ITR deadline moved to September 15: who’s covered, what the numbers say, and why filings are lagging
Five days can make all the difference when millions are still scrambling. The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has pushed the income tax return due date for Financial Year 2024-25 (Assessment Year 2025-26) to September 15, 2025, from the usual July 31. The extension is for non-audit taxpayers—salaried individuals, pensioners, Hindu Undivided Families (HUFs), and small businesses or professionals using ITR 1 to 4, including those under presumptive taxation.
As of September 11, 2025, 5.47 crore returns have been filed. That’s well below the 7.28 crore filed by the same point last year. Of the returns filed, 5.14 crore are verified and 3.66 crore already processed. The lower count suggests many people are still preparing documents or are stuck with portal issues and utility errors.
Who exactly does this extension help? Anyone not required to get their books audited—think salaried employees, retirees with pension, landlords declaring rental income, investors with capital gains, and small businesses or professionals who opt for presumptive schemes under Sections 44AD, 44ADA, or 44AE. For context, presumptive limits today allow small businesses with largely digital receipts to use 44AD up to Rs 3 crore, and professionals to use 44ADA up to Rs 75 lakh when cash receipts stay within 5%.
Audit cases follow a different calendar. Their statutory audit and tax audit filings are due later, and their ITR due date is typically after that. The current relief does not change those timelines; it simply gives non-audit taxpayers extra breathing room to file accurately.
Why the slowdown this year? Taxpayers and chartered accountants cite recurring technical glitches on the income tax portal, intermittent downtime, and delayed release of Excel utilities for the current assessment year. Add to this extended monsoon spells, floods, and heavy rain in several states that cut access and working days—plus a festival-heavy calendar compressing the filing window. Together, it’s created a backlog that has not fully cleared despite the extension.
Industry voices have asked for more time. Tax professional Anita Basrur of Sudit K. Parekh & Co. LLP has recommended pushing the non-audit deadline to September 30, and audit cases to mid-December, pointing to tool validation errors, portal performance, and fewer working days. The Finance Ministry hasn’t announced any further extension yet, so the best advice is simple: don’t wait for a last-minute rescue.
Bottom line for now: the ITR filing last date 2025 for non-audit cases is September 15. File before that and you avoid penalties, reduce interest, and stand a better chance of getting refunds earlier.
What you risk by missing the date, how refunds will flow, and a practical checklist to file right the first time
Miss September 15 and the meter starts running. Two kinds of costs show up when you file late—interest and a late fee.
Interest under Section 234A applies if you have unpaid self-assessment tax at the time of filing. If your TDS/TCS and advance tax already cover your liability, 234A interest doesn’t kick in. But if you owe anything, you’ll pay interest per month (or part of a month) from the end of the due date until the actual filing date.
The late fee under Section 234F is a separate hit. For most taxpayers, it’s up to Rs 5,000. If your total income doesn’t exceed Rs 5 lakh, the late fee caps at Rs 1,000. This fee applies even if no tax is ultimately payable—so it’s worth filing on time to avoid paying for nothing.
There’s more to think about than just penalties. If you file after the due date, you lose the ability to carry forward certain losses—like capital losses and most business losses—to future years. House property loss carry-forward is generally still allowed, but missed deadlines do shut the door on some valuable tax planning options.
If you’re wondering about advance tax-related interest, Sections 234B and 234C can apply if you didn’t pay enough advance tax during the year. Salaried folks with minimal other income may be less affected, but people with business income, rental income, or capital gains need to check their advance tax position before filing.
There is a safety net if you miss September 15: the belated return window stays open until December 31, 2025. You can also revise a filed return by that same date if you spot errors. For deeper fixes, the updated return (ITR-U) route is available up to March 31, 2030, allowing you to correct major under-reporting with an additional tax outgo. These options are helpful, but they cost time and money—and they can push your refund further down the line.
Now to refunds. The sooner you file and e-verify, the sooner the processing starts. Returns that match the data in your AIS/TIS and Form 26AS usually get processed quickly. Where there’s a mismatch—say a missed interest entry, a wrong bank account, or a TDS credit that doesn’t tie out—expect delays and possible notices.
Refunds are credited only to a pre-validated bank account with your PAN correctly seeded. If your bank account isn’t pre-validated, do it right away in the e-filing portal. If the account is closed or inactive, update it before you file. Also check PAN–Aadhaar status; an inoperative PAN can derail verification and refund credit.
About refund interest: if a refund is due, the department pays interest under Section 244A, typically at 0.5% per month, subject to rules and timelines. If you file after the due date, the interest period can be shorter. Remember, refund interest is taxable in the year of receipt—declare it under “Income from other sources.”
Verification is not a formality you can forget. After uploading your ITR, you must e-verify within 30 days. You can use Aadhaar OTP, net banking, bank account EVC, Demat EVC, or a digital signature (DSC, where mandated). Skip e-verification and the return is treated as not filed, which brings you back to square one with penalties and interest risks.
What if the portal is patchy near the deadline? Prepare offline. Use the latest JSON/utility to generate your return file, reconcile income data smartly, and try filing during off-peak hours—early morning or late night. If there’s a validation error you can’t fix, update the utility, re-download AIS/TIS, and re-check the problematic schedule. Keep screenshots of errors and ticket numbers if you raise complaints with the helpdesk—these help if you need to explain delays later.
Before you hit submit, run a quick, tight checklist:
- Form 16 from your employer, and Form 16A for bank or other TDS.
- Form 26AS and AIS/TIS—match TDS, interest, dividends, capital gains, and high-value transactions.
- Interest certificates from savings and fixed deposits; include small amounts—AIS usually picks these up.
- Capital gains statements (CAS from brokers/RTAs), including mutual fund redemptions and stock sales.
- Home loan interest certificate for Section 24(b), and principal component for Section 80C if applicable.
- Rent receipts for HRA claims; PAN of landlord if monthly rent exceeds Rs 50,000 (TDS may apply under Section 194-IB for certain cases).
- Insurance premiums (80C/80D), ELSS, PPF, EPF, SSY, tuition fees—collate proofs and amounts.
- Donations with eligible 80G details; prefer donations with a proper receipt and PAN of the donee.
- Education loan interest (80E), NPS (80CCD), and other eligible deductions.
- Bank account details pre-validated; confirm IFSC and account number to avoid refund failures.
Choosing between the old and new tax regime still confuses many. The new regime is the default. Salaried taxpayers can switch every year while filing. Those with business or professional income have tighter rules and must file the required form (currently 10-IEA) by the due date to opt into or out of the old regime. If you miss the due date in such cases, your choice may get locked for the year—so decide before September 15.
Investors should pay special attention to capital gains. Equity and mutual fund redemptions, debt fund exits post-rule changes, and sale of property all have different tax treatments. The AIS often reflects these, but you still need to compute cost, indexation where applicable, and exemptions under Sections 54/54EC/54F correctly. If you sold property and plan to reinvest, document timelines and amounts precisely; a mismatch can trigger a notice or block a refund until you respond.
If you’re claiming foreign tax credit (FTC), upload Form 67 on time and ensure the claim aligns with your foreign income entries and tax residency status. For many, FTC errors are a common reason for processing holds. Similarly, if you have ESOPs or RSUs, reconcile perquisites with your employer’s disclosures and your sale transactions to avoid double counting.
Running a small business or freelancing under presumptive schemes? Make sure your turnover limits and cash receipt thresholds fit. Under 44AD and 44ADA, you can declare a fixed percentage of income in place of maintaining detailed books, but you must respect the conditions—especially the 5% cap on cash receipts to use the higher threshold. If you deviate, the regular audit and compliance rules may apply.
Here’s how to speed up refunds and avoid a processing snag:
- Match everything with AIS/TIS and Form 26AS before filing. If AIS shows a deposit or interest you missed, add it unless you can prove it’s incorrect.
- Pick the correct ITR form. Salaried with simple finances usually use ITR-1; add business/professional income and you’ll need ITR-3 or ITR-4 (presumptive).
- Don’t leave small incomes out—bank interest of a few hundred rupees can still trigger an AIS mismatch.
- Reconcile TDS credits across multiple deductors—employers, banks, tenants, and platforms.
- Use the latest utilities; outdated versions often throw validation errors or wrong XML/JSON builds.
- E-verify within 30 days. Returns stuck at “submitted, not verified” don’t get processed.
Worried about notices? Most “mismatches” are automated and solvable. Keep documents ready—salary slips, broker statements, rent receipts, donation receipts, interest certificates, and bank statements. If you get an intimation under Section 143(1) showing a variation, read it line by line and respond within the portal using the explanation or rectification options.
Refund not showing up? Three common reasons: the bank account isn’t pre-validated; the name or PAN seeding mismatch at the bank; or the department has adjusted the refund against past demand. If there’s an old demand you disagree with, raise a response under the portal’s demand tab with supporting evidence.
What if you truly can’t file by September 15? File as soon as possible. Every month’s delay increases interest, and the late fee doesn’t get any smaller. Also remember, if you want to carry forward capital losses or certain business losses, a belated return won’t help—you need to be on time to preserve those benefits.
There is talk in tax circles about another extension, but nothing official yet. Historically, last-minute extensions are rare unless there’s a major system outage or a policy decision at the top. The practical call: assume September 15 is the finish line.
Key dates to pin to your calendar for AY 2025-26:
- September 15, 2025: ITR due date for non-audit taxpayers.
- Within 30 days of filing: e-verify your return.
- December 31, 2025: Last day to file a belated or revised return.
- March 31, 2030: Last date to file an updated return (ITR-U) if you need a deeper correction and are willing to pay additional tax.
One last practical tip: if your employer deducted excess TDS and your numbers are clean, early filing tends to mean faster refunds. If you have multiple income streams, property sales, foreign income, or large deductions, budget extra time to reconcile and review. Rushing on the final day is when most mistakes happen—and those mistakes are what delay refunds.
For now, the message is simple. File before September 15, e-verify quickly, and keep your bank details pre-validated. That’s the straightest path to compliance—and to your refund landing without drama.
