Waiting for Income Tax refund? Know what to do

The deadline for Income Tax Returns (ITR) filing ended on Wednesday, July 31, 2024. For some of the taxpayers who filed their IT returns before the deadline and are eligible for the reimbursement, the refund has already been transferred to their accounts. 

If your ITR refund has been delayed, here’s what you need to do: 

Normally, eligible individuals received their ITR refund approximately four to five weeks after the e-verification of the ITR. For some taxpayers, the reimbursement process may be quicker. The amount will be electronically credited to the bank account mentioned in the ITR form by the taxpayer. 

E-verification is mandatory

If you have filed an ITR and are waiting for the refund then you need to know that the processing of an Income Tax Return refund is completed only if the return is e-verified. If you’ve not done so then e-verify it soon. The return’s e-verification can be done within 30 days after the filing of ITR.

Miscellaneous information

If you’ve filed the ITR return and are awaiting a refund then expect communication from the I-T department related to the processing of the reimbursement. Keep checking your mobile phone messages app and the registered email for important SMS. After reading the message, take necessary action on it. If a taxpayer claims a refund exceeding their eligible amount, the tax authority might issue notifications to that individual

Is the correct bank account specified in ITR?

Verify your bank account information submitted during the filing of returns, including account number and IFSC code etc as incorrect information may lead to delay in the processing of refund.

There should not be any discrepancy in the details contained in Form 26AS (tax credit statement that provides a complete view of the taxes paid by a taxpayer) and the information contained in the submitted IT returns. Especially if there is a discrepancy in the details of the tax paid, those returns are likely to be rejected. 

Recent tax portal data shows 7.2 crore returns were filed, 6.3 crore have been verified, but only 2.6 crore processed. Your return may be among those still pending. Check the tax portal for updates on your return's status.  

Penalty for missing ITR filing deadline 

Did you miss filing your ITR within the deadline for the previous financial year? If your net taxable income exceeds Rs 5 lakh, you can still file with a Rs 5,000 penalty. For those with taxable income below Rs 5 lakh, the penalty is reduced to Rs 1,000. However, by filing late, you may have lost the chance to choose the old tax regime.