The Income Tax Department stated that over 7.8 crore Income Tax Returns (ITRs) were filed by August 31 for the Assessment Year 2026-27, setting a new record. The department thanked taxpayers and tax professionals for adhering to the regulations in a timely manner.
The August 31 deadline applied to taxpayers whose source of income is a business or profession and whose accounts do not require an audit. This revised schedule for filing returns was implemented following amendments made to the Income-tax Act, 1961, under the Finance Act, 2026.
Under the revised tax filing schedule, the deadline was August 31 for taxpayers with business or professional income whose accounts do not require an audit, giving them an additional month compared with most other non-audit taxpayers, who had until July 31. For taxpayers subject to a mandatory audit, the deadline is October 31, while for those covered by transfer pricing provisions under Section 92E, the deadline is November 30.
Income earned between April 1, 2025, and March 31, 2026, will be assessed under Assessment Year (AY) 2026-27. The Income Tax Department has clarified that the provisions of the Income Tax Act, 1961, will apply to returns concerning income from this period, whereas the new Income Tax Act, 2025, has come into effect from April 1, 2026.
Under Section 44AB of the Income Tax Act, a tax audit is generally mandatory for businesses where total sales, turnover, or gross receipts exceed ₹1 crore. However, if total cash receipts and cash payments do not exceed 5%, this threshold increases to ₹10 crore. For professionals, the standard threshold for a tax audit is gross receipts exceeding ₹50 lakh, subject to other conditions prescribed under income tax laws.
Taxpayers who miss their applicable deadline can file a belated return for AY 2026-27 by December 31, 2026, or before the assessment is completed, whichever is earlier. A late-filing fee of Rs 1,000 applies if total income does not exceed Rs 5 lakh, while other cases attract a fee of Rs 5,000. After filing, the return must also be verified within 30 days through e-verification or by submitting ITR-V. If verification is completed after the 30-day window, the verification date may be treated as the filing date, potentially attracting the applicable consequences of late filing.
