Individual Income Tax Return (ITR) Filing

Overview

An income tax return (ITR) is the yearly statement in which a taxpayer reports income, claims deductions, sets off tax already paid and settles the balance with the Income Tax Department. India works on self-assessment: you compute the tax, pay any shortfall, and file on the e-filing portal (incometax.gov.in). The return for income earned between 1 April 2025 and 31 March 2026 is filed for Assessment Year (AY) 2026-27.

Seven forms exist (ITR-1 to ITR-7). This service covers the forms used by individuals and Hindu Undivided Families: ITR-1 (Sahaj), ITR-2, ITR-3 and ITR-4 (Sugam). A return is complete only after it is e-verified, which must be done within 30 days of submitting it.

Who needs it

• Salaried employees, including those with more than one employer during the year.
• Freelancers, consultants and small professionals.
• Investors with capital gains from shares, mutual funds, property or crypto assets.
• Residents with foreign income or assets, and NRIs with income in India.
• HUFs.
• Anyone who wants a refund of excess TDS, or needs a return as income proof for a loan or visa.

Filing is compulsory when income is above the basic exemption limit for your age and regime. It can also be compulsory below that limit if, in the year, you:

• deposited more than ₹1 crore in current accounts, or ₹50 lakh or more in savings accounts;
• spent more than ₹2 lakh on foreign travel or more than ₹1 lakh on electricity;
• had TDS and TCS of ₹25,000 or more (₹50,000 or more for senior citizens);
• held a foreign beneficial interest or signing authority, or had business turnover above ₹60 lakh or professional receipts above ₹10 lakh.

What Zenith does

We start by listening: which income sources you had, what you have already filed and what worries you. We then confirm scope, share a tailored quotation and an assignment-specific document checklist, and introduce your relationship manager.

• Pick the right form (ITR-1 to ITR-4) from your income mix.
• Reconcile Form 16, Form 26AS, the Annual Information Statement (AIS) and your own records so income and TDS credits match.
• Compare the old and new tax regimes on your numbers and explain the result before you decide.
• Compute capital gains, house property income, deductions and any self-assessment tax.
• Prepare the return, walk you through it for approval, file it and help you e-verify.
• Hand over the acknowledgement and a short explanation of the computation and refund status.

You get milestone updates at each stage. Where a matter needs representation before the tax authorities, it is handled only through appropriately authorised professionals.

Eligibility and key rules

Which form

Form	Used by	Typical income
ITR-1 (Sahaj)	Resident individuals	Salary, one house property, other sources, total income up to ₹50 lakh
ITR-2	Individuals and HUFs without business income	Capital gains, foreign income or assets, more than one house property, directorship
ITR-3	Individuals and HUFs with business or profession	Books-based business income, partners in firms, trading
ITR-4 (Sugam)	Individuals, HUFs and firms other than LLPs	Presumptive income under 44AD, 44ADA or 44AE

Agricultural income above ₹5,000 moves a salaried person from ITR-1 to ITR-2. Long-term gains on listed shares up to ₹1.25 lakh can still be reported in ITR-1, according to one public source read.

Old or new regime

The new regime is the default. It has lower slab rates and a rebate under Section 87A of up to ₹60,000, so tax is effectively nil up to ₹12 lakh of taxable income (special-rate income is treated separately). The old regime allows deductions such as Section 80C (up to ₹1.5 lakh), 80D (health insurance, ₹25,000, or ₹50,000 for seniors) and home loan interest under Section 24(b) (up to ₹2 lakh for a self-occupied home), plus HRA. Salaried taxpayers can choose each year; people with business income have limited chances to switch back.

Documents required

• PAN and Aadhaar (PAN must be linked to Aadhaar for e-verification by Aadhaar OTP).
• Form 16 from each employer. If you do not have one, payslips plus Form 26AS and AIS work.
• Form 26AS and AIS or Taxpayer Information Summary (TIS).
• Bank statements and interest certificates for savings accounts, deposits and post office schemes.
• Investment and expense proofs for deductions: 80C, 80D, 80E, 80G, home loan interest certificate, rent receipts for HRA.
• Capital gains statements from brokers or mutual fund registrars; sale and purchase deeds for property.
• Foreign asset and foreign income details, where relevant.
• Details of advance tax or self-assessment tax already paid.

Returns are attachment-less: nothing is uploaded to the portal with the return, but you keep the proofs in case of a query.

Process and timeline

1. Scoping call and quotation; you upload the checklist documents.
2. We review AIS, Form 26AS and Form 16 against your records and flag mismatches.
3. Form and regime are chosen with you; tax is computed.
4. You approve the draft. Any self-assessment tax is paid through the portal (challan 280).
5. We file the return and share the acknowledgement.
6. You e-verify within 30 days using Aadhaar OTP, net banking or a digital signature.
7. The department processes the return and issues an intimation, and refunds are credited to the pre-validated bank account.

Timelines depend on completeness of documents, complexity of income and processing by the authority.

Government fees, penalties and due dates

There is no government fee to file a return. Tax and interest are payable as computed.

Item	Rule
Due date, individuals and HUFs without business income, AY 2026-27	31 July 2026
Belated or revised return, AY 2026-27	up to 31 December 2026
Late filing fee, Section 234F	₹5,000 (₹1,000 if total income is up to ₹5 lakh)
Interest, Section 234A	1% per month on unpaid tax until filing
Interest, Sections 234B and 234C	1% per month on advance tax shortfall or deferment

Filing late also costs you the right to carry forward most losses, other than house property loss. Updated returns (ITR-U) are possible within two years of the end of the assessment year, with additional tax. Non-audit business cases have been shown with different dates in public sources, so Zenith checks the notified date for your category.

Amounts and dates above reflect public sources read in October 2026 and change with notifications, so Zenith confirms the current figures in your quotation.

Common mistakes

• Using ITR-1 despite capital gains, foreign assets or agricultural income above ₹5,000.
• Ignoring interest or dividend income that appears in AIS, which leads to a mismatch notice.
• Claiming TDS credit that does not appear in Form 26AS.
• Missing the e-verification window, which makes the return invalid.
• Choosing a regime without comparing both, or claiming old-regime deductions under the new regime.
• Wrong or unvalidated refund bank account.
• Sharing portal passwords instead of working through a professional.

FAQs