ITR filing: Advance tax deadline-ITR filing due date clash, I-T portal glitches causing delays, say CAs

ITR filing: ITR Portal glitches, advance tax payment deadline compound taxpayers' woes ahead of September 15 deadline

As September 15, the extended due date for filing income tax return (ITR) for the financial year 2024-25 (assessment year 2025-26) draws closer, chartered accountants say they are grappling with multiple hurdles, including inability to access annual information statement (AIS) and other e-filing portal glitches, resulting in delays.

However, income tax officials have refuted the claims of technical snags on the e-filing portal (incometax.gov.in). "The glitches are mostly due to browser issues at the users' end," a senior Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) official told Moneycontrol, speaking on the condition of anonymity.

Chartered accountants, however, say that a major challenge this year has been accessing the annual information statement (AIS), a document that is critical to the return-filing process.  "What has compounded the matter is the fact that the extended due date coincides with the deadline for paying the second installment of advance tax for the financial year 2025-26. So, besides the challenges in accessing the e-filing portal to file ITR, taxpayers are unable to pay their advance taxes at the moment," said chartered accountant Nitesh Buddhdev, Founder, Nimit Consultancy. As the pressure to meet the deadline mounts, taxpayers and professionals have been flagging some glitches on social media.

Citing technical challenges and multiple deadlines -- ITR filing, advance tax, tax audit report submission --converging in the same month, tax consultants, professional associations and two Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MPs, Bhartruhari Mahtab and PP Chaudhury, have written to the finance ministry seeking an extension of the deadline, which has already been pushed from July 31 to September 15.

“E-pay challans are not working, AIS and Form 26AS refuse to load, saved ITR drafts vanish after challan payments, and at times the portal simply throws an ‘Access Denied’ error when selecting the ITR form,” said chartered accountant Himank Singla, Founding Partner, SBHS & Associates.

Also read: Moneycontrol's ITR liveblog

"ITR filing and advance tax payment deadlines fall on the same day (September 15), complicating matters. Now, there is a growing demand to extend the ITR filing due date further. Even if the government and I-T departments were to accept this demand, the advance tax payment issue will remain unresolved. Will the government waive off this penalty too, given that payments could not be processed due to glitches in the I-T portal?" said Buddhdev.

By September 15,  taxpayers, including salaried individuals, are required to pay 45 percent of their total tax liability as advance taxes, if applicable. Failure to do so can result in penalties under section 234C of the Income Tax Act, 1961. “Payment of the second installment of advance tax is stuck, which means penal interest will be levied on taxpayers for no fault of theirs,” said Singla.

This is how you stand to lose if you miss the advance tax payment due date: suppose your total capital gains tax liability is Rs 2 lakh -- Rs 1 lakh in June and another Rs 1 lakh in September. If no advance tax is paid, each due date will have a shortfall, attracting interest. So, if there is a shortfall of Rs 15,000 (15 percent of Rs 1,00,000) as on June 15, penal interest will amount to Rs 450 (1 percent for three months). Shortfall of Rs 90,000 (45% of Rs 2,00,000) as on September 15 will invite a penal interest of Rs 2,700.

Apart from the technical glitches typically associated with the ITR filing portal, particularly closer to the deadline, incomplete or discrepancy-ridden data from taxpayers also leads to delays in completing the exercise on time, say tax consultants.