Income Tax Returns Deadline For Various Categories Extended

• (A) The due date for furnishing of Income Tax Returns for the taxpayers (including their partners) who are required to get their accounts audited [for whom the due date as per the Income Tax Act is 31st October, 2020 and which was extended to 30th November, 2020 and then to 31^st January. 2021] has been extended to 15^th February, 2021.

(B) The due date for furnishing of Income Tax Returns for the taxpayers who are required to furnish report in respect of international/specified domestic transactions [for whom the due date as per the Act is 30th November, 2020 and which was extended to 31st January, 2021] has been extended to 15^th February, 2021.

(C) The due date for furnishing of Income Tax Returns for the other taxpayers [for whom the due date as per the Act was 31st July, 2020 and which was extended to 30th November, 2020 and then to 31st December, 2020] has been extended to 10^th January, 2021.

The date for furnishing of various audit reports under the Act including tax audit report and report in respect of international/specified domestic transaction has also been extended to 15^th January, 2021.

· The last date for making a declaration under Vivad Se Vishwas Scheme has been extended to 31^st January, 2021 from 31st December, 2020.

· The dale for passing of orders under Vivad Se Vishwas Scheme which was required to be passed by 30th January. 2021 has been extended to 31st January, 2021.

· The dale for passing of order or issuance of notice by the authorities under the Direct Taxes & Benami Acts which are required to be passed/ issued/ made by 30th March, 2021 has also been extended to 31st March, 2021.

It may be noted that in view of the challenges faced by taxpayers in meeting the statutory and regulatory compliances due to the outbreak of COVID-19, the Government brought the Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation of Certain Provisions) Ordinance, 2020 ('the Ordinance') on 31st March, 2020 which, inter alia, extended various time limits. The Ordinance has since been replaced by the Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation and Amendment of Certain Provisions) Act.

Now, the Ministry has decided to further extend the deadlines which were once extended as per the notification issued on June 24.

Further, in order to provide relief to small and middle class taxpayers, the said notification dated 24th June, 2020 had also extended the due date for payment of self-assessment tax for the taxpayers whose self-assessment tax liability is up to Rs. 1 lakh.

Accordingly, the due date for payment of self-assessment tax for taxpayers whose self-assessment tax liability is up to Rs. 1 lakh has been extended to 15^th February, 2021 for the taxpayers mentioned in para 4(a) and para 4(b) and to 10^th January. 2021 for the taxpayers mentioned in para 4(c).

Importantly, the Government has also extended the due date of furnishing of annual return under section 44 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 for the financial year 2019-20 from 31^st December, 2020 to 28^th February, 2021.