Here is What to do if you forgot to verify your Income Tax Return.
According to income tax laws, any taxpayer gets 120 days after filing ITR to verify it. But what happens if you forget to verify it in the given timeframe. There are six ways of verifying after filing the ITR form from which five of them can be done electronically and the last option is to send physical documents to the Income Tax Central Processing Centre (CPC), Bengaluru.
Get Your ITR Filed and your application verified with the Best ITR Filing company in Jaipur
So you forgot to verify the filed ITR within 120 days, What’s next? If you have not verified your filed ITR, it becomes invalid and will not be processed further. Any tax refunds claimed by the individual will not be given to you unless a verified tax return is filed by the taxpayer and has been processed by the income tax department.
If the taxpayer forgets to verify the filed ITR they can then apply for a condonation delay request if there is a genuine reason the ITR was not verified within the given timeframe. The taxpayer will have to explain the reason why the ITR was not verified.
The CBDT (Central Board of Direct Taxes) has given a wide range of authorities to the income tax department. They have the authority to accept any application, claim for any exemption, deductions, and refunds even after the expiry of the period specified under Section 119(2)(b) of the Income Tax Act, 1961. This authority allows the Income Tax Department to condone the delay in very specific cases like failure to verify the filed ITR within 120 days limit.
The Income Tax Department accepts the condonation delay request if the following criteria are met.
- The reason is genuine, correct and acceptable.
- The Income is not assessable in hands of any other person.
- There is a genuine problem faced by the taxpayer due to which they were unable to verify the filed ITR within the timeframe.
The option to apply for a condonation request can be found under Service Tab on the new income tax portal. Some frequently asked questions related to condonation requests.
What is the last date of applying for a Condonation Request? Although there is no specific limitation for applying for the condonation request. However according to the CBDT circular no 9/2015 dated 9th of June, 2015, no condonation application will be accepted for the claim, refund/loss beyond six years from the end of the assessment year for which the claim/application is made.
Can I track the status of my Condonation request? The taxpayers can the condonation request from the Condonation Request section under the Services Tab in the new income tax portal. One thing to keep in mind while applying for the condonation request is that an individual will not be able to file ITR until the delayed condonation request is accepted. There is a specified time for the processing of the condonation request but it usually gets processed within 3-4 months from the date of application.
What should be my next step if my request gets rejected? If a condonation request gets rejected the filed ITR will be treated as invalid as it was never verified and the taxpayer would be subject to penal provisions. The taxpayer may have to pay penalties or even go to jail as no filing of ITR can be treated as Tax Evasion.