The Income Tax Department, a Government agency that undertakes the direct tax collection on behalf of the Government of India operating under the Department of Revenue of the Ministry of Finance, and controlled by the apex body, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) issued a Notification on June 24, 2020, intending to provide a ‘breathing space’ to the Indian taxpayers amidst the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
This was passed to assist the taxpayers in being able to file their Income Tax Returns (ITR) with ease. This Notification will come into effect from June 30, 2020.
The following is the gist of what the latest Income Tax Notification is all about:-
Sl. No. |
Particulars |
Changes in the Due dates and Rates, as the case may be |
||
Original Due date |
Initial Extension |
Date, as stated by the latest Notification |
||
|
w.r.t. RETURN FILING AND TAX AUDIT |
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|
1. |
Original and Revised Return for the Financial Year (FY) 2018-2019
(Assessment Year (AY) 2019-2020) |
31 March 2020 | 30 June 2020 | 31 July 2020 |
|
2. |
Return of Income for the FY 2019-2020 (AY 2020-2021) | 31 July 2020 | – |
30 November 2020 |
| 3. | Tax Audit Report for the FY 2019-2020 (AY 2020-2021) | 30 September 2020 | – |
31 October 2020 |
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w.r.t. TAX PAYMENTS AND INVESTMENTS |
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|
4. |
Payment of Self-Assessment Tax, where the tax due is less than or equal to Rs. 1 lakh | 31 July 2020 | – | 30 November 2020 |
| 5. | Payment of Self-Assessment Tax, where the tax due is more than Rs. 1 lakh | 31 July 2020 | – |
NO EXTENSION |
|
6. |
Investment under Chapter VI-A (i.e. in Life Insurance Corporation (LIC), Public Provident Fund (PPF), National Saving Certificate (NSC), Mediclaim, Donations), for claiming in the FY 2019-2020 (AY 2020-2021) | 31 March 2020 | 30 June 2020 | 31 July 2020 |
| 7. | Reinvestment for Capital Gains under Sections 54 to 54GB (for the period expiring between 20 March 2020 to 29 September 2020) | – | 30 June 2020 |
30 September 2020 |
|
8. |
Operation of Special Economic Zone (SEZ) for Section10AA | – | – |
30 September 2020 |
| 9. | Tax Deducted at Source (TDS)/Tax Collected at Source (TCS) for the FY 2019-2020 (AY 2020-2021) | – | – |
On Salary (Forms 24Q, 24G): 15 July 2020 Others (Forms 26Q, 27Q, 27EQ): 30 July 2020 Form 16: 15 August 2020 |
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w.r.t. OTHER OBSERVANCES |
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|
10. |
Passing Order/Notice under the various Direct Tax and Benami Laws | – | 31 December 2020 | 31 March 2021 |
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11. |
Linking of Aadhaar card and Permanent Account Number (PAN) card | – | – | 31 March 2021 |
|
12. |
Reduced rate of interest for delay in payment of tax (9%) | – | – |
Applicable only till 30 June 2020 |
| 13. | For making payment, without additional amount, under the ‘Vivad se Vishwas’ Scheme | – | – |
31 December 2020 |
| 14. | New procedure of approval for Charitable Trusts and Exempt Institutions under Sections 12AA and 80G | 01 June 2020 | – |
01 October 2020 |
|
15. |
Change in the rate of TDS and TCS for non-salaried payment to Non-Residents |
Reduced by 25%, w.e.f. 14 May 2020 |
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Income Tax India posted the latest Notification in their official Twitter account:-
Major relief for taxpayers!
CBDT issues Notification no S.O. 2033(E) dated 24th June, 2020 on Taxation & Other Laws, further extending the time limits for various compliances. Notification to come into force from 30th June, 2020 & is available at: https://t.co/4RD6AiRNnT pic.twitter.com/vwmrsRgNLV— Income Tax India (@IncomeTaxIndia) June 24, 2020
The Indian Income Tax Department is widely recognised for its promptness of collection of taxes and revising the original guidelines to suit the circumstances. As the latest Notification is expected to come into effect by end of June, one can hope that the latest guidelines shall prove to be a helping hand to the taxpayers, and not another obstacle in survival.
