An Income Tax Refund is issued by the Income Tax Department if a taxpayer has paid more income tax than was due for the financial year. Individuals/Businesses pay income tax through TDS deducted, advance tax on the basis of anticipated liability, or self-assessment tax which might exceed the actual tax liability. In some cases, an income tax refund can also arise in case the tax liability is reduced by claiming deductions, exemptions, set off of losses, or tax credits while filing the income tax return.
Post-filing, the Income Tax Authorities assess the taxpayer's tax liability. In case the tax liability assessed exceeds the amount paid, the excess tax paid is refunded to the taxpayer along with interest at 0.5% per month or part of the month (i.e. 6% per annum) until the date of refund.
In this blog, you will gain an understanding of the following:
No refund record has been found at present. Either there is no refund or the status is not updated by the income-tax department. In case you have not filed the return for this year, you can file now with us.
Account Number:
Assessment Year:
Date:
Mode of Payment:
PAN:
Reference Number:
If you paid more taxes than you were required to pay, you can claim the additional amount as an income tax refund.
Income Tax Refund = Total Taxes paid – Total tax liability
If the taxes paid (either by way of Advance Tax or TDS or TCS or Self-Assessment Tax) are more than the actual tax amount due, then the excess tax paid can be claimed as a refund. The income tax department will recompute the taxes and validate the refund claim before initiating the refund.
For example: Assume Mr. Gupta paid 3 lakh as an advance tax during the financial year. At the end of the financial year, he learns his tax liability is only 2 lakh. He can request a refund by filing an income tax return (ITR). If the assessing officer approves his request, the excess tax amount of 1 lakh will be credited to Mr Gupta's pre-validated bank account.
3 lakh Advance Tax - 2 lakh Tax liability = 1 lakh Tax refund for Mr. Gupta
The excess amount will be refunded along with interest at the rate of 0.5% per month or part of the month. If the refund is received in September, then interest of Rs. 3,000 (1,00,000*0.5%*6) will also be credited to the bank account.
To get your income tax refund or TDS refund, all you need to do is file your Income Tax Return and declare your income, deduction and tax paid details to the Income Tax Department. Once the ITR is processed successfully and if there is any excess tax, it will be issued in your prevalidated bank account. Follow the process and file your ITR via Cleartax.
You have to finish E-filing to get your Income Tax Refund. Make sure to e-file this year to get your tax refund faster. Tax refunds are initiated by the tax department once you have E-verified your return.
If you are concerned about your tax refund status, you can check the status of the income tax refund in three different ways, here are the methods listed below.
Step 1: Visit the income tax portal and log in to your account
Step 2: Click on 'e-File', choose 'Income Tax Returns' and then select ‘View Filed Returns’
Step 3: You can see the status of your current and past income tax returns.
Step 4: Click on 'View details,' and you'll see the status of your income tax refund, as shown in the picture below.
Step 1: Visit the NSDL Portal
Step 2: Enter your PAN details, select the Assessment Year from the drop-down option for which tax refund is awaited and enter the Captcha Code
Step 3: Click ‘Proceed’ under the ‘Taxpayer Refund (PAN)’ option
You will be directed to a page that displays the ‘Refund Status’.
Step 1: Log in to the income tax portal
Step 2: Click on ‘e-File’, select ‘Income Tax Returns’ and hit ‘View Form 26AS’
Step 3: You will be directed to the TDS Reconciliation Analysis and Correction Enabling System (TRACES) page, and Click on ‘View Tax Credit (Form 26AS/Annual tax statement) at the bottom of the page
Step 4: Select the Assessment Year from the drop-down menu, and select view as ‘text’
You are directed to a page that displays the details of the paid refund
Here’s a list of different types of status of refund with meanings:
S.No | Status | Meaning |
No Result Found | This means that, according to the IT department, no records were found for the ITR filed, and the PAN and acknowledgement number added need to be cross-checked. | |
Refund is already credited to your prevalidated bank account. | This states that the refund is already credited. In case of any doubt, contact: | |
Refund Cheque is already encashed | Your income tax refund is processed and credited to your bank account. If you have not received it, please contact: | |
Refund not determined | According to IT Department, no refund was determined in this case. | |
Unable to credit refund as the account number provided is incorrect | This clearly states that the bank account number provided is incorrect. You need to apply for refund reissue by providing a prevalidated account number. | |
Defective return u/s 139(9) (or) ITR filed is defective or incomplete | This shows that the ITR filed was defective under the Income Tax Law. Please check on the e-filing website to find the correct reason. | |
ITR Processed but need to submit rectification request | There might be a mismatch in the calculation done by department and ITR filed. File a rectification request justifying the refund claimed. | |
Return submitted. ITR Transferred to Jurisdiction AO | This implies the return will be processed by the jurisdictional AO. Contact teh AO and make the necessary submissions to claim the refund. | |
Pending for e-verification | This means that the ITR was submitted successfully but not e-verified within 30 days of ITR submission. Verify to process the return and claim the refund. | |
Processed with no demand/refund | It shows that the ITR is processed without any demand or refund. To understand this, check the intimation order u/s 143(1) on your email id. | |
Processed with demand due | In this case the return is processed and there is demand, i.e. tax payable to the IT department. To understand this, check the intimation order u/s 143(1) on your email id. Also, submit the response to this through the e-filing website under the e-file->Response to Outstanding Tax Demand. | |
Processed with refund due | This implies that the return is processed with refund and it will be credited in some days in the prevalidated bank account. | |
Refund Failure | Due to incorrect bank account details, the refund was not credited successfully. Please apply for refund reissue under “My account” -> Service -> Refund Reissue Request | |
E-Return for this PAN and Acknowledgement Number has been digitally Signed | The ITR is digitally signed and filed successfully. | |
Under Processing | This means that the income tax department has still not processed your income tax return. Please check your refund status after a month to see if it has been updated. | |
Refund Issued | This means the income tax department has sent the refund to you (by cheque or by direct credit to the bank account number you provided while e-filing). No further action required. | |
Return Submitted and Verified | The return is submitted and verified. So, wait for some days for the refund to be credited. | |
Invalid original return, File Revised Return | The return was treated as invalid and there is a need file a revised return to claim the refund. | |
Return Processed and Rectification Rights Transferred To Assessing Office | This implies that the return was processed and transferred to jurisdictional AO. So, filing an offline rectification request to the AO will help you get the refund. We can connect you to an expert who can help you file a rectification. | |
Return Processed. Refund Adjusted Against Demand (or) Refund kept on hold,Intimation u/s 245 is issued proposing adjustment of refund towards outstanding demand. | In this case if any tax payable is outstanding with the department, then the IT department will adjust the refund first against the demand. But before they adjust, a notice u/s 245 will be sent to you for your confirmation. If the response is not submitted the department goes ahed with adjusting the demand. In this case our expert CAs can help you get the refund. | |
21. | ITR Accepted | ITR is successfully received and pending for processing |
22. | ITR-V rejected | This shows that the return filed is defective. |
23. | Return Submitted and verified after the due date. | The ITR filed was received after 30 days of filing, so the return needs to be filed again. |
24. | Successfully e-Verified after due date | The IT department has received a condonation request filed in respect of the return e-verified after 30 days. The return is transferred to AO and till it is approved, it is treated as invalid. |
25. | Rectification processed with refund due | The rectification request is processed with refund. |
26. | Rectification processed with no demand/refund | The rectification request is processed successfully with no demand/refund. |
27. | Processed and partially refund adjusted | The refund is partially processed by adjusting it with the tax payable in the previous years. However, the department sends the notice u/s 245 to get your confirmation before adjusting. |
28. | Under Processing Original return will not be considered, as revised return is taken up for processing | Once a revised return is filed, it replaces the original return filed. So this shows that revised return is under processing. |
29. | Another Return filed | Another return was file, check with the other acknowledgement number. |
30. | Refund Re-issue failure | Refund reissue request was failed due to some incorrect details. Raise the new request to get the refund. |
31. | Rectification filed | Rectification request has been filed and its processing |
In the case of refund failure, you can raise the refund re-issue request in the e-filing portal by follwing the steps below:
Step 1: Login to ‘e-Filing’ Portal
Step 2: Click on Services menu and click on ‘Refund reissue’
Step 3: Create Refund Reissue request
Step 4: You will get the details of Assessment Year for which refund got failed
Step 5: Select the Assessment Year and click on continue
Step 6: You will get the bank details in the next page. Validate the bank account if it is not validated
Step 7: Click on the ‘Submit’ button and submit the request
No, the refund amount is not taxable. But, the interest received on the tax refund is taxable. The rate of tax on the interest would be as per your applicable tax slab rate.
The time taken to receive the income tax refund entirely depends on the Income Tax Department’s internal process. Generally, it takes around 7 to 120 days, with an average time of 90 days after you have e-verified your return. The Income Tax Department implemented a new refund processing system to enable faster refund processing with an expected turnaround of a few days instead of a few months.
Consistent with this objective, the average ITR processing duration has been reduced to 10 days for returns submitted in the AY 2023-24, as opposed to 82 days for returns submitted in the AY 2019-20 and 16 days for returns submitted in AY 2022-23.
The Income Tax Department will send the refund amount through electronic mode (direct credit to the account) or through a ‘Refund Cheque’. You must enter the correct bank account number and IFSC code with complete address details, including the PIN code, at the time of filing your return to receive refunds. Refunds sent through cheques are dispatched to the address mentioned in the ITR through speed post.
When the refund amount is more than 10% of the total tax payable for that particular year, you will receive a simple interest on the tax refund. Interest is computed at 6% per annum (0.5% per month or part of the month) on the refund amount. Here's how the interest on refund is computed:
The deadline to file your ITR for non-audit cases was 31st July 2024. However, if you cannot manage to file your taxes before the deadline, you can still file a late return, known as Belated Return. The last date to file a belated return is 31st December 2024. You can claim your tax refund through a belated return.
You can contact the ‘Aaykar Sampark Kendra’ for any queries regarding income tax refunds. The toll-free helpline of the Aaykar Sampark Kendra Kendra is - 1800-180-1961. You can even send a mail with your refund query to refunds@incometax.gov.in.
For refund-related queries or modifications in the refund record processed at CPC Bangalore, you can contact - 1800-425-2229 or 080-43456700. For any payment-related query, contact the SBI Contact Centre toll-free number at -1800-425-9760.
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