Last Day To File ITR For FY 2022-23 Is Today; Consequences You Will Face If You Miss The Deadline

The deadline for filing the income tax return (ITR) for FY 2022-23 (AY 2023-24) was July 31, 2023. However, if you failed to file your ITR last time, you can still file it as a belated ITR and the last date to file this belated ITR is December 31, 2023. The last date to file a belated ITR under Section 139(4) of the Income-tax Act, 1961 is December 31, 2023.

Those taxpayers who have not yet filed their ITR, need to make updates, or rectify errors in their previously submitted tax returns are strongly encouraged to submit their returns by today. This is particularly crucial for those who have not yet filed, and need to make updates or rectify errors in their previously submitted tax returns.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), the income tax department said, "Kind Attention Taxpayers, 31st December 2023 is your last chance to file a belated/revised ITR for AY 2023-2024. Hurry! File your ITR before the due date."

It is important to note that Apart from the belated return, December 31, 2023, is also the last date to file the revised ITR for FY 2022-23 (AY 2023-24). A revised ITR is filed to correct mistakes in the original ITR. A revised ITR is filed under Section 139(5) of the Income-tax Act

What happens if miss the December 31 deadline?

Although the Income Tax Department does not impose any fine for filing revised ITR. However, taxpayers making adjustments to their income, resulting in additional income declarations, may be subject to additional taxes. Failure to rectify errors can lead to fines and interest on outstanding amounts.

Besides, if you miss the December 31 deadline, you have the option to submit updated ITRs. According to the income tax laws, individuals who do not file belated ITR by December 31 still have an opportunity to file their income tax returns as updated returns, also known as ITR-U.

However, an updated return can be filed only after the assessment year ends. This means that if an individual misses the December 31, 2023, deadline to file a belated ITR for FY 2022-23 (AY 2023-24), the updated return can be filed from April 1, 2024.

Individuals can also file an updated return if they have not filed any ITR earlier and have no pending tax dues. However, they need to pay a penalty for the late filing.

An updated ITR can be filed within 2 years from the end of the relevant assessment year. So, taxpayers can file ITR-U for FY 2022-23 (AY 2023-24) between April 1, 2024, and March 31, 2026. Such individuals will have to pay 25% further tax on the tax dues if ITR-U for FY 2022-23 is filed within the first relevant assessment year - between April 1, 2024, and March 31, 2025.

Penalty and penal interest

If you have started the process to file a belated ITR, first make sure that you have deposited the penalty, the tax, and the penal interest.

A penalty of Rs 5,000 is imposed under Section 234F of the Income-tax Act. However, the penalty for small taxpayers whose total income is less than Rs 5 lakh, is just Rs 1,000.