Published on Mar 9, 2023Updated on Aug 30, 2026
The preparation and filing of taxes in India can be a complex task, with various provisions and conditions to consider when claiming deductions. Misinterpreting these rules can lead to penalties for taxpayers. To avoid these issues, it's recommended that individuals seek the assistance of a Chartered Accountant or tax consultant to help with their tax returns.
One of the first steps for income tax return filing online is that it would require the login ID and password to access the online portal. While the ID is readily available with the same being the PAN of the individual, the password would either have to be acquired from the person previously filing, reset the password, or in case of a first-time filer, the same should be created.
Once you have logged into the Income Tax website, you can begin the next steps which would again depend on the type of income one has or multiple income sources if applicable. Ideally, the next set of documents that would be required would be the official account statement of the individual, Form 16/Form 16A depending on the type of income as well as Form 26AS and AIS which are available from the income tax website. This would allow the individual to cover all the various modes of income that he/she might be earning.
The Income Tax Department is working on releasing a single form that can be used to file tax returns, but it has not yet been implemented. If there is any delay, taxpayers will have to determine which form applies to them based on various criteria available online. The criteria are based on the type of income earned by the individual. Once the appropriate form is selected, the website will ask relevant questions to ensure that all necessary details are captured accurately, and all required boxes for information from the taxpayer will be generated to facilitate the tax return filing process.
Under the new tax regime, since no deductions are available, the income tax form will be pre-filled to an extent, based on information already available. For example, in case of a salaried return, the salary would be fetched from Form 16 filed by the company which would then be in the ITR form generated by you online. The same must be cross-verified with Form 16 issued by the company for any discrepancy. If no discrepancies are found, the same might be verified and other details can be checked.
In a similar manner to salary, various other income like interest, dividends, or other income wherein TDS is deducted would be available online and may be pre-filled. One needs to however verify whether all data is captured with the actual bank statements available. Once all the pre-generated information is checked, corrected, and finally verified, the taxpayer may move to input information that may not have already formed a part of the pre-generated ITR.
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The website is still reliant on information supplied by third parties to pre-fill the ITR which may contain some incorrect information or some of them might have been missed. Based on the account statement and other information available to the tax payer, they would have to input the same in the ITR form for income tax filing online. This may include capital gain information, rental income from house property, or any other income which might have not been pre-filled, missed, or wrongly filled.
Once all the information is properly filled in, one must verify the total income and any taxes either paid in advance against the same or deducted in advance in form of TDS. Post verification of the same, if any tax is payable, the same must be paid or if there is any refund, the same must be verified before the filing of the ITR.
While there are no deductions to be claimed in the new tax regime, income tax return filing must be done with proper care to ensure that one is not in receipt of a notice a few months down the line. Ideally, the tax payer must be careful that all the information is properly disclosed, especially one which is showing up in 26AS or Form AIS. In case any of the information is incorrect, the reporting of the same must be made in the AIS.
The taxpayer must also ensure that the bank account selected for the refund is correct and verified. If either of the details is not followed, the taxpayer may face a delay in receipt of their refund.
In conclusion, income tax filing online has certainly made it possible especially under the new tax regime to take charge of their return filing. While the above steps give a general understanding of how to file ITR, one must verify or approach a professional if there are any queries.
Please keep in mind that ITR filing is of utmost importance and must be done with precise documentation in a secure manner.
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