{"id":6586,"date":"2022-01-25T16:33:57","date_gmt":"2022-01-25T11:03:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/?p=6586"},"modified":"2022-05-24T11:07:23","modified_gmt":"2022-05-24T05:37:23","slug":"how-to-file-tax-returns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/how-to-file-tax-returns\/","title":{"rendered":"How To File Tax Returns in India: 11 Steps To File ITR Online"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Filing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/what-is-income-tax\/\">income tax<\/a> returns can be a very cumbersome process. Especially with the entire process earlier being done manually, offline. But the good news is that the Income Tax Department has completely redefined the process of filing returns through an online e- filing facility, aiming solely to reduce additional paperwork and increase ease of filing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Taxpayers as responsible citizens of the country should come forward and file their income tax returns at the earliest.\u00a0So let&#8217;s have a holistic approach to filing your tax returns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_66_1 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title \" >Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/how-to-file-tax-returns\/#Who-should-file-income-tax-returns\" title=\"Who should file income tax returns?\">Who should file income tax returns?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/how-to-file-tax-returns\/#Procedure-to-file-your-ITR\" title=\"Procedure to file your ITR\">Procedure to file your ITR<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/how-to-file-tax-returns\/#1-Collect-all-the-required-documents\" title=\"1. Collect all the required documents\">1. Collect all the required documents<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/how-to-file-tax-returns\/#2-Check-your-Form-26-AS\" title=\"2. Check your Form 26-AS\">2. Check your Form 26-AS<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/how-to-file-tax-returns\/#3-Computing-total-income-earned-during-the-FY-2020-2021\" title=\"3. Computing total income earned during the FY 2020-2021\">3. Computing total income earned during the FY 2020-2021<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/how-to-file-tax-returns\/#4-Calculating-tax-liability\" title=\"4. Calculating tax liability\">4. Calculating tax liability<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/how-to-file-tax-returns\/#5-Calculate-net-taxes-payable\" title=\"5. Calculate net taxes payable\">5. Calculate net taxes payable<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/how-to-file-tax-returns\/#6-Choose-the-appropriate-ITR-form\" title=\"6. Choose the appropriate ITR form\">6. Choose the appropriate ITR form<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-9\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/how-to-file-tax-returns\/#7-Download-ITR-utility\" title=\"7. Download ITR utility\">7. Download ITR utility<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-10\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/how-to-file-tax-returns\/#8-Fill-the-downloaded-form\" title=\"8. Fill the downloaded form\">8. Fill the downloaded form<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-11\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/how-to-file-tax-returns\/#9-Convert-the-file-to-XML-format\" title=\"9. Convert the file to XML format\">9. Convert the file to XML format<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-12\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/how-to-file-tax-returns\/#10-Upload-the-file-on-Income-Tax-Portal\" title=\"10. Upload the file on Income Tax Portal\">10. Upload the file on Income Tax Portal<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-13\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/how-to-file-tax-returns\/#11-Verify-your-return\" title=\"11. Verify your return\">11. Verify your return<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-14\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/how-to-file-tax-returns\/#Conclusion\" title=\"Conclusion\">Conclusion<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"who\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Who-should-file-income-tax-returns\"><\/span>Who should file income tax returns?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Before jumping onto the process, we should know who must file tax returns. Irrespective of your gross income, you can file your income tax returns, i.e. even a person with no earnings can file his income tax return. However, in the following cases, filing of income tax is mandatory:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>When your total gross income from all the sources exceeds Rs. 5,00,000 (before allowing deductions under section 80C to 80U).<\/li><li>When you are eligible for a refund. (<strong>Note:<\/strong> the refund is when you have already paid excess tax than your tax liability to the government through self-assessment tax, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/advance-tax-payment\/\">advance tax<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/what-is-income-tax-declaration-itd\/?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=article\">TDS<\/a>).&nbsp;<\/li><li>When you are required to file ITR 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7.<\/li><li>When you wish to carry forward your losses for the current year under any head of income.&nbsp;<\/li><li>When you are an individual owning an asset in any entity outside India.&nbsp;<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"procedure\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Procedure-to-file-your-ITR\"><\/span>Procedure to file your ITR<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Follow the steps discussed below to begin your <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/how-to-file-itr\/\">ITR filing process<\/a> from scratch:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"1-Collect-all-the-required-documents\"><\/span><strong>1. Collect all the required documents<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>You need to make sure that all the information about the income you furnish in your <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/document-checklist-while-filing-itr\/?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=article\">ITR<\/a> is updated to the best of your knowledge, and for that, you will need some\/all of the following documents:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Aadhar number<\/li><li>Form 16&nbsp;<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/what-is-tds-and-how-to-file-it\/\">TDS<\/a> certificates&nbsp;<\/li><li>Form 26-AS<\/li><li>Investment proofs, expenditure records<\/li><li>Capital gains records<\/li><li>Details of unlisted shares held, if any<\/li><li>Bank account details<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"2-Check-your-Form-26-AS\"><\/span><strong>2. Check your Form 26-AS<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Form 26-AS keeps a record of all the taxes deducted from your income in the financial year. To download this form, log in to your internet banking account, and click on &#8216;My Account&#8217;; there, look for &#8216;View Form 26AS&#8217; and click on it. You will be redirected to the website of TRACES, from where you can easily download your form 26-AS.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The department has introduced AIS (Annual Information System), which is an upgraded version of form 26-AS. If you find any disparities between the figures of form 26-AS and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/what-is-form16\/\">Form 16<\/a>, you&#8217;ll have to request the deductor to correct the same. Differences will occur when tax is deducted against your PAN but not deposited with the government.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For instance, if there is a difference between the TDS certificate provided by the bank and your 26-AS, then you are required to request the bank to look into the matter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"3-Computing-total-income-earned-during-the-FY-2020-2021\"><\/span><strong>3. Computing total income earned during the FY 2020-2021<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Once you are satisfied with the taxes deducted and deposited against your PAN, you should classify your income under different heads. Your total income is computed by adding incomes under different heads after claiming all the relevant deductions under different sections of the income tax act and setting off any prior period losses.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Note:<\/strong> Deductions are only available to the assessees who opt for the old tax regime.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Your incomes need to be classified under the following heads for income tax purposes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Income from salary<\/li><li>Income from house property<\/li><li>Income from profits and gains of profession or business<\/li><li>Income from capital gains<\/li><li>Income from other sources<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"4-Calculating-tax-liability\"><\/span><strong>4. Calculating tax liability<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Currently, the department is offering taxpayers the choice to either continue with the prevailing tax regime or switch to the new one. Compute your tax liability as per the tax slabs of the applicable tax regime.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"5-Calculate-net-taxes-payable\"><\/span><strong>5. Calculate net taxes payable<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>In the above step, you have calculated the taxes payable and deducted all the taxes you have already paid to the government in the form of &#8216;Tax Deducted at Source&#8217;, &#8216;Advance Tax&#8217; and &#8216;Self-assessment Tax&#8217;.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You also need to account for any interest payable under section 234A (Default in furnishing the return of income), 234B (Default in payment of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/advance-tax\/\">advance tax<\/a>) and 234C (Deferment of advance tax). After giving effect to these calculations, you&#8217;ll arrive at your net tax payable or refund receivable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"6-Choose-the-appropriate-ITR-form\"><\/span><strong>6. Choose the appropriate ITR form<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>After depositing the taxes payable with the government, you must file your return. With the introduction of the e-filing portal, filing income tax returns has become a lot easier. That said, make sure you opt for the appropriate ITR form for filing your return because doing so through a wrong ITR form could lead to mismatched returns. Remember, the online mode of filing returns is currently available only for ITR-1 and ITR-4, all other taxpayers are required to download the ITR utility, generate an XML file and upload it on the portal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"7-Download-ITR-utility\"><\/span><strong>7. Download ITR utility<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>To download the ITR utility go to <strong>www.incometax.gov.in<\/strong> and click on \u2018Downloads\u2019 from the right side of the top menu bar. Select assessment year as 2021-22 and download the offline utility software. Since the excel and java utilities are discontinued from AY 2020-21, you have to download the JSON utility.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"8-Fill-the-downloaded-form\"><\/span><strong>8. Fill the downloaded form<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Since we have already backed ourselves with proper tax calculations, we just need to fill the information in the downloaded form. In cases where tax is payable, you can also furnish challan details in the downloaded form.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Look for an icon named &#8216;Validate&#8217; in the downloaded form, click on it to check if all the required fields are filled. If you have skipped any required fields, the form will ask you to furnish information regarding the same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"9-Convert-the-file-to-XML-format\"><\/span><strong>9. Convert the file to XML format<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The downloaded file format is not compatible with the income tax portal and hence we need to convert it to XML format. Click on the icon \u2018Generate XML\u2019 on the right side of the form to convert the form into XML format.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"10-Upload-the-file-on-Income-Tax-Portal\"><\/span><strong>10. Upload the file on Income Tax Portal<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Go back to your income tax profile and click on the \u2018Income Tax Return\u2019 option which you can find under the \u2018e-File\u2019 drop-down menu.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The next page will ask you to provide your PAN, Assessment Year, ITR Form Number, and the Submission Mode. Open the drop-down menu against &#8216;Submission Mode&#8217; and select&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8216;XML Upload&#8217;, upload the XML file from your computer and click on &#8216;Continue&#8217;.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"11-Verify-your-return\"><\/span><strong>11. Verify your return<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Verification of ITR is mandatory, though there&#8217;s an option of &#8216;e-Verify Later&#8217; that allows you to submit your return without initiating the verification process. But it still requires you to verify your return within 120 days of filing.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are six ways you can verify your income tax return. Five of these options are electronic and don&#8217;t require any documents to be sent to the department, while the sixth option requires you to send a signed ITR-V\/Acknowledgement receipt to the department.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You can verify your return using the following options:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Via net banking<\/li><li>Via Aadhaar OTP<\/li><li>Via EVC on the Income Tax Department website<\/li><li>Via your Digital Signature Certificate<\/li><li>Via Demat account<\/li><li>Sending signed ITR-V\/Acknowledgement receipt<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Conclusion\"><\/span>Conclusion<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The GOI introduced e-filing of returns to encourage more taxpayers to come forward with filing and aid existing filers with new and improved technology. That said, the new e-filing portal of income tax is still in the process of settling and may be loaded with glitches. Thus, be very careful while filing your returns.&nbsp;If you are yet to submit your ITR, make sure you follow these steps to file your ITR without any mistakes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Want to file ITR online but not sure of the process? Read this guide to learn what is ITR, documents required and find out the entire process of filing tax returns.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":45,"featured_media":6588,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"no","footnotes":""},"categories":[8,1741],"tags":[1223,1221,1222,1220],"acf":[],"modified_by":"Anjali Chourasiya","jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/6-2.png?wsr","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6586"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/45"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6586"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6586\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8630,"href":"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6586\/revisions\/8630"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6588"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6586"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6586"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tickertape.in\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6586"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}