Scores of panicked taxpayers have requested the Income Tax Department to extend the due date for filing ITR to December 31, 2021. Now here will the tax department give relief?
The due date to file ITR for AY2021-22 is December 31, 2021.
It is that time of the year when there is a rush among individuals to file their Income Tax Return (ITR). With only a few days left for the tax filing due date of December 31, 2021, to end, ITR filing has increased as taxpayers look to avoid penalties.
But a large section of general category taxpayers are facing difficulties in filing their ITR, claiming that there are still glitches on the new income tax filing portal. A wave of taxpayers have expressed their concern on social media platforms like Twitter and requested the government to extend the due date (FY2020-21 or AY2021-22) for filing ITR.
The Income Tax Department on December 28 urged taxpayers to file ITR for AY2021-22 within the extended due date of December 31, 2021. It said a total of 4,86,34,306 ITRs have been filed till December 28 in the latest update. Wednesday.
The tax department is yet to announce any exemptions related to ITR filing. But is there any possibility to extend the due date for filing ITR for AY2021-22 further?
Will ITR due date be extended?
Though there is no official update from the tax department, the fact is that many people are unable to file ITR due to glitches on the new tax filing portal, which may lead to extension. The outrage on Twitter itself shows that many taxpayers and Chartered Accountants (CAs) have not been able to file ITRs on the portal.
Many CAs and tax experts are of the view that the current problems with the tax portal demand extension of the ITR filing due date for individuals whose accounts do not require any auditing.
Explained: What if you fail to file ITR by the due date of December 31?
Tax experts have a point. The number of ITRs filed till December 29 is less than last year’s figures, with around 1 crore ITRs still pending. If there are still discrepancies in the new portal claimed by multiple taxpayers, it may not be possible for them to file ITR within the due date.
It is no secret that the new tax filing portal has seen several glitches in the past few months since its launch. On Twitter, scores of taxpayers have urged the tax department and finance ministry to extend the due date, citing existing glitches on the new ITR e-filing portal.
Some of the reported glitches include login issues, OTP and slow processing due to heavy load. Experts said these glitches validate the need for expansion. Apart from this, CAs and experts said that there are many more challenges, given that this is a new portal and many aspects are completely new to the taxpayers.
While tax experts, CAs and many panicked taxpayers have demanded extension of the due date, the final decision rests with the tax department. Till December 29, no official announcement has been made regarding the extension of the due date for filing ITR.
Taxpayers should note that failure to file ITR within the due date will attract penalty, but the process can still be completed within the last date.