Save up to 10k penalty on timely filing of Income Tax Returns
Some taxpayers do not pay attention to the due date for tax filing and somehow manage to file their return on deadlines, with interest on income tax payable. If you also do the same, it will cost you an additional late fee up to Rs.10,000 this year.
With the introduction of a new Section 234F in the Income Tax Act, 1961, returns filed after due date will attract mandatory penalty.
Before understanding the applicable penalty, let us see what is the due date for you:
| Person as per Income Tax Law | Due Date for ITR for AY2018-19 |
|---|---|
| All persons except - (i) Companies, (ii) Non-Companies whose books are required to be audited and (iii) Working partner of a firm whose accounts are required to be audited | 31st July, 2018 |
| Companies | 30th September, 2018 |
| Non-Companies whose books are required to be audited as per Income Tax Law | 30th September, 2018 |
| Person who is required to submit a report pertaining to international or specified domestic transactions under section 92E | 30th November, 2018 |
If you fail to file your return by the applicable due date as mentioned above, you will end up filing your return with a penalty. Penalty prescribed under the law ranges from Rs.1,000 to Rs.10,000 as in the table below:
| Date of filing the ITR for AY2018-19 | Late Filing Fees |
|---|---|
| Return is filed after due date but on or before 31st December, 2018 | Rs.5,000 |
| Return is filed after 31st December 2018 but before 31st March, 2019 | Rs.10,000 |
| Return is filed after due date but total income does not exceed Rs.5Lacs | Rs.1,000 |
Even though you have no tax liability or tax refunds, you might end-up paying late fees to the government. So, file your returns well before time to avoid unwanted penalties.