Kolkata: In a few days the income tax return (ITR) filing season will begin. While ITR filing has become a lot simpler that what it was about a decade ago, one still needs to collect several documents to file IT. Once can say that the season will be kicked off with different companies issuing Form 16 to its employees. Without Form 16, a salaried employee cannot file ITR. However, leaving Form 16 aside, there are quite a few documents that one should keep ready at hand so that he/she can finish filing ITR once Form 16 arrives.
The deadline to file ITR is July 31. One can of course file income tax return beyond the July 3 deadline, but he/she as to pay penalty which can range from Rs 1,000 to Rs 5,000 depending upon the annual income. The documents to be collected are of special significance to those who file taxes in the old tax regime.
Documents that matter
The essential documents that one needs for filing ITR are the PAN (Permanent Account Number) card and Aadhaar card. Importantly, these two have to be linked. Apart from that there are TDS certificates from banks. If banks don’t send it to you, you should ask them to email it to you. If you cannot do that, you must visit your branch and ask for a printout. Updated bank account statements till March 31, 2025 must be collected. These too should be accessible online.
Tax saving investments
In a sense, the most crucial ITR related documents are those that entitle one to getting tax deduction. There are numerous investments that are eligible for income tax deductions as mentioned under Section 80C, 80D, 80E, 24B and 80G. The commonest ones are those for Section 80C investments some of which are Public Provident Fund, Senior Citizen Saving Certificate, National Savings certificate, National Pension System, Equity Linked Saving Scheme, life insurance premiums, Sukanya Samriddhi investments, tuition fee for kids etc.
Other investments that qualify for income tax deductions are EMI paid on home loans. One can claim deduction on the interest paid on your home loan under section 24(b) of the Income Tax Act. Under Section 80C of the Income Tax Act, one can claim tax deductions on the principal amount repaid as a part of the home loan.
Many people pay house rent and can be eligible for House Rent Allowance (HRA) too. One needs to keep rent receipts and rent agreements that could be needed for tax deductions. Also if you have any assets abroad and have income from sources abroad those must be revealed. Therefore, one will need statements from foreign bank accounts, investment proceeds etc. Experts points out that if the total income is above Rs 50 lakh, one must reveal details of assets and liabilities. This is especially important for those filing ITR-2.
Then there is a clutch of areas where income is from non-salary sources. These can commonly be capital gains from mutual funds, stocks, crypto investments which are technically called Virtual Digital Assets. If one wants to avoid last-minute rush to file ITR, it is prudent to collect all the require documents according to your needs.
Come June and the ITR filing season will start in right earnest this year. In a few days companies will start distributing Form 16, which sets out the details of the taxes deducted from an employee’s salary. Do you know which other documents you should keep ready for filing income tax returns? Personal Finance Business News – Personal Finance News, Share Market News, BSE/NSE News, Stock Exchange News Today
