Check refund status online first If you have not received your income tax refund, the initial step is to locate its status on the government's income tax e-filing portal. Log in using your PAN, go to the 'View Filed Returns' page, and choose the relevant assessment year. The website will show you whether your return has been accepted and if the refund is issued, sanctioned, or pending. Here you start.
Common causes of delayed refunds There are certain general causes of your refund being stuck. These are errors in your bank account details, discrepancy in TDS details, non-authentication of your ITR, or discrepancy in the return filed. Refunds are delayed at times because of the volume of returns or random verification by the department. Some minor matters also, like a name difference between PAN and bank account, slow down the process.
Check your ITR if not done yet Most individuals forget that once filed, they have to e-verify their ITR so that it is valid. If your return has not been verified within 30 days of submission, it will not be processed, and your refund won't be made. You can confirm your return through net banking, Aadhaar OTP, or by mailing a signed hard copy to CPC Bangalore. Always ensure that the verification has been accepted on the portal.
Update your bank account details if required If your refund is cleared but not credited, your bank account details might be outdated or incorrect. You can check the prevalidated bank account in your profile on the e-filing portal. If there is any issue, update the correct bank account and prevalidate it again. Refunds are credited only in prevalidated accounts that are also linked to your PAN. Revalidation will usually happen within a day or two, so hurry up.
Raise a grievance if it’s been too long If your return has been accepted but your refund has not been processed after a reasonable time—say 30 days—you can file a grievance on the income tax website. On the 'Grievance' tab, select your issue, and create a ticket. Income Tax Department would reply in a week or so. You can also go to the CPC helpline or jurisdictional assessing officer for unreasonable delays or complex cases.
Stay calm and track regularly While hold-ups are frustrating, most refund issues can be smoothed over by a couple of checks and catches up. Make it a habit to check your refund status weekly during refund season. Check your email and SMS for messages from the department. Since new systems have been put into action, refunds now generally take less time than they used to—so if something does go wrong, you should be able to get it sorted in no time.
