An income tax return (ITR) is the paperwork submitted to the tax department detailing your earnings, deductions, and tax payments for a specific financial year. This procedure is referred to as income tax filing.
Filing an ITR serves to compute your tax obligation for the year and settle any extra taxes owed, or to seek a refund if you’ve overpaid taxes.
Moreover, submitting an ITR is mandatory by law if your overall income surpasses the basic exemption threshold or if you earn specific types of income, like capital gains or foreign earnings.
Also Read: ITR Filing 2024: How To Claim Tax Refund Online, Check Step-by-step Guide To Know Status
Who Can File ITR 1 Sahaj?
ITR Form 1 (Sahaj) and ITR Form 4 (Sugam) are simplified versions designed to accommodate a significant portion of small and medium taxpayers. Sahaj applies to resident individuals with income up to Rs. 50 lakh, receiving earnings from salary, a single house property, other sources (such as interest), and agricultural income up to Rs 5,000.
Individuals, Hindu Undivided Families (HUFs), and firms (excluding Limited Liability Partnerships (LLPs)), who are residents and have a total income of up to Rs. 50 lakh, along with income from business and profession calculated under sections 44AD, 44ADA, or 44AE, can file Sugam.
What Documents Do You Need To File ITR-1 (Sahaj)?
You’ll require Form 16, house rent receipts (if relevant), and investment payment premium receipts (if relevant). Nevertheless, ITRs are forms without annexures, so there’s no need to submit any documents (like investment proofs or TDS certificates) along with your return, whether filed manually or electronically. However, it’s essential to retain these documents for instances where they might be requested by tax authorities, such as assessments or inquiries.
How To File ITR 1 Sahaj Online?
Registered users on the e-filing portal have access to the pre-filling and filing service for ITR-1. This service allows individual taxpayers to submit their ITR-1 either online via the e-filing portal or by using the offline utility. This user manual guides filing ITR-1 through the online mode.
Prerequisites for availing of this service
- Registered user on the e-filing portal with valid user ID and password
- The status of PAN is active
Others
- Link PAN and Aadhaar
- Pre-validate at least one bank account and nominate it for a refund (recommended)
- Valid mobile number linked with Aadhaar / e-filing portal / your bank / NSDL / CDSL (for e-verification)
ITR-1 has five sections that you need to fill in before submitting it and one summary section where you are required to review your tax computation. The sections are as follows:
- Personal Information
- Gross Total Income
- Total Deductions
- Tax Paid
- Total Tax Liability
How to Access and Submit ITR – 1 Online?
You can file and submit your ITR through the following methods:
Online Mode – through the e-filing portal
Offline Mode – through offline utility
The below steps are to file and submit the ITR through online mode:
Step 1: Log in to the e-filing portal using your user ID and password.
Step 2: On your Dashboard, click e-File > Income Tax Returns > File Income Tax Return.
Step 3: Select Assessment Year and Mode of filling as online, then click continue
Step 4: In case you have already filled the Return and it is pending for submission, click ‘Resume Filing’. In case you wish to discard the saved return and start preparing the return afresh click ‘Start New Filing’.
Step 5: Select Status as applicable to you and click ‘Continue’ to proceed further.
Step 6: You have two options to select the type of Income Tax Return:
- If you know which ITR to file, Select the ITR form; else
- If you are not sure which ITR to file, you may select ‘Help me decide which ITR form’ to file and click ‘Proceed’. Here the system helps you determine the correct ITR, then you can proceed with filing your ITR.
- In case you are not aware which ITR or schedules apply to you or income and deductions details, your answers in response to a set of questions will guide you in determining the same and help you in correct / error-free filing of ITR.
- In case you are aware of the ITR or schedules applicable to you or income and deduction details, you can skip these questions.
Step 7: Once you have selected the ITR applicable to you, note the list of documents needed and click ‘Let’s Get Started’.
Step 8: Select the checkboxes applicable to you regarding the reason for filing and click ‘Continue’.
Step 9: Review your pre-filled data and edit it if necessary. Enter the remaining/additional data (if required). Click ‘Confirm’ at the end of each section.
Step 10: Enter your income and deduction details in the different sections. After completing and confirming all the sections of the form, click ‘Proceed’.
Step 10a: In case there is a tax liability.
After clicking on total tax liability, You will be shown a summary of your tax computation based on the details provided by you. If there is tax liability payable based on the computation, you get the ‘Pay Now’ and ‘Pay Later’ options at the bottom of the page.
Step 10b: In case there is no tax liability (No Demand / No Refund) or if you are eligible for a ‘Refund’
Click ‘Preview Return’. If there is no tax liability payable, or if there is a refund based on tax computation, you will be taken to the ‘Preview’ and ‘Submit Your Return’ page.
Step 11: If you click on ‘Pay Now’ you can select your preferred bank for making tax remittance. Click ‘Continue’.
Step 12: After successful payment through the e-filing portal a success message is displayed. Click ‘Return to Filing’ to complete the filing of ITR.
Step 13: Click ‘Preview Return’.
Step 14: On the ‘Preview and Submit Your Return’ page, select the declaration checkbox and click ‘Proceed to Preview’.
Step 15: Preview your return and click ‘Proceed to Validation’.
Step 16: Once validated, on your ‘Preview and Submit your Return’ page, click ‘Proceed to Verification’.
If you are shown a list of errors in your return, you need to go back to the form to correct the errors. If there are no errors, you can proceed to e-verify your return by clicking ‘Proceed to Verification’.
Step 17: On the complete your verification page, select your preferred option and click ‘Continue’.
Step 18: On the e-verify page, select the option through which you want to e-verify the return and click ‘Continue’.
ITR Filing Last Date 2024
It’s important to file your ITR before the due date to avoid penalties and interest charges. The due date for filing ITRs varies depending on the type of taxpayer and the type of income earned. For individuals, the due date for filing ITRs for the financial year 2023-24 (assessment year 2024-25) is usually July 31, 2024, but it may be extended by the government in certain circumstances.
Taxpayers are advised to check the official website of the income tax department (https://www.incometax.gov.in/iec/foportal/) for more details and it is recommended to seek the assistance of a professional or consult for any clarifications or queries.
