Income Tax returns deadline extended to February 28, 2022

According to a one-time relaxation granted by the Income Tax Department, taxpayers who have not e-verified their ITRs for the 2019-20 fiscal year can do so until February 28, 2022.
An income tax return (ITR) filed electronically without a digital signature must be verified within 120 days after submitting the return using Aadhaar OTP, net banking, or a code received through a Demat account, pre-validated bank account, or ATM.

Taxpayers may also send a physical copy of their ITR to the Centralised Processing Centre (CPC) office in Bengaluru. If the verification procedure, which is carried out using the ITR-V form, is incomplete, the return is deemed unfiled.

In a circular dated December 28, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) stated that a large number of electronically filed ITRs for the Assessment Year 2020-21 are still pending with the Income Tax department due to a lack of receipt of a valid ITR-V Form at CPC, Bengaluru or pending e-Verification from the taxpayers concerned.

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However, this waiver would not apply if the IT Department has previously taken further measures to ensure ITR submission by the taxpayer in issue after certifying that the return has been submitted, it said. Taxpayers can also mail a hard copy of their ITR to the Centralised Processing Centre (CPC) office in Bengaluru. If the verification procedure through the ITR-V form is not completed, the return is considered unfiled.

Meanwhile, various media reports earlier stated that the Finance Ministry's Central Board of Direct Taxes had received various statements from Chartered Accountant associations and taxpayers seeking an extension of the December 31 deadline to file tax returns.

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