Filing Tax Return

Do you know details about filing your “returns”? There are various ways of doing that. Before we see those ways, let us first understand the basics.

Any individual earning income beyond prescribed limits for a financial year has to file a return. These limits have changed over the years and at present stand like this:

General Tax Payers Women Senior Citizen Tax %
Less than 1,60,000 Less than 1,90,000 Less than 2,40,000 0
1,60,001 to 5,00,000 1,90,001 to 5,00,000 2,40,001 to 5,00,000 10
5,00,001 to 8,00,000 20
Above 8,00,001 30

Check your present total income for a financial year is within or exceeding the above limits. If exceeds, you have to file a tax return.

Financial year means the period starting from April 1st to March 31st of next year. For the purpose of filing your tax returns, Assessment (of tax returns) Year comes into picture. FY 2009 – 2010 means AY 2010 – 2011.

For filing your tax, you must need a PAN card. This PAN identifies you as an unique individual for filing tax returns to Government of India.

If you are salaried, your employer will be giving you a Form 16 (a form containing details of your income, tax savings, tax deducted at source).

Although nowadays not mandatory, you can file tax returns even if you do not have Form 16. But please ensure you receive a Form 16 for each financial year you are employed. (If you skip your job often, keep as many Form 16 as provided by your employers) As an individual you are liable for the tax to be paid for the income you receive. Form 16 conveys when the tax deducted on a monthly basis (TDS) was actually credited to the Income Tax department. So, you understand, this is absolutely mandatory for you to keep a copy of the same, forever.

Assuming your employer has deducted tax on a regular basis and paid the same to IT Department, and has given you the Form 16 for the previous FY, you are safe to proceed with filing your returns.

Returns indicate the amount of tax paid/payable/receivable. For example, if your total income is 2,00,000/- then your income tax is 4,000/- for general tax payer.

On a monthly basis, if your employer deducts tax for the above 4,000/- it will be around 333/- per month. If there is excess deduction, lets say that tax deducted was around 5000/-, this excess tax deducted (4000 was required to be payable. Paid 1000 in excess) will have to be filed for return from the Government. If there is less/no deduction, you are supposed to pay the same to nationalized banks quoting your PAN.

To submit your tax details to the government, you can fill in a form called ITR 1. IT Department acknowledges the same by giving you a form called ITR V.

Then when IT department takes up your case (usually happens in next FY or the AY of the previous FY) to assess your returns, it checks the credit details using your PAN, your employers’ PAN and finally credits this back to your bank account.

Miscellaneous: 

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