If you have not filed your
income tax return (ITR) for FY2017-18 till now, it is high time you get a move on. This is because if you file a belated
ITR
after December 31, you will have to pay double the penalty for late
filing, i.e., Rs 10,000. If you file it before December 31, 2018, you
will have to pay a late filing fee of Rs 5,000.
In fact, the
income tax department has issued advertisements asking taxpayers who have not filed their ITR till now to do the same before December 31.
With effect from assessment year 2018-19, ITR filed after the expiry of
the deadline will attract a late
filing fee. Assessment year is the
financial year immediately following the previous financial year for
which ITR has to be filed. Therefore, in assessment year 2018-19, you
file ITR for the financial year 2017-18. Similarly, for financial year
2018-19, the assessment year would be 2019-20. The extended due date for
filing of ITR for FY2017-18 was August 31, 2018 (except for Kerala
assessees).
Prior to this, levy of late filing fee on belated ITR
was solely at the discretion of the assessing officer. However, an
amendment was made in Budget 2017 with an insertion of new section in
the Income Tax Act.
According to newly inserted law, i.e., Section 234F, if an individual
who files the ITR after the expiry of the deadline (i.e., belated ITR)
will be required to pay a late filing fee maximum up to Rs 10,000.
However, the fee to be levied is based on the time period of delay which
is as follows:
a)
A fee of Rs 5,000 if the ITR is filed after the due date but before
December 31 of the relevant assessment year (December 31, 2018 in this
case), or
b) Fee of Rs 10,000 in case ITR is filed between January 1 and March 31
of the relevant assessment year (January 1, 2019 - March 31, 2019).
Therefore, if you still haven't filed your ITR it is best to do it
before December 31, 2018 to avoid paying higher penalty on late filing
of ITR. However, for taxpayers whose income does not exceed Rs 5 lakh in
a financial year, the penalty is restricted to Rs 1,000 for belated ITR
filed up till March 31, 2019.
Remember that apart from paying a late filing fees, if there is an
unpaid tax liability, then you would be required to pay that as well
along with the interest on it. The department penalises you by levying
interest at the rate of one per cent per month or part of it if taxes
are not paid within the due dates under Section 234A. The interest
payable is calculated from the due date of filing of return till the
date return is filed.