Do you know 15th February is the last day to file your Income Tax Return for FY 2019-20? File your ITR before the due date to save yourself from the late fee of INR 10,000 u/s 234F. The tax audit due date was extended due to Covid-19. Let us take a look at the extended due dates for ITR filing.
Due Dates for FY 2019-20 (AY 2020-21)
It is very important to file the Income Tax Return within the due date defined as per the Income Tax Act.
The due date to file Income Tax Return for non-audit cases was 10th January 2021 (extended from 31st December 2020).
The due date to file Income Tax Return for audit cases is:
15th January 2021 – Due Date to file Tax Audit Report
15th February 2021 – Due Date to file Income Tax Return (when tax audit is applicable)
Traders subject to Tax Audit under Section 44AB should file ITR for FY 2019-20 before 15th Feb 2021. If you file your ITR in time,
- You can claim all your trading expenses
- You can carry forward losses to future years
- There would be no late fees and penalties
- You can claim TDS Refund if any
| ITR Type | Due Date |
| Audit not applicable | 10th Jan 2021 |
| Audit applicable | 15th Feb 2021 |
Filed ITR but not reported trading transactions? – File a Revised Return
As per the Income Tax Act, if you have filed your original return under Section 139(1) for FY 2019-20, you can file a Revised Return under Section 139(5) up to 31st March 2021 without paying late fees or penalty.
You may have filed an original ITR in time but not reported trading income and claimed losses. In such a case, you can file a Revised ITR to claim trading expenses and carry forward the trading loss. The last date to file Revised Return for FY 2019-20 is 31st March 2021.
Consequences for not filing ITR in time
Late Fee under Section 234F
FY 2017-18 onwards, if a taxpayer files a Belated Return (ITR after due date) u/s 139(4), they must pay a late fee under Section 234F as below:
| Total Income | Late Fees |
| Up to INR 2.5 lacs | Nil |
| INR 2.5 lacs to INR 5 lacs | INR 1,000 |
| More than INR 5 lacs (ITR filed on or before 31st Dec) | INR 5,000 |
| More than INR 5 lacs (ITR filed after 31st Dec) | INR 10,000 |
Traders who are subject to Tax Audit under Section 44AB should file the Income Tax Return before 15th February to avoid a late fee of INR 10,000 under Section 234F.
Tax Notice
The Income Tax Department is working to build a database of information of taxpayers by sourcing data from third parties. From its partnership with SEBI, the IT Department would be able to fetch details of trading transactions. The Income Tax Department has also asked various organizations such as Banks, NBFC, Brokers, Mutual Fund Houses, etc to file SFT Forms to submit data of taxpayers.
Such information is reflected on the e-compliance portal of Income Tax. If such data is not reflected in the Income Tax Return filed by the taxpayer, the IT Department may issue scrutiny notices for non-disclosure of income. Thus, it is advisable for taxpayers to report correct information and all the incomes in the ITR.
Interest under Section 234A on Tax Dues
If you miss the deadline to file the Income Tax Return and there are tax dues, you are liable to pay interest at 1% per month or part of the month under Section 234A of the Income Tax Act.
To conclude, it is our moral duty to report all the incomes and file the ITR within the prescribed time limit. You must avoid chances of tax notice, paying late fees and penalties by filing ITR before 15th February 2021.
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I think you should pay income tax before March 15 for current Financial Year.
For FY21 you should pay 100 % income tax due on or before 15th March 2021.
@TeamQuicko Can you clarify?
@ATDES is correct, you need to pay 100% of your tax liability in form of Advance tax before the 15th March of the financial year. Missing out on which may lead to interest u/s 234C and 234B
@vivek25, The last date of filing ITR when Tax Audit is not Applicable for AY 2021-22 is 30th September 2021. You can still pay self-assessment tax and declare it when filing your ITR
@Nireka Thanks.
My query relates to my senior citizen parents. I understand that they are not liable to pay advance tax.
So now after extension of due date for filing ITR, do they have time till Sept 2021 to pay self assessment tax as well? Hope I’m right?
@vivek25, in case the outstanding tax liability is above INR 10,000 you should pay self-assessment tax before 31st July to avoid interest, and you can file ITR before the applicable due date.