ITR Filing Deadlines: Big news for taxpayers. The deadline for filing income tax returns for employed individuals was July 31, but some still have until August 31 to submit their returns. Let’s explore who these individuals are:

Who needs to file by August 31:

– Individuals with income from business or profession, such as freelancers, must file their income tax returns by August 31.
– Those filing non-audited returns should use either the ITR-3 or ITR-4 form depending on their situation.
– For businesses or professionals requiring a tax audit, the deadline for filing returns is October 31, 2026.

Number of filings by July 31:

By July 31, over 59 million ITRs had been filed for the assessment year 2026-27, including by salaried employees, pensioners, students with income, and individuals earning from various sources like interest, dividends, and capital gains.
ITR Form-1 (Sahaj) is suitable for small to medium taxpayers with an annual income up to Rs 50 lakh, encompassing income from salary, one house property, and agricultural income.
ITR-2 is for individuals and Hindu Undivided Families (HUFs) with income from capital gains, not business profits.
ITR-3 is for individuals and HUFs with income from business or profession who do not choose the presumptive taxation scheme.
ITR-4 (Sugam) is for individuals, HUFs, and firms declaring income from business or profession under the presumptive taxation scheme with total income up to Rs 50 lakh, including various income sources like salary, pension, house properties, interest, and capital gains.

Earlier in July, the Income Tax Department reported that over 59 million income tax returns had been filed by the deadline of July 31, 2026. At that time, the department thanked taxpayers, saying that timely compliance and taxpayer trust drive the country’s development.

40 lakh ITRs filed on July 31

According to the department, more than 40 lakh returns were filed on the July 31 deadline, which was set for individual taxpayers and entities that were not required to have their accounts audited. Latest data shows that a significant number of taxpayers with business and professional income filed their returns even after the July deadline, pushing the total number to over 70 million. The Income Tax Department believes that the expansion of digital systems and online filing facilities is steadily improving tax compliance.