Income Tax Return for Individuals

Income Tax Return is a form in which an Assessee files his information about Income and tax payable to the Income Tax Department. According to the income tax laws, Income Tax Return must be filed every year by a person or business that makes any income in the form of a salary, business gains, earning from house property or gains from dividends, capital or other sources during a financial year.

Due Date to file ITR

The Income Tax Act 1961 obligates citizens to file returns for every financial year within the specified due date. The due date to file Income Tax Return for the individuals who do not need to get their ITR audited under any law is 30th July and for those who need to get their ITR audited under law, the due date is 30th November which may be extended by the department. However, this is changeable on the issuance of directive to this effect by the Income Tax Department or the Ministry of Finance, India.

Updated Due date for F.Y. 2019–20 i.e. A.Y. 2020–21 is 30th November for those whose Audit is not compulsory and 31st October for those whose audit is require.
Belated return for F.Y. 2018–19 is 30th September.

Conditions that mandate the filing of Income Tax Returns for Individual

• When the gross annual income exceeds the specified limit.
• When the gross annual income of an individual exceeds the specified limit, it becomes mandatory for him to file an Income Tax Return.

The prescribed limit for the same is given below as per the different age of the individuals in a tabulated manner:

• If your gross annual income is more than-ParticularsAmountFor individuals less than 60 years of ageINR 2.5 LakhFor individuals is above 60 years of age but less than 80 yearsINR 3.0 LakhFor individuals above 80 years of ageINR 5.0 Lakh
• When there is more than one source of income such as capital gains, house property etc.
• When the taxpayer wants to behest for an income tax refund from the IT department
• When there is earning from or investment made in foreign assets during the FY.
• When the taxpayer want to apply for a visa or a loan
• When the taxpayer is a firm or company or a firm (regardless of gain or loss)

Types of ITRs

There are seven types of returns viz. ITR 1, ITR 2, ITR 3, ITR 4, ITR 5, ITR 6 and ITR 7 to be filled by the individual based on a few circumstances like the source of income, total amount of income in F.Y. etc. Let us have deeper dive into these circumstances and type of ITR that is suitable for them.

ITR-1 OR SAHAJ

Suitable for: Resident individual whose source of total income for the A.Y. 2018–19 includes:

• Salary or Pension
• One House Property (other than the case when loss is carried forward from preceding years)
• Other Sources (other than winning from Lottery and Horse Races)
• Agriculture (up to INR 5000)

Conditions when use ITR 1 Form is restricted

• Total income surpassing the limit of INR 50 lakh
• Agricultural income surpassing the limit of INR 5000
• Availability of taxable capital gains
• In the presence of income from business/profession
• In the presence of income from more than one house property
• When the taxpayer is company’s director
• When the investments are made in unlisted equity shares at any point of time in the financial year
• When the resident taxpayer owns assets that draws financial interest, outside India (that includes signing authority in any account outside the country).
• When the resident taxpayer is not ordinarily resident (RNOR) and non-resident
• When the taxpayer owns foreign assets/foreign income
• When the taxpayer is assessable w.r.t income of another person on which tax is deducted in other person’s hand.