduction under a simplified tax regime. The new tax system will co-exist with the old one with three slabs and various exemptions and deductions for taxpayers.
The following new income tax slabs are applicable for FY 2020-2021 (AY 2021-2022). According to budget, if a taxpayer opts for the new regime, then his/her income will be taxed as below slabs:
Income Tax Slab Per Annum |
Tax Rate |
Up to Rs. 2.5 lakh |
Nil |
Above Rs. 2.5 lakh to Rs. 5 lakh |
5 percent |
Above Rs. 5 lakh to Rs. 7.5 lakh |
10 percent |
Above Rs. 7.5 lakh to Rs. Rs. 10 lakh |
15 percent |
Above Rs. 10 lakh to Rs. 12.5 lakh |
20 percent |
Above Rs. 12.5 lakh to Rs. 15 lakh |
25 percent |
Above Rs. 15 lakh |
30 percent |
The individual person who is earning money and falls under the income tax slabs has liable to pay income tax return in India annually.
The basic tax has to pay by an individual depends on their age and residential status. According to Income Tax Department; age, resident individual taxpayers are divided into three categories such as:
See, these persons are required to file income tax return:
As far as the rule of Income Tax Act of India it is concerned that there are several criteria that come into play.
In case you are younger than 60 years and your gross income is more than a minimum level in a year, you would have to pay income tax. As of now, the minimum level for people in this age group in India is INR 2.5 lakh a year. For people between 60 and 80 years, this figure is INR 3 lakh. In case of people older than 80 years, the minimum level is INR 5 lakh a year.
As far as the businesses are concerned they have to file their income tax return for a financial year. It does not matter if they have incurred losses or earned profits in the period under consideration.
The taxpayers that come under the following tax slabs for financial year 2020-2021 have to file income tax.
As far as people under 60 are concerned, there is a definite income tax rate in India for direct taxation that comes to play a great factor. For example, people earning less than INR 2.5 lakh a year do not need to pay any income tax.
The individual resident who earns between INR 2.5 lakh and INR 5 lakh a year need to pay an income tax of 5 per cent, plus 4% education cess and a rebate of Rs 12,500 will be available under Section 87A of Income Tax Act.
People who earn between INR 5 lakh and INR 10 lakh a year need to pay an income tax of 20 per cent, plus 4% education cess. People who earn more than INR 10 lakh a year need to pay a tax of 30 per cent of income with 4% education cess.
Here you can take a look at the below income tax (I-T) slabs for different taxpayers would applicable for Financial Year 2019-20 (Assessment Year 2020-21):
Income Tax Slabs |
Tax Rates and Cess |
Up to Rs 2,50,000 |
No Tax |
Rs 2,50,001 – Rs. 5,00,000 |
5% of (Total Income – Rs 2,50,000)+ 4% cess |
Rs 5,00,001 – 10,00,000 |
Rs 12,500 + 20% of (Total Income – Rs 5,00,000) + 4% cess |
More than Rs 10,00,000 |
Rs 1,12,500 + 30% of (Total Income – Rs 10,00,000) + 4% cess |
Income Tax Slabs |
Tax Rate and Cess |
Up to Rs. 3,00,000 |
No Tax |
Rs. 3,00,001 – Rs. 5,00,000 |
5% of (Total Income – Rs 3,00,000) + 4% cess |
Rs. 5,00,001 – Rs. 10,00,000 |
Rs 10,000 + 20% of (Total Income – Rs 5,00,000) + 4% cess |
More than Rs. 10,00,000 |
Rs 1,10,000 + 30% of (Total Income – Rs 10,00,000) + 4% cess |
Income Tax Slabs |
Tax Rate and Cess |
Up to Rs. 5,00,000 |
No Tax |
Rs. 5,00,001 – Rs. 10,00,000 |
20% of (Total Income – Rs 5,00,00) + 4% cess |
More than Rs. 10,00,000 |
Rs 1,00,000 + 30% of (Total Income – Rs 10,00,000) + 4% cess |
An ITR receipt is an important document for a responsible taxpayer as it tells more than the Form 16. While Form 16 only shows the salary and tax deductions from an employer, ITR shows the income from other sources also.
If you want to know more benefits of ITR filing, learn from ClearTax's benefits of filing income tax return on time.
There are two ways to file your income tax return – you can upload your income tax return, or you can prepare and submit it online.
1. Prepare the income tax return by using the downloaded software (through Excel or JAVA utility form), save it and upload the same with e-filing website.
2. Prepare and submit income tax return (ITR) online
Before going to filing the income tax return, you need to keep all the key documents handy with you which will make easy and take less time to complete that including the Form 16 which is given by your employers, Form 26AS (tax credit statement), bank statements, copy of returns filed last year.
Step 1: To e-file your income tax return, you will have to register yourself on the Income Tax Department, Government of India official e-Filing website (https://www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in). Your permanent account number (PAN) will act as your User ID.
You can start the process by downloading the income tax return preparation software from the official website of the Income Tax Department of India. You can get this from the “downloads” page of said website.
Step 2: In the second step you have to prepare the return by using the software that you have downloaded. For this, first you need to gather all your personal financial data such as income, deductions, and tax payments to name a few. You can then go on and fill up your tax payments and other personal details by using the pre-fill button. Make sure to compare once so that you are not missing out on any important detail.
Step 3: Then enter all this data and hit the calculate button. This will help you find out the interest and tax liability. You will also get to know how much tax you would have to pay or how much refund would accrue to you. If you have to pay tax then do pay the tax as soon as you can. Also enter the details in the correct schedule. Repeat this step as that would make sure that your tax payable comes to 0.
Step 4: Then you should create the income tax return data and save it in XML format at a location where you want to in your laptop or desktop. After this you need to log in on the website by using details such as user ID, date of incorporation or date of birth, and password. You would have to enter the Captcha code. Once you are done go the section named e-File and click on the button that says upload return. In this case you need to choose the correct income tax return assessment file that you have already created and saved.
Step 5: If you have to use a digital signature certificate (DSC) please use it. Also make sure that it is registered with the concerned authorities. Once you are done with all this submit it. If you have not used a DSC the ITR-V would be shown on successful completion of the process. If you click on that link and download the ITR-V, it would be sent to your registered e-mail. If ITR is successfully uploaded with the DSC it would mean that process of filing returns is complete.
DSC verification is not compulsory for individual, but you can verify by using e-verification process through 5 ways i.e. (a) AADHAAR OTP (b) NET BANKING (c) EVC GENERATED AT BANK ATMs (d) PRE-VALIDATED BANK ACCOUNT (e) PRE-VALIDATED DEMAT ACCOUNT.
Step 6: In case you have not uploaded the income tax return with DSC or AADHAAR OTP or NET BANKING or EVC GENERATED AT BANK then you should print, sign, and submit the physical documents to the I-T Department of CPC (Central Processing Centre) in Bangalore.
This needs to be done within 120 days of having filed the income tax return. The return would only be processed when ITR-V is received and signed. It is important to keep checking your SMS (short message service) and e-mails for reminders in case the Income Tax Department has not received the ITR-V.
Go Green! It is better to avoid sending ITR-5, e-verify your return.
Step 7: After completion of e-filing of ITR, you can go to My Account menu and click on View e-Filed Returns/Forms to check the status of Refund amount credited to your account or not. To get the refund from the filing of return, it will normally take minimum one month of time.
The process of preparing and submitting ITR (income tax return) online is also fairly similar with upload ITR method but a few differences. Only ITR-4 and ITR-1 returns can be prepared and submitted through online.
Note: A director of the company cannot file ITR-4 and ITR-1. He/she has to file it in ITR-2 or ITR-3.
On consideration of difficulties reported by the taxpayers and other stakeholders in new income tax e-filing portal, Central Board of Direct Tax has decided to extend the due dates of income tax return (ITR) filing. Thus, the ITR filing deadline for FY 2020-21 for individuals has already been extended to September 30, 2021 from its earlier usual deadline of July 31, 2021.
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