UNIT 19 ONLINE FILING OF RETURNS

Structure
19.0 Objectives
19.1 Introduction
19.2 What is Income Tax Return (ITR)?
19.3 Documents required for filing ITR
19.4 Advantages of filing ITR
19.5 Benefits of E-Filing over Physical Filing of Returns
19.6 Step to step guide for E-filing of returns
19.7 Do’s and Don’ts of E-filing of Returns
19.8 Keywords
19.9 Let Us Sum Up
19.10 Terminal Questions

19.0 OBJECTIVES
After studying this unit, you should be able:
● To understand what is ITR;
● To know what are the various documents required for filing ITR;
● To understand the benefits of E-filing of returns;
● To know the step-by-step procedure for E-filing of returns; and
● To know the various Do’s and Don’ts for E-Filing of returns.

19.1 INTRODUCTION
According to the Section 139 (1) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 of India, any
individual having total income in the previous year more than the maximum
amount which is not chargeable to tax, should file their ITR or income tax
returns. Filing of returns can be done either in physical mode or via any
online mode. When the filing of returns is done online, it is known as E-
filing of Income Tax Return (ITR). In the previous unit 18, we have already
discussed Filing of returns and tax authorities, this unit will give an overview
on the E- filing of returns. Basically, E- filing of returns means filing income
tax returns by an individual using the internet. Individuals can file their
returns either by taking some professional help or it can also be filed simply
by registering on the website of the income tax department, the detailed
procedure of which is explained in the unit ahead. E- filing of returns is more
advantageous over physical filing of returns as it cuts down on processing
time, individuals and businesses can receive funds more quickly within 2-3
weeks. In E-filing, calculations are done automatically which leaves very
less room for errors, hence, improves the accuracy. It is also very user
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friendly and more convenient as individuals can file it 24*7 hours as per their
Tax Liability convenience.

19.2 WHAT IS INCOME TAX RETURN (ITR)?

ITR, is basically the form in which assessee files information about his
Income and tax thereon to Income Tax Department. Various forms of ITR are
such as, ITR 1, ITR 2, ITR 3, ITR 4, ITR 5, ITR 6 and ITR 7. Every
individual coming in the preview of ITR must file it, as it is very helpful for
various activities be it either applying for loans, overseas visa, credit card or
dealing with financial losses etc. ITR can be used as a proof document
guaranteeing an individual's financial soundness. Also a portion of a
taxpayer's income, whether salaried or business person, is deducted as Tax
Deducted at Source (TDS). But, if you have made investments that are
deductible from taxable income, then your actual tax dues as per your income
tax slab may be much lesser than what is already paid. The excess tax paid
can be claimed and refunded, but only if you file your taxes. The due date for
filing tax returns is 31st July every year. The detailed description of the same
have already been covered in the previous units.

19.3 DOCUMENTS REQUIRED FOR FILING ITR

An individual needs various documents for filing of ITR. Before filing an
ITR, an individual must make sure that he has gathered all the necessary
documents. Checklist of documents for an individual for filing ITR is Form
16, Aadhar Card, PAN Card, rental agreement, proofs for taxes deducted by
employer, bank statements, transaction statements for shares/mutual funds,
TDS certificates, Investment details like LIC, PPF, NSC, NPS, Health
Insurance, housing loan certificate, tax paid proofs, purchaser of property,
proofs for deductions, foreign tax return etc. Form-16 provides details of the
salary an individual has earned during the year and the TDS that has been
deducted. In short, it takes into account salary, allowances and deductions of
an employee.

19.4 ADVANTAGES OF FILING OF ITR

Even though ITR is not mandatory for some individuals. However,
Individuals can avail certain benefits by filing ITR. Few of the benefits of
filing ITR are discussed below:
● Being a law abiding citizen: More than any other benefit, an individual
by filing ITR becomes a law abiding citizen. It will keep the income tax
department informed about his income and taxability.

● Claiming refund: In certain cases, tax deducted at source (TDS) can be

cut on some investment made in the name of the individual. Filing ITR
helps in claiming the refund of the individual for the same
● Processing of documents: Filing of ITR provides a detailed description
of an individual’s total income earned and taxes paid on it in a certain
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 period of time. These documents are accepted by various agencies for
easier loan and visa processing.

● Carry-forward of losses: An individual can incur losses for a certain

year. Option of carry forward of losses to set them off against the income
of the subsequent years can only be availed by those who file ITR in the
relevant assessment year.

19.5 BENEFITS OF E-FILING OVER PHYSICAL

FILING OF RETURNS
Benefits of E-filing over Physical filing
The E-filing of returns has gained more popularity as compared to Physical
filing of returns. It is because of the following reasons:

● Acts as a Proof: Acts as a proof and it is always handy, ITR 1 can be

furnished easily as a proof at any time for any kind of financial liability.
● Convenient: There is no constraint of time and place in case of E-Filing.
Any individual can file it at anyplace and anytime 24*7 according to
their convenience.
● Error Free: In E-filing calculations are done automatically which
reduces the probability of making mistakes and room for errors, thus
improves the accuracy in calculated amounts.
● Time saving: It cuts down on processing time, individuals and
businesses can receive funds more quickly within 2-3 weeks.
● Confidential: It has better security as compared to paper filing because
the data is not accessible to anyone by any chance. In case of paper
filing, the details can fall into the wrong hands at the Department's
office.

19.6 STEP TO STEP GUIDE FOR E-FILING OF

RETURNS
Following steps need to be followed for E-filing of returns. The assessee first
need to register himself/herself and after successful registration he/she can
login for the further steps:

A. Steps for the registration

Go to the site https://www.incometax.gov.in/iec/foportal
The following window will appear for Registration, from where a new
individual can register himself/herself by clicking on the register button
as shown in figure 19.1 below.

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Tax Liability

Figure 19.1: How to register

Once you click on the register button the following window as shown in
figure 19.2 will appear, where you need to enter your PAN details.

Figure 192: Let's get started

Once you enter the registered PAN, the Validate button will get activated.
Then click on the validate button as shown in figure 19.3 below.

Figure 19.3: PAN Validation

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Once the OTP matches, the PAN card will get validated. And it will show a
pop-up message PAN validated successfully as shown in figure 19.4 below.

Figure 19.4: Successful validation of PAN

After validation of PAN, the assessee has to select whether or not he /she is
registering as an individual taxpayer. If the assessee is an individual he has to
select yes and proceed further by clicking on the continue button and the
window shown in the figure19.5 will appear.

Figure 19.5: Individual Taxpayer

By clicking on the continue the first step of i.e Get started is completed, now
starts the next step i.e fill details as shown in figure 6 below. Here in this step
an individual needs to provide his Basic details such as First Name, Middle
Name, Last name, Gender, DOB, Residential status etc. and Contact details
such as Primary mobile number, To whom the primary mobile number
belong, Primary email ID, to whom the primary email ID belong, Landline
number, Postal Address details etc. and then press continue. And it moves to
the next step i.e. verify details.

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Figure 19.6: Fill details

For verifying the details submitted, the taxpayer gets two OTPs at their
registered primary mobile and primary email address respectively. Once the
correct OTPs are entered, the entered details get verified, clicking on the
continue button will move it further, if the OTPs are incorrect, it will show an
error stating that the OTP entered is/are incorrect and the taxpayer has to
retry it then to provide the correct OTP.

Figure 19.7: Verification of OTP

B. Login for E-filing of returns

Once you have successfully registered, then you can Login through the PAN
card. After entering the password the assessee will be able to login
successfully.
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 xxxx

Figure 19.8: Login

Once logged in the following window as shown in figure 19.9 will appear,
from where one can select the assessment year and mode of filing the ITR.

Figure 19.9: Selection of the assessment year and mode of filing

After selecting the assessment year and mode of filing the click on the Start
new filing button as shown in figure 19.10 below:

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Figure 19.10: Start New Filing

After selecting the new filing, the assessee has to select his Status applicable
to him whether he/she is an Individual, HUF or others and proceed further.

Figure 19.11: Selection of status

After selecting the status, one needs to select the ITR form and proceed.

Figure 19.12: Selection of ITR form

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Suppose one has selected ITR 1, the assessee can view the different related
documents to them such as form 16, form 16A, form 26AS etc.

Figure 19.13: ITR 1

Now a new window will appear, where the assessee has to answer the
Various questions as shown in the figure 19.14 below, after answering the
questions the assessee has to click on the continue button to validate the
prefilled return.

Figure 19.14: Answering the questions

Once the questions appearing in the figure 19.14 are answered the assessee
will be moved to the next window for validating the pre-filled returns as
shown in figure 19.15.

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Figure 19.15: Validating the returns

While validating the return the assessee has to validate his Personal
information, Gross total income, Total deductions, Tax paid and Total tax
liability as shown in figure19.15(a), 19.15(b), 19.15(c) and 19.15(d). All the
values will be generated automatically in front of each head.

xxxx

xxxx

Figure 19.15(a)

xxxx

xxxx

Figure 19.15(b)
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 xxxx

xxxx

xxxx

Figure 19.15(c)

xxxx

xxxx

xxxx

xxxx

Figure 19.15(d)

Once all the values are confirmed, the assessee can pay the taxes, for that he/
she has two options, either he can pay just by following e-Pay Tax service for
payment of self-assessment tax as shown in figure 15(d) or by selecting pay
later by paying through challan. For that various options are provided as
shown in figure 16, from where the assessee can select the Challan no suiting
him.

Figure 19.16: E-payment of taxes through Challan

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For instance if one has selected challan no/ITNS 281, he/she will be asked
Tax Liability about the tax applicable, type of payment, mode of payment and others as
shown in figure 19.17.

Figure 19.17: Challan no/ITNS 281

If the assessee has selected to pay later via challan , it will show the due
Amount payable as shown in figure 18, by doing this validation of returns is
completed, and it moves us to the next step to confirm your return summary.

xxxx

Figure 19.18: Opted to Pay Later

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For confirming the returns summary the assessee has to first preview and
submit ( as shown in Figure 19.19) and then verify the return ( as shown in
Figure 19.20).

Figure 19.19: Preview and Submit

For the verification of the returns the assessee can select either to e-Verify
now, later or via ITR V as per his/her convenience. as shown in figure 19.20.

Figure :19.20 Verification

If the e-verify now option is selected, the assessee will be asked either to e-
verify using OTP or mobile number registered with aadhar or to verify using
Digital Signature Certificate (DSC). Also he will be asked to generate
electronic verification code through Net Banking, Bank Account or Demat
Account as shown in Figure 19.21.
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Figure 19.21: E-Verification options

Once the assessee has entered the correct OTP and validated it (as shown in
Figure 19.22), it moves him/her to the last step to verify and submit the
return.

Figure 19.22: Verifying OTP

After clicking on the Submit option as shown in Figure 19.23, it will be

submitted.

312 Figure 19.23: Submit

Now a popup window appears with a text “You have successfully filed and
verified your return” as shown in figure 19.24.

Figure 19.24: Successful filing and Verification of Returns

19.7 DO’S AND DON’TS OF E-FILING OF ITR

Various do’s and don’ts of which one must need to follow while filing the
Income tax return is stated below in table 19.1:

Table 19.1: Do’s and Don’ts of E-filing of ITR

Do’s Don’ts
✔ Choose the correct ITR form as Choose any form irrespective of
per the eligibility eligibility
✔ File ITR at least a month before Fill ITR speedily in last hours
✔ Provide accurate personal data Falsify the personal details
✔ Keep all the required documents Hide any source of income
by your side while filing
✔ Disclose all your sources of Start filing without having all the
income required documents
✔ Understand how to claim Not claiming deductions
deductions
✔ Always recheck before final Submit without rechecking
submission

Check Your Progress A

1. What is E-filing of Income Tax Return?

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2. What is the difference between register and log in option?
Tax Liability
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3. What are the benefits of filing income tax returns?
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4. What is the last date to file E- ITR?
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19.8 LET US SUM UP

According to theSection 139 (1) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 of India, any
individual having total income in the previous year more than the maximum
amount which is not chargeable to tax, should file their ITR or income tax
returns.

ITR is basically the form in which assessee files information about his
Income and tax thereon to Income Tax Department. Various forms of ITR are
such as, ITR 1, ITR 2, ITR 3, ITR 4, ITR 5, ITR 6 and ITR 7. Every
individual coming in the preview of ITR must file it, as it is very helpful for
various activities be it either applying for loans, overseas visa, credit card or
dealing with financial losses etc.

An individual needs various documents for filing of ITR. Before filing an

ITR, an individual must make sure that he has gathered all the necessary
documents. Checklist of documents for an individual for filing ITR is Form
16, Aadhar Card, PAN Card, rental agreement, proofs for taxes deducted by
employer, bank statements, transaction statements for shares/mutual funds,
TDS certificates, Investment details like LIC, PPF, NSC, NPS, Health
Insurance, housing loan certificate, tax paid proofs, purchaser of property,
proofs for deductions, foreign tax return etc.

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Filing of returns can be done either in physical mode or via any online mode.
When the filing of returns is done online, it is known as E-filing of Income
Tax Return (ITR). Various steps for E-filing of returns include registration,
login, selection of assessment year and mode of filing, selection of status of
taxpayer, selection of type of ITR form, answering of various questions,
validation of returns, confirmation of returns and preview and submit.

E-filing of returns is more advantageous over physical filing of returns as it

cuts down on processing time, individuals and businesses can receive funds
more quickly within 2-3 weeks. It leaves very less room for errors as
everything is calculated automatically, thus, improves the accuracy. It is also
very user friendly and convenient.

Various do’s of E- filing of ITR are choose the correct ITR form as per the
eligibility, file ITR at least a month before, provide accurate personal data,
keep all the required documents by your side while filing etc. and various
don’ts of E-filing of ITR are choosing any form irrespective of eligibility,
falsifying the personal details, hiding any source of income, start filing
without having all the required documents, not claiming deductions etc.

19.9 KEY WORDS

Income tax return: Income Tax Return is the form in which assessee files
information about his Income and tax thereon to the Income Tax Department.

E-filing of returns: E-filing or electronic filing is submitting your income

tax returns online.

ITR1: The ITR-1 Form, also called Sahaj is the Income Tax Return Form for
salaried individuals (i.e. salary/pension/family pension and interest income).
Previous year: Previous year is a period in respect of which a person has to
pay tax. In the income tax act the previous year is a period of 12 months
beginning from April 1 to March 31.

Assessment year: Assessment year (AY) is the year following the financial
year, in which the assessee has to file his return of income.
Tax deduction at source (TDS): Tax deduction at source is a means of
collecting tax on income, dividends or asset sales, by requiring the payer to
deduct tax due before paying the balance to the payee.
Form 16: It is a certificate issued by an employer to its employee annually. It
provides a detailed summary of the amount paid or credited to the employee,
the TDS on the same and deductions claimed on account of investment made
by the employee.

Form 16A: It is a certificate issued by a tax deductor on deduction of tax for

payments made towards commission, professional fees, bank interest etc. it
also ensures that the taxes deducted have been deposited with the
government.

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Form 26 AS: It displays various taxes that are deducted on income by the
Tax Liability employer, bank or tenant. It also displays the advanced tax, self-assessment
tax, tax collected at sources, refund etc. that have been paid during the
financial year.

19.10 TERMINAL QUESTIONS

1. What is ITR? List the various documents required for filing ITR.

2. What are the various benefits of filing income tax returns?

3. Explain the procedure for E-filing of ITR in India?

4. What are the benefits of E-filing of ITR over Physical filing?

5. What are the various Do’s and Don’ts that must be followed while E-
filing of ITR?

Note: These questions and illustrations are helpful to understand this

unit. Do efforts for writing answers to these questions but do not send
your answers to university. It is only for your practice.

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