Your Form 16 has been sitting in your inbox since June, the July deadline came and went, and now a refund you were counting on has not arrived because you never filed. This happens to lakhs of salaried people every year. The good news is that you can still file income tax return online yourself on the Income Tax Department’s e-filing portal, usually in under an hour, as long as you pick the right form, check your tax statements first and verify the return once it is uploaded.
This guide walks through the whole process: which year you are filing for now that the Income-tax Act, 2025 is in force, how to choose between ITR-1, ITR-2, ITR-3 and ITR-4, the documents to gather, how to check AIS and Form 26AS, how e-verification works, the due dates, what belated, revised and updated returns are, and how refunds reach your bank account.
First, which year are you filing for
The new Income-tax Act, 2025 came into force on 1 April 2026 and replaced the idea of “previous year” and “assessment year” with a single “tax year”. Tax year 2026-27 runs from April 2026 to March 2027 and is the first year governed by the new law. Its returns will be filed in 2027.
The returns being filed during 2026 are for income earned in financial year 2025-26, known as assessment year 2026-27. They still fall under the Income-tax Act, 1961, which is why the e-filing portal’s forms and help pages for this season still refer to sections such as 139 and 80C. The process described below is the same under both laws; only the section numbers and some form numbers change.
Choosing the right ITR form
Using the wrong form is the most common reason a return is treated as defective. The portal’s guidance for assessment year 2026-27 sets out who can use which form:
| Form | Who it is for | Key limits |
|---|---|---|
| ITR-1 (Sahaj) | Resident individual (not “not ordinarily resident”) with salary or pension, one house property, other sources such as interest, and long-term capital gains under section 112A | Total income up to ₹50 lakh; agricultural income up to ₹5,000; section 112A gains up to ₹1.25 lakh |
| ITR-2 | Individuals and HUFs with no business or professional income who cannot use ITR-1, for example with short-term capital gains, foreign assets, more than one house or income above ₹50 lakh | No business income |
| ITR-3 | Individuals and HUFs with income from business or profession, along with any other income | For those not eligible for ITR-1, ITR-2 or ITR-4 |
| ITR-4 (Sugam) | Resident individuals, HUFs and firms (not LLPs) declaring business or professional income on a presumptive basis | Total income up to ₹50 lakh; optional form |
ITR-1 is closed to company directors, anyone who held unlisted shares during the year, anyone with assets or income outside India, and anyone with losses to carry forward. If any of these apply, move to ITR-2 (or ITR-3 if you have business income).
Documents to keep ready
Gather these before you log in. It saves you from abandoning a half-filled return.
- PAN and Aadhaar, with your mobile number linked to Aadhaar for OTP verification.
- Form 16 from each employer you worked for during the year.
- Form 16A or interest certificates for fixed deposits, recurring deposits and other non-salary income where tax was deducted.
- Savings account interest figures for every bank account.
- Home loan interest certificate, rent receipts and proof of deductions if you are using the old regime.
- Capital gains statements from your broker or mutual fund registrar if you sold shares, funds or property.
- Details of the bank account in which you want your refund, which must be pre-validated on the portal.
Check AIS and Form 26AS before you file income tax return
The department already knows a lot about your income. Two statements show what it knows, and your return should match them.
Form 26AS is the annual tax statement. From assessment year 2023-24 it shows only tax deducted and collected at source, so it tells you how much TDS each deductor has deposited against your PAN.
The Annual Information Statement (AIS) is the wider picture. It shows TDS and TCS, financial transactions reported by banks and other entities, advance and self-assessment tax you paid, refunds, and other information such as interest on refunds. A summary called the Taxpayer Information Summary (TIS) adds up each category, and the values you accept there are used to pre-fill your return.
Do three things:
- Open AIS from the e-filing dashboard and download it as a PDF.
- Compare every salary, interest and dividend entry with your own records. If an entry is wrong, duplicated or not yours, submit feedback on that entry. You get an acknowledgement, and there is no limit on how many times you can change feedback.
- Check that every TDS amount in your Form 16 and Form 16A appears in Form 26AS. Credit for tax in your return is limited to what Form 26AS shows.
AIS is not complete. The department says some transactions may not appear in it, and you are still expected to report all your income accurately.
How to file income tax return online, step by step
- Log in to the e-filing portal with your PAN or Aadhaar and password.
- From the e-File menu, open the Income Tax Return section and start a new return. Select the assessment year and choose to file online.
- Choose your status (individual) and the ITR form you picked using the table above.
- Choose your tax regime. For non-business taxpayers this choice is made in the return itself, and the old regime is available only in a return filed by the due date.
- Check the pre-filled data: personal details, salary, interest, TDS and bank accounts. Edit or add anything that is missing.
- Enter deductions, other income and capital gains, then review the tax computation. If tax is payable, pay it online through the portal before you submit and enter the challan details in the return.
- Preview, submit and move straight to verification.
If you want a quick check of your tax before you start, the income tax calculator shows the figure under both regimes.
E-verification: the step people forget
Uploading a return is not the end. You must verify it within 30 days of filing. If you verify late, the date of verification is treated as your filing date, with all the consequences of late filing. A return that is never verified is treated as invalid, as if you had not filed at all.
You can e-verify online using:
- an OTP sent to the mobile number registered with Aadhaar;
- an electronic verification code (EVC) through a pre-validated bank account or demat account;
- EVC through a bank ATM, or net banking;
- a digital signature certificate.
An EVC is a 10-character code valid for 72 hours. If you cannot e-verify, you can post a signed ITR-V to the Centralised Processing Centre in Bengaluru, which must receive it within the 30 days. If you have already missed the window, file a condonation request with your reason; the return counts as verified only after the department approves it.
Due dates, late fees, belated and revised returns
The Finance Act, 2026 staggered the due dates. The same dates were written into the 1961 Act for assessment year 2026-27 and into the new Act from tax year 2026-27:
| Taxpayer | Due date (after the end of the year) |
|---|---|
| Individuals filing ITR-1 or ITR-2, and others not listed below | 31 July |
| Business or professional income, accounts not audited | 31 August |
| Accounts audited (companies, audited businesses) | 31 October |
| Cases with transfer pricing reports | 30 November |
The board can extend these dates. For assessment year 2026-27, for instance, it extended the 31 October date for audit cases to 21 November 2026. Check the portal’s news section near any deadline.
Belated return
If you miss the due date you can still file, up to nine months after the end of the year, which is 31 December, or before assessment is completed if that is earlier. For income of 2025-26 that means 31 December 2026. Under both the old and the new Act the late fee is up to ₹1,000 if total income is ₹5 lakh or less, and ₹5,000 otherwise. A belated return also cannot carry the old regime option for non-business taxpayers.
Revised return
Found a mistake after filing? You can revise an original or belated return. The Finance Act, 2026 extended the time limit from nine months to 12 months after the end of the year, so up to 31 March, with a fee of ₹1,000 or ₹5,000 (depending on whether income is up to or above ₹5 lakh) for revisions made after 31 December.
Updated returns for older mistakes
If the revision window has closed and you realise you left out income, an updated return lets you correct it within 48 months from the end of the financial year after the tax year. It comes at a price: additional tax of 25%, 50%, 60% or 70% of the tax and interest due, depending on whether you file in the first, second, third or fourth year. An updated return generally cannot reduce your tax or increase a refund. It is a way to put things right before the department finds the gap.
Refunds: getting your money back
If more tax was deducted than you owe, the excess comes back as a refund once your return is processed. Processing ends with an intimation that shows the department’s computation; compare it with your return.
- Refunds are paid only into a bank account that you have pre-validated on the portal. It must be linked to your PAN and be a savings, current, cash credit, overdraft or NRO account. Loan and PPF accounts cannot be used.
- You can validate and nominate more than one account.
- If a refund fails, for example because an account was closed, you can raise a refund reissue request on the portal and e-verify it.
- If the intimation shows a TDS mismatch, ask the deductor to file a revised TDS statement. For other errors, you can file a revised return or, after the intimation, a rectification request.
Checklist before you press submit
- Correct assessment year and ITR form for your income.
- AIS reviewed, feedback given on wrong entries, TDS matched with Form 26AS.
- Regime chosen, and the return filed by the due date if you want the old regime.
- Pre-validated, PAN-linked bank account selected for the refund.
- Return e-verified the same day, well within 30 days.
This guide gives general information on how to file income tax return online. If you have capital gains from property, foreign income or business accounts, consider getting a tax professional to review your return.
