FILING income-tax return is an obligation of every individual whose total income for the relevant year exceeds the maximum amount that is not chargeable to tax under the provisions of the Income-Tax Act, 1961.
The tax authorities, like every year, have notified the tax return forms for the assessment year (AY) 2011-12, that is financial year (FY) 201011. The due date of filing returns is July 31, 2011.
The new tax return form which has been introduced this year is ITR-1 Sahaj which replaces the ITR-1 Saral that was used until last year. There are certain other forms also that have been prescribed for individuals depending on the category of income.
We briefly discuss below the different forms that are prevalent for the FY 2010-11:
ITR-1 SAHAJ: For individuals having income from salary/ pension/ income from one house property (excluding loss brought forward from previous years)/ income from other sources (except winnings from lottery or income from race horses).
ITR-2: For individuals having income from salary/ house property/ capital gains/ other sources and not having income under the head 'business or profession.' ITR-3: For individuals/HUF being partners in firms and not carrying on business or profession under any proprietorship.
ITR-4S SUGAM: For individual/ HUF deriving income under the head 'business and profession' in accordance to Section 44AD and Section 44AE of the act-(presumptive business income-tax return).
ITR-4: For individuals and HUFs having income from a proprietary business or profession.
(The due date could be September 30, 2011 incase of individuals carrying on business, subject to certain additional conditions.) It may also be noted that this year, the tax authorities have issued certain print and colour specifications that need to be kept in mind for filing ITR 1 and ITR-4S. Accordingly, the taxpayers should ensure to adhere to these specifications.
They may also consider buying the tax return forms from tax melas and income tax department, so as to avoid any rejections by the tax authorities at the time of filing.
Now, the tax payers are not required to report the information that was earlier required to be disclosed under the section annual information return (AIR).
The removal of AIR is a welcome move as it will save time and effort of the taxpayer for collating the required information (such as cash deposits, credit card expenses and purchase or sale of immovable property) while preparing the income tax return.
It is pertinent to note that the individuals would now be required to mandatorily provide the bank account details and MICR code in the income-tax return form irrespective of whether there is a refund due or not.
The final step is the filing of tax return. The re turn form can be filed with the income-tax department in any of the following ways: Physically file the tax return in paper form with the tax officer; or Efile the return by logging on to income tax website site and registering yourself.
In case of e-filing, the tax return can be signed manually or digitally. If the return is not signed digitally, a verification Form ITR-V is generated.
This acknowledgement is required to be printed and signed in blue ink.
The signed copy is to be sent by the taxpayer to the centralised processing center (CPC)
Bangalore, within 120 days of e-filing the return or July 31, 2011, whichever is later. Further, once the ITR-V is received by CPC, an electronic receipt confirming the receipt of the acknowledgment will be sent to the e-mail address that was mentioned at the time of registration with the tax authorities.
It is important that before filing the tax return with the authorities, the taxpayer is fully aware of the form, requirements and prepares the return accordingly; else the return may be considered as a defective return that may have its own implications.
