Skip to main content

Mistakes in your Tax Return

 

Are there mistakes in your tax return?

 

If you forgot to include some income or haven't declared certain assets, you may get a notice. Here's how you can avoid getting one

Are you among the more than two crore taxpayers who filed their returns before 31 July? These taxpayers can rest easy because they filed by the due date. However, the dread of the taxman does not end here. It is common for taxpayers to make errors or deliberately conceal income in their returns, which could lead to notices from the tax department. Nudged by the government to enhance revenue collections, the tax authorities are on an overdrive to catch tax evaders. Not only are financial transactions being tracked, but loopholes that allowed tax evasion are also being plugged. In October 2013, the Central Board of Direct Taxes issued a new rule for claiming HRA exemption. Salaried taxpayers claiming HRA exemption were asked to report their landlord's PAN if the total rent in a year exceeded Rs 1 lakh. Earlier, if the total rent paid was less than Rs 15,000 a month, there was no need to submit the landlord's PAN details.

 

Interest income

 The declaration of interest income is the most common mistake taxpayers make. The interest earned on bank fixed deposits, recurring deposits and infrastructure bonds is fully taxable but many taxpayers skip mentioning it in their tax return. Some think the newly introduced exemption for bank interest makes this income tax-free. But the exemption under Section 80TTA is only for the interest on your savings bank balance. Interest from other sources, including 5-year tax saving bank FDs, is fully taxable.

The other big fallacy is the TDS. Banks deduct 10% TDS if the interest exceeds `10,000 in a year. If the income is below `10,000 and TDS has not been deducted, you have to add the interest to your total taxable income and accordingly pay tax. Even if TDS has been deducted, it does not mean that your tax liability is taken care of. If you are in the 20-30% tax bracket, you are required to pay more tax on the income. Don't think you can get away by concealing this income. Failure to report this is tantamount to concealment of income. The tax authorities can easily detect it as the bank has already deducted the TDS and reported the same along with your PAN details. Also, in case of recurring deposits, no TDS is deducted, irrespective of the quantum of the interest, but the interest income is still fully taxable. Similarly, the interest earned on NSCs and infrastructure bonds is taxable.

Some taxpayers feel safe from the prying eyes of the taxman if they put money in co-operative banks. Till now, interest from fixed deposits in cooperative banks was exempt from TDS. However, there is a rude shock waiting for such taxpayers this year. The Karnataka Income Tax Tribunal recently ruled that if the interest exceeded `10,000 in a year, it must be subjected to TDS. Following this, several cooperative banks have received notices from the IT department asking them to deduct tax for the year 2013-14.

Even the interest from tax-free instruments, such as the PPF and tax-free bonds, has to be reported in your return. However, this is not a serious transgression and the taxman won't come after you.

Clubbing income of minor child, spouse Your earning is not the only income you need to declare. If you invested in the name of your minor child or gave money to your spouse for investing, the income from such investments will also be treated as your income. Any income of a minor child (below 18 years) is clubbed with the income of the parent who earns more. There is a tiny deduction of `1,500 per child for up to two children in a year. Similarly, if you have invested in your spouse's name, the income will be treated as your income and taxed at the applicable rate. If you bought a house in your wife's name and rented it out, the rent will be treated as your income, not hers, even if the house is transferred to the wife as gift. The entire income would have to be included in the tax working of the original holder of the asset.

In rare cases, where the spouse is given a remuneration for working in the taxpayer's business, the money given to the spouse will not get clubbed. For instance, if your chartered accountant wife maintains the accounts of your business and you pay her a remuneration which she invests, the income will not be clubbed. But she should have the required qualifications to do the work she is being paid for. The onus is squarely on the taxpayer. You should be able to prove that your spouse is hired in a professional capacity, not otherwise.

Not filing tax return

This is another common mistake. Many taxpayers believe that since their salary is subject to TDS, they don't have to file returns. That's not true. If your income exceeds `2 lakh, you have to file your return. Even if the tax liability is reduced to zero after deduction under Section 80C, the return has to be filed. The government has identified the category of non-filers as a key one for tapping unpaid taxes. Last year, the Income Tax Department sent 12 lakh notices for non-filing of taxes.

Non-filers are not the only ones who may get such a notice. Many taxpayers file returns online but don't complete the process. For example, a taxpayer must submit the ITR V to the Centralised Processing Centre in Bangalore within 120 days of uploading his return. "Until you submit the IT return to the authorities physically and get the acknowledgment of receipt, the return is treated as invalid.

Not spending enough The taxman also gets suspicious if you are investing too much or withdraw investing too much or withdrawing too little. A Mumbai-based individual was asked to explain how she was sustaining herself because her entire salary was flowing into investments. She flowing into investments. She was using the cash allowances received from her employer for her day-to-day needs and investing the entire salary that came by cheque. The tax officer will estimate the household expenditure you are likely to incur based on your earning capacity, family size, lifestyle and number of earning members. If your bank statement does not show commensurate withdrawals for expenses, the question will arise how you are surviving on so lit how you are surviving on so little. The taxman assumes that you have undeclared sources of income. If allowances are being used for day-to-day expenses, it means the taxpayer submitted bogus receipts to claim those allowances. If you stay in your parents' house and claim HRA exemption, your bank statement should be able to validate the payment of rent.

Not filing wealth tax return Apart from income tax, you may also be liable to pay wealth tax. Most people are blissfully unaware that if they own certain assets, including jewellery, gold or silver bullion, vacant house, non-agricultural land, costly watches, luxury cars and paintings, they have to shell out wealth tax. If the aggregate value of these assets exceeds `30 lakh, they have to pay 1% of the amount by which it exceeds `30 lakh. This also includes cash worth over `50,000. "One house is exempt from wealth tax. Also, if you have rented out your second home for more than 300 days in a year, it will also be exempt," says Kumar. If the property is used to conduct business, then it is not included for computation of wealth tax. Any loan outstanding against the house will also be subtracted from the market value of the house. However, the valuation of these items is a tedious process. Only government approved valuers can be approached in this regard. Perhaps that is why tax authorities are relatively soft on implementing wealth tax provisions wealth tax accounts for less than 0.25% of the total direct taxes collected. This doesn't mean the taxman will not go after you for not paying it. There is a stiff penalty for evading wealth tax. Incorrect declaration can invite a fine of up to 500% of the evaded tax. One can also be jailed for up to seven years if the tax due is over Rs 1 lakh.

Reversal of Section 80C benefit For salaried employees in the organised sector, the Employees' Provident Fund (EPF) is a great way to save for retirement, but for some, it can also be the reason for a tax notice. Many people withdraw their PF when they change jobs. The monthly contribution to the EPF is eligible for deduction under Section 80C. If the balance is withdrawn within five years of joining the organisation, the entire deduction claimed in previous years will be reversed. Similarly, if you junk a life insurance policy within two years of buying, the tax benefits claimed under Section 80C will be reversed. The same holds true if you sell a house within five years. If you availed of tax benefits on the loan, all the deductions claimed in the previous years, including on principal repayment and payment of stamp duty along with registration fees, will be added to the taxable income of the year. Since the onus of reversing the benefit and paying the tax for the previous years is on the taxpayer, many people will conveniently skip mentioning it in their tax return. These issues are not likely to be picked up by the taxman in isolation. But in case your return is picked up for scrutiny, the investigating officer may come across these facts.

Items received as gifts Diamonds are a girl's best friend, but if you gift a solitaire diamond ring worth `1 lakh to your friend, she x, might end up paying a huge tax on it. Gifts from unrelated people are taxable if the annual value exceeds `50,000. The gifts received from blood relatives or on specific occasions like marriage or under inheritance or by will are not taxable. The specific assets for which gift tax is applicable include cash, immovable property, such as land and buildings, and movable property, including financial assets (shares, fixed deposits), jewellery and bullion, art and antiques. Since such instances of gifting occur regularly in our lives, it is a must that one is aware of the tax implications. Even when you are the one who is gifting money, you may come under the scanner if the recipient of the gift happens to come under scrutiny.

Our intention is not to alarm our readers. If you have missed some income in your tax return or made a mistake in calculating your tax liability, we suggest you file a revised return. You might have to shell out a small amount in tax, but you will be able to sleep easy. You can revise your return as many times as you want. However, a revised return can be filed only if you filed the original return before the 31 July deadline. Now, here's one more reason to file your tax return on time.

For further information contact Prajna Capital on 94 8300 8300 by leaving a missed call

Leave a missed Call on 94 8300 8300

Leave your comment with mail ID and we will answer them

OR

You can write back to us at

PrajnaCapital [at] Gmail [dot] Com

---------------------------------------------

Invest Mutual Funds Online

Invest Any Mutual Fund Online

Download Mutual Fund Application Forms from all AMCs

Download Mutual Any Fund Application Forms

---------------------------------------------

Best Performing Mutual Funds

    1. Largecap Funds Invest Online
      1. DSP BlackRock Top 100 Fund
      2. ICICI Prudential Focused Blue Chip Fund
      3. Franklin India Bluechip
      4. ICICI Prudential Top 100 Fund

B. Large and Midcap Funds Invest Online

      1. ICICI Prudential Dynamic Plan
      2. HDFC Top 200 Fund
      3. UTI Dividend Yield Fund
      4. Birla Sun Life Front Line Equity Fund
      5. Franklin India Prima

C. Mid and SmallCap Funds Invest Online

      1. Reliance Equity Opportunities Fund
      2. DSP BlackRock Small & Midcap Fund
      3. Sundaram Select Midcap
      4. IDFC Premier Equity Fund
      5. Birla Sun Life Dividend Yield Plus
      6. SBI Emerging Businesses Fund
      7. HDFC Mid-Cap Opportunities Fund
      8. ICICI Prudential Discovery Fund

D. Small and MicroCap Funds Invest Online

      1. DSP BlackRock MicroCap Fund
      2. Franklin India Smaller Companies

E. Sector Funds Invest Online

      1. Reliance Banking Fund
      2. Reliance Banking Fund
      3. ICICI Prudential Banking and Financial Services Fund

F. Tax Saver Mutual Funds Invest Online

1. ICICI Prudential Tax Plan

2. HDFC Taxsaver

      1. DSP BlackRock Tax Saver Fund
      2. Reliance Tax Saver (ELSS) Fund

G. Gold Mutual Funds Invest Online

      1. Relaince Gold Savings Fund
      2. ICICI Prudential Regular Gold Savings Fund
      3. HDFC Gold Fund
      4. Birla Sun Life Gold

H. International funds Invest Online

1. Birla Sun Life International Equity Plan A

2. DSP BlackRock US Flexible Equity

3. FT India Feeder Franklin US Opportunities

4. ICICI Prudential US Bluechip Equity

5. Motilal Oswal MOSt Shares NASDAQ-100 ETF

Popular posts from this blog

Post Office Deposits Interest Rates

Best SIP Funds to Invest Online   SIPs are Best Investments when Stock Market is high volatile. Invest in Best Mutual Fund SIPs and get good returns over a period of time. Know Top SIP Funds to Invest Save Tax Get Rich For further information on Top SIP Mutual Funds contact  Save Tax Get Rich on 94 8300 8300 OR You can write to us at Invest [at] SaveTaxGetRich [dot] Com

How Tax Deducted at Source (TDS) works?

    THE tax season is here. And if you are an employee you can't blame your employer for deducting large chunks of money from your salary towards tax deducted at source ( TDS ), which he is legally obliged to do. Your bank will also deduct some percentage from your FD interest of Rs 10,000 or more towards TDS! So what is this TDS all about? How is it computed? Are there any changes this year? Read on... What is TDS? TDS reduces your taxable income and could even provide tax relief! The TDS collections account for 40 percent of the total taxes collected in the country. As the name suggests TDS is the amount of tax that is deducted at source in certain types of income . The TDS thus collected is deposited in the Government treasury within a specified time. How is it computed? Some of the types of income where TDS is applicable include salary, interest, rental fee, interest on securities, insurance commission, dividends from shares and UTI/Mutual Funds, commission and brokerage

Modern day balanced mutual fund approach

Buy Gold Mutual Funds Invest Mutual Funds Online Download Tax Saving Mutual Fund Application Forms Call 0 94 8300 8300 (India)   In reality, most balanced funds have a strong tilt towards equity instead of a mix of equity and debt THERE are various types of mutual funds available to investors with specific features. Often investors have a particular idea about a specific type of funds in terms of their features and risks, but that is not what is actually available. Therefore, it is necessary for an investor to understand the actual position before picking up a fund. This requires some work on the part of the investor. One example can be the situation with balanced funds. Name is not representative: One of the first things that an investor has to understand is that the name of the fund is often not representative of its investment pattern. The name often represents only the aim of the fund, and not what it actually is.

ELSS Tax Saver

ELSS Stands for Equity Linked Savings Scheme.   ELSS Fund are mutual funds with 3 years of lock in period and offer income tax benefit under section 80C. They are open ended to purchase. Not all Mutual fund Investments are eligible for tax exception. List of Tax Saving Mutual Funds   Invest in Tax Saving Mutual Funds ( ELSS Mutual Funds ) to upto Rs 1 lakh and Save tax under Section 80C.   Invest Tax Saving Mutual Funds Online Tax Saving Mutual Funds Online These links can be used to Purchase Mutual Funds Online that are regular also (Investment, non-tax saving)   Download Tax Saving Mutual Fund Application Forms from all AMCs Download Tax Saving Mutual Fund Applications   These Application Forms can be used for buying regular mutual funds also   Some of the best Tax Saving Mutual Funds available ( ELSS Mutual Funds ) HDFC TaxSaver ICICI Prudential Tax Plan DSP BlackRock Tax Saver Fund Birla Sun Life Tax Relief '96 Reliance Tax Saver (ELSS) Fund IDF

Should you invest in tax-free infra bonds?

THOSE looking to save tax should take note of the latest buzz in the debt markets. Power Finance Corporation ( PFC ) and Housing Urban Development Corporation (Hudco) have launched bonds that will help you save more tax than your regular infrastructure bonds. Soon, IRFC and NHAI are likely to follow suit with similar bonds. KP Jeewan, general manager, debt markets, Karvy Stock Broking, says: "The coupon in these bonds are completely tax-free and those in the highest tax bracket can expect an effective yield of 10.75 per cent, compared to the 9.5 per cent a 10-year public sector bond would offer." The PFC and Hudco offerings are of 10- and 15-year tenures, with coupon rates of 7.5 and 7.75 per cent, respectively. Unlike other regular tax-free infra bonds, the tax benefits in these bonds are not capped at ` 20,000. Even besides these tax free bonds, those in the highest tax bracket have had plenty of opportunities to invest in tax saving infrastructure bonds under 80 CCF i
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...
Invest in Tax Saving Mutual Funds Download Any Applications
Transact Mutual Funds Online Invest Online
Buy Gold Mutual Funds Invest Now