ITR: What happens if you miss July 31 deadline for filing income tax return

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has fixed the last date for filing the income tax return (ITR) for the previous financial year (FY22) as July 31, 2022. The government has also refused to extend the deadline this year. However, according to data from ITR's website, only 30 million ITRs have been filed so far.

For people with an annual income of over Rs 2.5 lakh, filing an ITR is mandatory. Failing to do so may attract fines and penalties. 

What happens if you fail to file ITR before July 31?

You will be liable to pay the following fines:

Late fees

If you miss the deadline of July 31, 2022, you can still file the document by December 31, 2022. However, you will have to pay a late fee.

If the yearly income is above Rs 5 lakh per annum, your late fees will be Rs 5,000. If the income is below Rs 5 lakh per annum, the late fee is Rs 1,000.

Interest on unpaid tax

If there is an unpaid income tax after July 31, 2022, an interest of 1 per cent is applicable on the outstanding amount. This is irrespective of whether the tax amount was filed wrong mistakenly or not.

The taxpayer will have to deposit the outstanding tax along with the interest, retrospectively from July 31.

Along with this, if the outstanding tax is paid on or after the 5th of any month, the interest of the full month will have to be paid.

Carry forward the losses

Taxpayers are allowed to reduce their liability by offsetting the losses from business operations or the sale of property against other incomes. The losses are allowed to be carried to subsequent years.

However, it is not applicable in the case of a belated ITR. The losses can only be carried forward if the ITR is filed before July 31, 2022.