The CBDT said close to 26.8 lakh returns had been filed up to 6.30pm on Sunday, indicating the process was moving in a glitch-free manner. July 31 is the deadline for filing returns and those who miss the date can file until December 31, but they will have to pay a late fee of up to Rs 5,000.
The government is clearly upbeat over how income tax (I-T) returns have been filed so far this year, especially over the last few days. Typically, there is a bunching of returns as the deadline nears and the tax department, officials said, has made every effort to cope with the increase in traffic and was seeking to address any concerns that taxpayers had.
“To assist taxpayers in ITR filing, tax payment and other related services, our helpdesk is functioning on a 24×7 basis, and we are providing support through calls, live chats, WebEx sessions & social media. We extend our gratitude to taxpayers and tax professionals for helping us reach this milestone, and urge all those who haven’t filed ITR for assessment year 2023-24 (FY2022-23), to file their ITR at the earliest to avoid last minute rush,” CBDT tweeted. The number of logins on the income tax website until 6.30pm on Sunday were estimated at 1.3 crore.
Data released by CBDT earlier in the day pegged filings up to 1pm at 5.8 crore.
A large proportion of taxpayers verified the returns electronically, which has helped the department simultaneously process returns and issue refunds. While the number was not updated on Sunday, until July 27 – when just over five crore returns had been filed – around 4.5 crore had been e-verified and of these 2.7 crore had been processed, income tax data showed. With electronic filing and processing becoming the norm over the last few years, the entire process has been crunched, helping taxpayers get refunds within a matter of days, instead of having to wait for months.
