The deadline for filing Income Tax Returns (ITR) is just a few weeks away, and both tax professionals and individuals are scrambling to submit their returns before July 31, 2023.
However, a technical glitch is causing problems in the filing process.
To simplify the tax return filing procedure, the Income Tax Department has provided information on advance tax payments,
as well as tax deductions made by employers, banks, tenants, or other institutions, in the income tax return.
This has been achieved through a pre-filing technique, where taxpayers only need to verify the pre-filled information in the ITR form.
If any information is missing, it is necessary to fill in the required details.
Important Details Missing in Tax Return Forms
Unfortunately, many crucial details are absent from the tax return forms.
Karan Batra, co-founder of CharteredClub.com, expressed concerns about the lack of advance tax information in Form 26AS.
This has resulted in software utilities being unable to provide advance tax payment data on the income tax department’s website.
Chartered accountants are finding it challenging to file ITR due to this issue.
A chartered accountant from Gurgaon mentioned that they used to have access to the taxpayers’ tax statements, which provided the necessary details.
However, now they have to rely on taxpayers for this information before completing the form.
Over 41 Lakh Returns Filed So Far
Chartered accountants have reported instances where clients are unaware of this issue, and they have to inform them and wait for the required information.
The pre-fetched data is not displaying correctly in the form.
Batra shared an example where advance tax paid in the financial year 2022-23 was merged with the current financial year in Form 26AS.
As of now, 41.6 lakh income tax returns have been filed for the financial year 2022-23.
Some Utilities Yet to be Released
Several chartered accountants have delayed the return filing process this year as they encountered difficulties when starting early last year.
Last year, 6.73 crore income tax returns were filed. A partner at a tax advisory firm in Mumbai mentioned that Form 26AS often contains missing data.
Even though the income tax return forms were released in April 2023, the software utilities have not been made available yet.
Chartered Accountants Express Frustration
The Income Tax Portal experienced significant changes in June 2021, resulting in various issues.
Moneycontrol reached out to multiple chartered accountants, many of whom complained about difficulties in accessing tax payment data.
