You can opt to simply e-file your income tax by logging on to the official website of the Income Tax Department. Under this option, you can follow the procedure of filing your taxes with the necessary documents and form step-by-step and complete the process.

Under the Income Tax Department’s "Electronic Furnishing of Return of Income Scheme, 2007", an authorised intermediary can electronically file income tax returns on behalf of the taxpayers. Any taxpayer who is assessed or assessable to tax can opt for this scheme.

A Tax Return Preparer, a Chartered Accountant or a tax lawyer can also file your taxes on your behalf. Such an individual will prepare your income tax return, submit it to the Assessing Officer and also procure the acknowledgement of the tax return for you.

Here is how you can e-file your income tax returns online by following the step-by-step process:

1. Visit the official Income Tax e-Filing portal
   
   
2. Click log in to the e-filing portal after signing in with your PAN user ID and password and enter the captcha code.
   
   
3. Click on “e-File” and then click on the “Income Tax Return” link.
   
   
4. Once you reach the Income Tax Return page, take note of the following: PAN will be auto-populated, and you will have to select the Assessment Year, the ITR Form Number, the Filing Type (Original or Revised Return) and the Submission Mode (Prepare and Submit Online) and click on “Continue”.
   
   
5. Go through the instructions and input all the mandatory and applicable slots on the Online ITR Form.
   
   
6. Select the Verification option as applicable under the “Taxes Paid and Verification” tab.
   
   
   • You can choose the option to e-verify the Income Tax Return now
     
     
   • Or select the option to e-verify the Income Tax Return within 120 days from the date of filing
     
     
   • The other option would be to send the signed ITR-V through ordinary post/speed post CPC Bengaluru - 560 500" within 120 days from the date of filing.
     
     
7. Click 'Preview and Submit', and recheck all the data entered in the ITR and then submit the ITR.
   
   
8. If you choose “I would like to e-Verify”, the e-Verification can be done in one of the below ways by entering the EVC/OTP:
   
   
   • Generate EVC option under My Account/EVC through bank ATM
     
     
   • Aadhaar OTP
     
     
   • Prevalidated Bank Account
     
     
   • Prevalidated Demat Account
     
     

If the other verification options are selected, the ITR will be submitted but will not be complete unless the verification is done. Have the ITR e-verified by choosing “My Account > e-Verify Return” or send the signed ITR-V to CPC, Bengaluru.

Here is what you should do after you e-file your income tax return:

• Take a look at your email’s inbox (the email provided in your ITR form). You should have received an email that indicates the successful filing of your income tax return as well as the acknowledgement (ITR-V).
• Go through the email and the ITR form, as well as the ITR-V, for any possible errors so that you can have them rectified at the earliest.
• Verify the returns. For this, you will have to send a physical copy of the document to CPC Bangalore. Alternatively, you can e-verify it. Once the return has been verified, this process comes to an end.
• In case you have overpaid your taxes, expect a refund in your bank account in the next few working days. This is because the refund for overpayment of taxes is calculated automatically.

These are a list of important points a taxpayer needs to take note of while e-filing their income tax returns:

• File your returns by the due date. Filing your income tax returns by the due date can save you a lot of last-minute hassles and especially the penalty of up to ₹5000 as per Section 234F of the Income Tax Act.
• Ensure that all the details - your name, mobile number, and email address are accurate and correctly filled in on the ITR form. There is also a limit to the number of email IDs and phone numbers that you can mention while filling out the form, so keep the information uniform.
• If you are a Non-Resident Indian (NRI) filing your ITR, then be sure to mention your number in India as well as your resident location. This enables better connectivity and can help you stay updated with information regarding your tax returns.

No, if your employer deducts TDS on your salary, they will need to issue the TDS certificate (in the format of Form 16) by June 15 of the financial year after the financial year in which the tax was deducted. When you get the TDS certificate, complete filing your returns by the due date of July 31 for the financial year (2021-22) and the assessment year (2022-23). 

To pay your taxes to the government, you can visit the official IT Department portal, and after following all the steps, you can make the payment by logging into your internet banking account with your username and password and then entering the payment details.

Form 16/16A, also known as the deduction of tax at source certificate, is issued to employees by their employers when the tax is deducted at source. The details of TDS/TCS for various transactions are present on these certificates and have to be issued to taxpayers as they show the transactions between the deductor and the deductee.

If you don't have Form 16, you can also offer documents such as salary slips, Form 26As or AIS/TIS to file your income tax return (ITR). Hence, even if your employer does not issue a Form 16, these documents can be used instead.

Yes, agricultural income in ITR-1 is shown under the column of Agriculture Income. However, you can only use ITR-1 if the agricultural income is up to ₹5,000. Otherwise, if the income is above the limit, you will have to file the returns with form ITR-2.

In case you have overpaid your taxes after you fill the ITR form as applicable, the income tax refund will be calculated automatically through the online method or the JSON facility. When you check the “Taxes Paid” section of the ITR form, you can check the refund.

Even though you may not have any taxable income and TDS, you will still have to file your returns if you deposited an amount that is above ₹1 crore in a bank current account and/or in a co-operative bank during the previous year or FY 2021-22.

Yes, you do not need an account for e-filing your returns. If you want to file your income tax returns electronically, you will have to verify your pre-login and your post-login directly on the official income tax e-filing website.

No, you cannot e-file your income tax returns before completing all of your tax payments. But if you do see the tax payable at the time of filing the returns, it is called the self-assessment tax, which you can pay online for smooth processing of the e-filing.

Once you file your income tax return electronically, get it verified within 120 days of having filed the returns. This will indicate that your return has been filed successfully, and you will not have to pay any additional tax.

You can have a Chartered Accountant (CA) e-file your returns. For that, you will need to add and assign the CA on the e-filing portal through the My CA service on the official IT Department website. You may remove a CA who has already been added or withdraw an assigned CA through this portal.

Yes, you can file your own Income Tax Returns by visiting the official Income Tax Returns website and following all the steps needed to complete the e-returns filing process.

• Visit https://www.incometax.gov.in/iec/foportal/ and log in
• Next, go to the “e-File” menu and click on the ‘Rectification’ link
• On the drop-down list, select the options “Order/Intimation to be rectified” and “Assessment Year”.
• Click ‘Continue’ and select one option of ‘Request Type’.
• If you want to check the rectification request, kindly follow these steps
  
  
  • Log on to https://www.incometax.gov.in/iec/foportal/
  • Go to the ‘My Account’ on the upper-left side of the page and click on ‘View e-Filed Returns/Forms’
  • On the drop-down list, choose ‘Rectification Status’ and click ‘Submit’.

E-filing your tax returns is mandatory if your gross total income is below the basic exemption cut-off or even if the tax deductions in a given financial year go above the actual tax liability. Which scenario is applicable for your case will depend on the tax regime you have opted for?

Under the current tax laws, it is mandatory to have valid PAN details if you want to e-file your ITR. And this is also applicable for those who opt for paper-based or offline mode of filing their tax returns.