When should Salaried employee file Income Tax Returns?
“So, you are a salaried employee and TDS on your income has already been deducted from your salary and you are feeling that if TDS has been deducted your responsibility towards Income Tax Department has been completed.
Most salaried individuals have a common notion that since TDS is being deducted from their salary and they are not looking for claiming any refund, they are not required to file ITR.
However, this is wrong and may result in a notice from the income tax department
Individuals with a total income is above the basic exemption limit are required to file ITR. This also means that every salaried employee whose total income is above the basic exemption limit for FY 2023-24 (AY 2024-25) needs to file income tax return by July 31, 2024. This deadline applies to individuals who are not liable for income tax audit. The basic exemption limit is Rs 2.5 lakh under the old tax regime and Rs 3 lakh under the new tax regime….!
This article explores the different situations when a salaried employee should file an ITR, helping individuals understand the importance of timely and accurate tax filing.
-Taxable Income is Below the Exemption Limit but Want to Claim Refund.
-Income from Multiple Sources.
– If You Are a Director of a Company.
– If You Have Capital Gains.
– If You Have a Loss to Carry Forward.
Also, there are certain exceptions to the income exemption limit rule, which means that an individual is still required to file ITR, even if the gross income does exceed the applicable basic exemption limit. Such exceptions include:
-Annual savings bank deposit is more than Rs 50 lakh in one or more accounts;
-Electricity bill above Rs 1 lakh;
-TDS /TCS deducted is more than Rs 25,000;
-Foreign travel spending is more than Rs 2 lakh;
-Having assets in a foreign country or is a beneficiary of a foreign Asset.
Many such conditions have to be fulfilled only then there arises no filing of IT returns……
There can be a scenario where the correct TDS amount is not being deducted from the employee’s salary. For Instance, an employee worked for 10 months in Company A, making Rs 1 lakh per month and 2 months in company B, also making Rs 1 lakh per month. Company A will deduct TDS on salary assuming an annual Income of Rs 10 Lakh per annum, duly taking the benefit of exemption limit of Rs 2.5 lakh per annum. However, in most cases, company B may deduct TDS on the employee’s salary assuming total 2 Lakh per annum(taking the benefit of exemption limit of 2.5 Lakhs).This can corrected by paying the Self Assessment Tax at the time of filing ITR.
Filing Deadline:
For Individuals (Salaried Employees), the due date for filing returns is usually July 31st of the assessment year (unless extended by the government). For AY 2025-26, the usual due date would be July 31, 2025, unless an extension is provided by the Income Tax Department.