Close to 5.8 crore income tax returns were filed as of December 31, the last date to file the I-T returns, and 46 lakh were filed on the last day alone on the new e-filing portal, said Infosys CEO Salil Parekh.
During the earnings call with the media persons on January 12, Parekh said the software major is now working with the department on the next set of modules that needed to be put together.
This comes even as the government had extended the deadline to March 2022, for certain section for filing returns. The deadline for filing individual tax returns was not extended.
Issues with the portal
While major glitches in the new e-filing portal have been rectified, completing the process has not been smooth. Issues such as inability to complete the One Time Password (OTP) verification process in a timely manner, and unknown errors continue to crop up are delaying the return filing.
Before the announcement of the extension, ‘#Extend_Due_Date_Immediately’ has been trending on Twitter recently. Some organisations such as the Chamber of Tax Consultants have written to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, and the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), seeking extension till March 31, 2022.
The new e-filing portal
Infosys was awarded an Rs 4,200-crore contract in 2019 to develop the portal to replace the old, with the aim to reduce the processing time from 63 days to one day.
The idea was to have a taxpayer-friendly portal that was simple to use and expedited refunds but the portal has been more in the news for being inaccessible than making the process smooth. The portal was launched on June 7, 2021 amid peak tax season, and things started going downhill from the word go.
Infosys officials met Finance Minister Sitharaman twice, in June and August, regarding the glitches. The company was given a deadline of September 15 to resolve the matter. In response, the company said that it has a team of over 750 people working on the project. Later in September, the government extended the deadline for filing returns till December 31.
However, according to tax professionals, while the portal has been running well over the last month, the glitches continued and there have been delays in the process.
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