The Deadline You Can't Afford to Miss
For the Assessment Year 2026-27, the due date for most individuals and salaried employees whose accounts don't require an audit is July 31, 2026. Missing this deadline has immediate financial consequences. A late filing fee under Section 234F is levied,
amounting to ₹5,000 for those with a total income exceeding ₹5 lakh, and ₹1,000 for those with income up to that limit. Beyond the flat fee, if you have any tax due, an interest of 1% per month is charged on the outstanding amount for each month of delay. Furthermore, a significant disadvantage is the inability to carry forward certain losses, such as those from capital gains or business, to offset against future income.
Forgetting the Final Step: E-Verification
Simply submitting your ITR is not the end of the process. You must verify it within 30 days of filing. If you fail to do so, your return is considered invalid and treated as if it was never filed. This means all the consequences of non-filing, including late fees and interest, will apply. The tax department will not process an unverified return, which also means any refund you are due will be stuck. There are multiple ways to e-verify your return instantly, including through an Aadhaar OTP, your pre-validated bank account, or net banking.
Choosing the Wrong ITR Form
The Income Tax Department has several ITR forms (ITR-1 to ITR-7), each designed for different categories of taxpayers and income sources. In a rush, it's easy to pick the wrong one. For instance, a salaried individual who also has capital gains from selling shares cannot use the simple ITR-1 form and must use ITR-2. Filing an incorrect form will lead to your return being marked as 'defective' by the department, which will then issue a notice asking you to rectify the error within a specific timeframe, usually 15 days. Failure to correct it can render the return invalid.
Ignoring Your Form 26AS and AIS
Your Form 26AS is a tax passbook that lists all the tax deducted at source (TDS) and tax collected at source (TCS) linked to your PAN. The Annual Information Statement (AIS) is even more comprehensive, providing details of various financial transactions, including interest earned, dividends, and securities transactions, as reported by different financial entities. A last-minute filer might forget to reconcile the income declared in their ITR with the data in these statements. Any mismatch is easily flagged by the department's automated systems, which can lead to notices, additional tax demands, and penalties for under-reporting income.
Forgetting to Report All Income
Many taxpayers, especially in a hurry, focus only on their primary source of income, like salary, and forget about others. Interest earned from savings accounts and fixed deposits is taxable and must be reported. Similarly, income from dividends, capital gains from mutual funds or property sales, and rental income are all common sources that get missed. The AIS now captures many of these details, making it easier for the tax department to spot omissions. Failing to disclose all income can lead to penalties for under-reporting, which can be 50% of the tax payable on that income.
Sloppy Data Entry and Missed Deductions
Rushing often leads to careless mistakes. Incorrectly entering personal details like your PAN, bank account number, or IFSC code can delay your refund. More costly, however, is forgetting to claim deductions you are eligible for. In the haste to file, you might miss out on claiming deductions under Chapter VI-A, which includes popular sections like 80C (for investments in PPF, ELSS, etc.), 80D (for health insurance premiums), and others. This directly results in you paying more tax than necessary. Taking the time to carefully review your investments and expenses can save you a significant amount of money.
