Income Tax Returns : Last date to file an income tax return (ITR) without any late fee was 31st July which is over. A number of taxpayers, however, may still be waiting for the processing of their returns, thereby, waiting for their refunds to be processed.
There are several steps involved in filing a tax return: filing, verifying, and then processing the return. After this is finished, taxpayers will see the notification in the tax filing portal that reads “processing completion”.
The income tax department recently released data to show that the number of days it took to process the returns has shortened in the past few years.
Read more: Important Income Tax Penalties under Income Tax Act, 1961
While it took on average 82 days to process a return in the assessment year 2019-20; in 2022-23, it took 16 days, and it has further reduced to 10 days in the assessment year 2023-24.
Thus, it is possible—and understandable—that your income tax return was submitted earlier than the July 31 deadline but has not yet been validated. There could be a ton of causes for this. However, one of the most common reasons is that the information that you submitted in the return does not tally with that of form 26AS or AIS (annual information statement).
This means when you have declared your income to be ‘X’ amount and your documents (such as AIS) claim this to be ‘Y’ amount.
Then the income tax department would most likely send a query asking for the reason for the discrepancy.
And if you can justify the reasons for the same, your return will be processed. Else, the department would nudge you to pay the outstanding income tax. And until that takes place, the case will be shown as the ‘return filed but not processed’ (as shown in the image above)
Read more; Faceless Income Tax Assessment: How does it work under Income Tax?
Other than above Top 5 Reasons when ITR verified but not processed are
1. Late Filing:
Filing your returns after the due date can lead to processing delays. Timely filing, usually before July 31st, is advisable to avoid such issues.
2. Errors in Form:
Using the incorrect ITR form for your income source or financial status can result in delays. Ensure you are using the appropriate form to prevent processing problems.
3. High Volume of Returns:
During peak tax filing seasons, the department deals with a massive volume of returns. Naturally, this can lead to processing delays as tax officials work through the backlog.
Read Also: Income Tax notice: 6 high-value cash transactions that can get you flagged by I-T dept
4. Manual Intervention:
In cases where the department suspects tax evasion or complicated financial transactions, manual intervention is required. This detailed scrutiny takes time but is necessary for accurate processing.
5. Technical Glitches:
Occasionally, technical issues within the tax department’s systems can cause delays in processing returns. These glitches might be temporary but can impact the timeline.
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