9946 - New mode of verification for I-T return DECCAN CHRONICLE.

New mode of verification for I-T return

DECCAN CHRONICLE.

Published

May 7, 2016, 12:55 am IST

Currently people who have income of over Rs 5 lakh need to e-file their income-tax return.

Tax payers can now verify their e-ITRs through bank account-based validation system if they don’t have Aadhaar number or internet banking facility.

New Delhi: Tax payers can now verify their e-ITRs through bank account-based validation system if they don’t have Aadhaar number or internet banking facility as part of the government’s measure to enhance the paperless regime of filing the annual IT returns.

Currently people who have income of over Rs 5 lakh need to e-file their income-tax return. Previously tax payers had to send through post signed printout of the IT return (ITR-5) to Centralised Processing Centre in Bengaluru for verification if they didn’t have Digital Signature Certificate.

Then in order to facilitate the tax payers, income-tax allow-ed them to verify returns online through their Aadhaar number or internet banking facility. Those who verified their returns through Aadhaar number or internet ban-king facility need not send ITR-5 to  CPC.

9812 - Adhaar, Net Banking-Based IT E-Filing Appeal System Activated - NDTV

Adhaar, Net Banking-Based IT E-Filing Appeal System Activated

All India | Press Trust of India | Updated: April 11, 2016 14:22 IST

Electronic Verification Code works by way of generating a personalised OTP by using the Aadhaar database or the net banking identity of a filer or entity.

NEW DELHI:  Income Tax department has activated the Aadhaar and net banking-based e-filing verification system for taxpayers to file the first appeal before a tax officer, on similar lines of online ITR filing.

In order to reduce the interface between taxman and the taxpayer, the department has recently operationalised the maiden facility on its official e-filing portal.

"One EVC can be used to validate one form of the assesse irrespective of the assessment year. The EVC will be stored against the assesse PAN along with other verification details.

The EVC will be valid for 72 hours or as otherwise specified," a notification in this regard said.

The Electronic Verification Code (EVC) works by way of generating a personalised OTP by using the Aadhaar database or the net banking identity of a filer or entity.

The OTP is subsequently sent to the personal email id or mobile phone of the filer for validation and subsequent process of filing.

The facility of filing the appeal form, like filing Income Tax Returns (ITRs), can also be done using a digital signature on the official web portal of the tax department --http://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/.

The existing two-page document used for this, called 'Form No. 35', has been re-formatted by the department recently so that it can be electronically uploaded on the said e-filing portal.

In the new e-form, an applicant or taxpayer seeking appeal against an Assessing Officer's order has been given an avenue to append 'Statement of Facts' in 1,000 words as also furnish the grounds of appeal in another 100 words.

Documentary evidence can also be appended to the new form by an assess using the internet-based facility.

The IT department has four stages of appeal mechanism for the assessees to put forth their grievance beginning with the Commissioner of IT (Appeals), the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT), the High Court and finally the Supreme Court.

The new form is applicable for the CIT (Appeal) fora and those taxpayers who file e-returns will be eligible to use this new facility.

In view of launch of this facility and activation of a select category of ITRs last week, the taxman had also asked filers to "update their profile and select higher security option to secure their e-filing account" created over the portal.

"Electronic filing of appeal along with the documents relied upon before CIT (Appeals) will remove human interface, reduce paperwork and decrease the transaction cost for the taxpayer. It would ensure consistent and error-free service as validations will be in-built, resulting in fewer deficient appeals. Online filing will also facilitate fixation of hearing of appeals electronically.

"The new format for filing of appeals is more structured, objective, systematic and aligned with the current provisions of the Income Tax Act," the Central Board of Direct Taxes had earlier said.

With these changes, it had said, the "burden of compliance on the taxpayers in appellate proceedings will be significantly reduced."

9310 - DYK: You can now e-verify ITRs using your bank or demat accounts - Live Mint

DYK: You can now e-verify ITRs using your bank or demat accounts

Last month, it was announced that you can now e-verify using your bank account or demat account details as well

Kavya Balaji

E-filing is a convenient way of submitting your income tax return (ITR), and e-verification is the process of verifying your ITR online through the e-filing portal of the income-tax (I-T) department. Until about a year ago, even if you e-filed, for it to become valid you had to either verify the same through a digitally signed certificate (DSC) or send the ITR verification (ITR-V) form to the Centralized Processing Centre in Bengaluru. In the last assessment year, e-filing was made completely paperless; you could e-verify if you had an Aadhaar number or Internet banking facility on your bank account. And last month, it was announced that you can now e-verify using your bank account or demat account details as well.

The process till now

For e-verification, you need to log on to https://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/eFiling. Go through your e-filed returns and choose the one for which e-verification is pending. You can either choose to generate an Aadhaar-based one-time password (OTP) or an electronic verification code (EVC). EVC is a 10-digit alphanumeric series generated by the portal. You can choose to generate it through Net banking or have it sent to your registered mobile number and email. This EVC is valid for 72 hours. After you enter the OTP or EVC, your e-verification will be complete.

What’s new?

If you don’t have an Aadhaar or Internet banking facility, you can now use your bank account or demat account for e-verification. Using the e-filing website of the I-T department, you can pre-validate your bank account and demat account details. In case you want to use your bank account, you will have to provide your account number, Indian Financial System Code (IFSC), email address and mobile phone number. These details will then be validated against the details with your bank. The EVC that is generated will be sent by the portal to your email address and/or mobile number as verified by your bank. The list of banks participating in this process are available on the portal. Jan Dhan Yojana bank accounts can also be used for e-verification.

To generate an EVC using your demat account, you need to provide details such as your demat account number, email address and mobile phone number. Using these details, along with your Permanent Account Number (PAN), the validation will be done by the I-T department.

Details are checked against the information available with depository institutions such as the Central Depository Services Ltd (CDSL) or National Securities Depository Ltd (NSDL). The e-filing portal will send the generated EVC to your email address and/or mobile phone number as verified by CDSL or NSDL.

After the EVC is generated, you need to mention it in the ITR form for the final online submission. An acknowledge slip for the e-verification is available and can be downloaded.

Kavya Balaji

9255 - E-filing: Over 50 lakh ITRs e-verified by I-T department - Economic Times

E-filing: Over 50 lakh ITRs e-verified by I-T department

PTI Jan 10, 2016, 11.19AM IST

NEW DELHI: The Income Tax department's ambitious OTP-based ITR filing system for taxpayers has crossed the 50 lakh e-verification mark, while more than 39 lakh Aadhaar numbers have been successfully linked with the PAN database after the scheme was launched over six months back.

The new e-filing system, operationalised last year, allows online verification of a person's Income Tax Returns (ITR) by using either the Aadhaar number, internet banking, ATM or email, thereby ending the practice of sending paper acknowledgment to the Centralised Processing Centre (CPC) of the IT department located in Bengaluru.

"The e-verification of ITRs recently crossed the 50 lakh figure which is a testimony to more and more people and entities opting for electronic filing of their IT returns. While sky is the limit here, getting these numbers just when the new year has begun will enable the government to usher in more and more facilities for e-filing of ITRs in the new financial year begining April 1," a senior official said.

The official, quoting latest data of the week ending today, said a total of 50,10,282 ITRs have been e-verified, while Aadhaar linkages with the Permanent Account Number (PAN) has been achieved in 39,66,149 cases during the same period.

The online ITR filing portal of the department is available at incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in.

According to the rules notified in this regard by the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) in July last year, any taxpayer whose income is Rs 5 lakh or below per annum and has no refund claims can straightaway generate the 'Electronic Verification Code' (EVC) for e-filing and validating their ITR through their registered mobile number and e-mail ID with the department. They get a system generated One-Time Password (OTP) to validate their ITRs.

However, this simplified option will be subject to certain "restrictions" which have been prepared by the taxman based on the concerned taxpayer's "risk criteria and profile" on a case-to-case basis.

These new measures would completely eliminate the need of sending the paper acknowledgment called ITR-V through post to the Bengaluru based CPC.

In other options, those taxpayers who have activated internet banking facility can also do the e-verification.

Once logged in to the banking portal, the taxpayer will be sent EVC on his mobile number provided to the official e-filing portal of the department which they will put in their ITR for final submission.

The Aadhaar database is also being used by the taxman to verify taxpayers' credentials.

The department initiated these new technology-based measures in order to fully automate the e-filing system and also to end taxpayers' grievances with regard to their ITR-V not reaching by post which led to their returns getting rejected.

9190 - FeDigitalDividend: Digitization making income tax payers’ life easier - Financial Express

FeDigitalDividend: Digitization making income tax payers’ life easier

With the whole process of I-T return filing, to refunds, and even handling of tax notices now possible online, dealing with the Income Tax Department has become much easier now.

By: Santosh Tiwari | December 18, 2015 9:35 PM

Thanks to the rapid digitization of the whole process, the Income Tax Department has now launched the ‘e-Sahyog’ project, which does away with the need for the tax payer to physically appear before tax authorities unless there is a serious tax evasion case which requires physical scrutiny. (Thinkstock)

From a modest figure of just 3.62 lakh income tax (I-T) returns filed electronically in 2006-07, which was mere one per cent of the total returns filed that year, the number reached close to 3.42 crore in 2014-15 and it has surpassed 2.88 crore in the current financial year already (http://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/).

This clearly signals an end of the cumbersome paper returns era, and has not only helped the Income Tax Department in simplifying the administration of the return filing and assessment process, but has also made the life of the tax payers much easier as compared to what it was a few years back, when people dreaded the income tax notices.

Thanks to the rapid digitization of the whole process, the Income Tax Department has now launched the ‘e-Sahyog’ project, which does away with the need for the tax payer to physically appear before tax authorities unless there is a serious tax evasion case which requires physical scrutiny.

According to the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), “The objective of “e-Sahyog” is to provide an online mechanism to resolve mismatches in I-T returns of those assesses whose returns have been selected for scrutiny, without visiting the Income Tax Office. Under this initiative the Department will provide an end to end e-service using SMS, e-mails to inform the tax assesses of the mismatch”.

The tax payers simply need to visit the e-filing portal and log in with their user-ID and password to view mismatch related information and submit online response — the responses will be processed and if found satisfactory as per automated closure rules, the issue will be treated as closed, and the tax payers can check the updated status online.
While this move is slated to take the unnecessary harassments out of the scrutiny process, the extended use of digital platform to link Aadhaar with the I-T returns is helping the department expedite the refund process by quick and assured identification of the tax payers.

The newly introduced e-verification of I-T returns for the Assessment year 2015-16 has already resulted in linking of 3863223 Permanent Account Numbers (PAN) to Aadhaar and e-verification of 4677358 returns through bank accounts.

So, starting from the payment of taxes to filing of returns, exchange of assessment-related information between the tax payer and the taxman, even refunds or scrutiny, everything can be done online today.

Once there is an extensive linkage of PAN to Aadhaar going forward, the need for any physical interface between the tax payers and the Income Tax Department will completely vanish in a majority of the cases.

Clearly, digitization has brought in the changes in the tax payer services in the last few years that were perceived to be the difficult ones for a long time.

(Keep looking at this space for more examples of this kind on how digital solutions are transforming administration and governance in the country. If you have any of these and want to share it with us, mail it to feonline@expressindia.com).

First Published on December 18, 2015 9:20 pm

8570 - Filed your income tax returns? Go ahead and e-verify I-T - Economic Times

Filed your income tax returns? Go ahead and e-verify I-T

By Chandralekha Mukerji, ET Bureau | 19 Aug, 2015, 10.13AM IST

There seems to be a general aversion towards e-verification of returns, a process introduced this year by the Income Tax Department that makes tax-filing fully paperless. 

Till last year, if you did not have a digital signature, you had to send a copy of the ITR V to the Central Processing Centre in Bengaluru.From this year, the tax department has introduced an alternate way of paperless e-filing via Electronic Verification Code (EVC). The 10-digit EVC code can be generated through your net banking account, linking your Aadhaar card, using ATMs or even by registering your email or mobile number on the income tax website. 

However, there seems to be a general aversion to e-verifying among taxpayers. 

According to the income tax department's website, among the total 62.19 lakh returns files, only 12.8 lakh taxpayers have used the e-verification route so far. "The method is not complicated and most of the taxpayers who e-file are tech-savvy. So, there seems to be a lack of awareness," says Sudhir Kaushik, Cofounder and CFO of Taxspanner.com. 

Here are the various ways in which you can generate the EVC. 

REGISTER E-MAIL 

The taxpayer can generate an EVC by login into the income tax e-filing website--http:www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in. However, this mode can be used only if the total income, that is before applying any deductions, is Rs 5 lakh or below and there is no refund claim. After you log in and opt for e-filing, you can request for the code by clicking on the "Generate EVC" option. 

The site will ask you to choose between--e-filing OTP or EVC through Net banking. Click on the former and a one-time-password (OTP) will be sent to your mobile number or registered e-mail ID. Use this code under the e-verify option given on the site and complete your tax-return process. 

NET BANKING 

If your total income is more than rs 5 lakhs or if there is refund, you have only one option--EVC through net banking. When you select this options, you'll be redirected to a page with the list of banks available for net banking Login. If your bank has authorised by the income tax department for providing direct access to the government's e-filing website, the name should be here and you should be able to log in using your internet-banking ID and password. Also, your PAN must have been validated via KYC. The EVC will be sent to your bank-registered mobile number. "This will be a big relief to NRIs who do not have digital signatures and faced a lot of problem with mailing physical ITR-Vs," says Preeti Khurana, Chief Content Editor, ClearTax.in. 

Some banks have been registered for generating EVC using your debit or credit card via ATM machines.However, the channel seems to be not working. This is also not the best way and the net banking route is much simpler. 

AADHAAR NUMBER 

For this, your Aadhaar card and PAN should be linked. If the two are not linked income tax department's website show a pop-up and you simply have to fill in your Aadhaar number on the redirected page to link the two. Once linked, an OTP will be sent to your registered mobile number which is valid for next 10 minutes. 

8332 - Here is how you e-verify your income tax return - Money Control

Here is how you e-verify your income tax return 

After filing income tax returns, you are supposed to get it verified. Earlier it was mandatory to send the physical copies to income tax department, now you can e-verify it in minutes. 

PREETI KHURANA Chief Editor, ClearTax Expertise : Tax More about the Expert...  26 4Google +20 18 

Preeti Khurana 

Your income tax return filing process is not complete until you have successfully verified your income tax return. Earlier, returns could be verified via posting the ITR-V or use of digital signatures. In a very welcome move the income tax department has now introduced several means to e-verify your income tax return. Your return can be verified by generating an EVC or electronic verification code. If you verify your return via EVC, you are no longer required to send the physical ITR-V. EVC is a 10 digit alphanumeric code and is unique to a PAN. One EVC code can validate only one return, so if you revise your return, you have to generate another EVC. This code can be obtained through various ways, lets understand them in detail – EVC through net banking – Check if your bank is authorised by the income tax department for providing direct access to the government’s e-filing website. Also, your PAN must have been validated via KYC. You will need your internet banking password and login and transaction password to proceed. Once you login to bank’s site and request access to www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in, you will be able to generate an EVC which will be displayed on the screen and will also be sent to your registered mobile number. You can then e-verify your return with this EVC. This will be a big relief to Non Resident Indians who face distress with sending physical ITR-Vs if they don’t have digital signatures. EVC through Aadhaar OTP – Verification of your return through aadhaar is also done via the government’s e-filing website www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in. You have to link your aadhaar card from within the government’s site and then link it with your PAN on the website mentioned above. After aadhaar is authenticated & linked, an OTP will be sent to the taxpayer’s registered mobile number. And then this OTP can be used to verify the tax return. Do note that this OTP is valid for 10 minutes. The government has asked tax payers to mention their aadhaar number in the tax return. However, do note that mentioning your aadhaar number does not relieve you of e-verification of your tax return. Your return must be separately e-verified using any of the means mentioned here. EVC through ATM – Banks which have been registered with the income tax department for providing this service can be used for generating EVC through ATM machines. EVC can be generated by logging into the bank account via an ATM and selecting option ‘Generate EVC for income tax return filing’. The bank’s systems will then request the income tax department’s website to send an EVC to the taxpayers registered mobile number which can be then used for verifying your tax return. So if you are not able to login to your net banking for some reason, you will be able to generate an EVC through ATM, if your bank has been specified for this purpose by the tax department. EVC though the www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in website – Where the tax payer’s gross total income less deductions is Rs 5 lakhs or less and there is no refund due to the tax payer, EVC can be generated from within the government’s tax filing website. Such EVC shall be sent to the registered email id and mobile number of the taxpayer. However, this option may be restricted based on the risk assessment the department has for a taxpayer, so use another method if you are unsuccessful. Physical ITR-V – Failure of all four options could be a streak of bad luck or possibly travails of a new system. Don’t lose sleep over it. You can still verify by sending your ITR-V using the old way of printing, signing and sending via speed post. Do remember though, this document must be sent within 120 days of your e-filing. Bear in mind that returns must be e-verified or a digital signature must be used, failing which your return submission would be considered incomplete and you may have to submit your return again. Recently, the CBDT has extended the timeline for submitting ITR-Vs for assessment years AY 2013-14 and AY 2014-15. The ITR-V for these assessment years can now be submitted up till 31st October 2015. This is applicable for your return for AY 2013-14 which has been filed on or after 1st April 2014 till 31st March 2015. And your return for AY 2014-15 which has been filed on or after 1st April 2014 till 30th June 2015. Author is a chartered accountant and chief editor at ClearTax. 

Read more at: http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/tax/here-is-how-you-e-verify-your-income-tax-return_2070021.html?utm_source=ref_article

8271 - Tax Talk: Filing of income tax returns made simpler for Aadhaar card holders - Financial Express

Tax Talk: Filing of income tax returns made simpler for Aadhaar card holders

With people becoming increasingly tech savvy, e-filing of income-tax returns is gaining in popularity. Additionally, with new forms and under the fresh filing...

By: Rakesh Nangia | July 14, 2015 10:31 am

With people becoming increasingly tech savvy, e-filing of income-tax returns is gaining in popularity. Additionally, with new forms and under the fresh filing process notified by Central Board of Direct Taxes, all taxpayers (except super senior citizens — 80 years and above) need to file returns in the electronic form to claim refunds.

A large number of taxpayers tend to skip the step of posting a signed physical copy of ITR-V to the Central Processing Centre in Bengaluru within 120 days of filing the returns online, assuming the job was done once the return was e-filed. However, the income-tax department doesn’t consider the process complete unless the ITR-V reaches them on time.

Despite all-out efforts of the government to go green, the mandate of physical submission of ITR-V prevented e-filing from becoming a completely paperless process. The process was completely paperless only if the person had a digital signature.

To rectify this situation, CBDT has announced that a taxpayer who furnishes his Aadhaar card number in the return form need not send a physical copy of ITR-V to CPC. Under the new system of verification, termed as Electronic Verification 

Certification (EVC), the process of verification will be as under:

Step 1: The taxpayer furnishes his Aadhaar card number in the return form while filing the return online;

Step 2: He then receives a verification code in form of a one-time password (OTP) on the mobile phone number associated with the Aadhaar card;

Step 3: He enters the verification code at the time of e-filing to authenticate and complete the process.

Any taxpayer who either verifies his return of income using EVC or digitally signs the return need not speed-post the signed physical ITR-V to CPC.

The above feature is optional. If one wants to send the physical copy of ITR-V form, he can still do so.

Some of the benefits of furnishing the Aadhaar number in the return are:
* The taxpayer will be free from the hassle of printing, signing and making time to go to the post office to speed post the ITR-V
* No need to ensure that the signature is proper and the bar code is clearly visible — ITR-Vs that did not conform to these specifications were rejected in the past
* No need not worry about postal delays and loss in transit of the ITR-V
* No more waiting for confirmation from income-tax department that the signed ITR-V has reached the CPC in time
* With e-filing process completed within a day, the processing of refunds will definitely be faster.

The writer is managing partner Nangia & Co. With inputs from Neha Malhotra, manager, Taxation, Nangia & Co

First Published on July 14, 2015 12:43 am

8180 - Govt notifies revised, but simpler, income-tax return forms - Live Mint

Govt notifies revised, but simpler, income-tax return forms

New forms seek more details from taxpayers, including bank accounts, passport number, foreign assets, Aadhaar

 Remya Nair 

All taxpayers will have to disclose all their bank accounts, except dormant accounts, along with other details such as bank name, but do not have to disclose their bank balances. 

Photo: Mint

New Delhi: The government on Tuesday notified the revised income tax return (ITR) forms that seek more details from taxpayers, including bank accounts, passport number, foreign assets and the unique identity number, or Aadhaar, in a bid to check tax evasion. The forms are, however, simpler than an earlier version, as promised by finance minister Arun Jaitley.

All taxpayers will have to disclose all their bank accounts, except dormant accounts, along with other details such as bank name, but do not have to disclose their bank balances.

Taxpayers—with the exception of those who fill ITR 1—will also have to disclose their passport numbers.

But they will not have to disclose the number of foreign trips they go on or how much they spend on these trips. The main sections of all these forms are under three pages long.

The tax department notified ITR 1, ITR 2, ITR 2A and ITR 4S.

While ITR 1 can be filled by a taxpayer with salary income and income from one house property, ITR 2A—the new simplified version of ITR 2—can be filled by those who have salary income and income from more than one house property but do not have any capital gains accruing to them or any foreign asset.

ITR 2 can be filled by individuals and Hindu undivided families having income from more than one house property and capital gains.

While the new forms will make filing the returns less tedious, the information sought by these forms will be enough to help tax authorities track foreign travel and financial transactions.

The tax return forms, with the exception of ITR 1, also ask for the Aadhaar number of the taxpayer in case the taxpayer has one.

The previous income tax return forms notified in April were criticized by taxpayers for their tedious and intrusive nature, prompting Jaitley to promise to revise them and make them simpler. These forms had sought extensive details about foreign trips as well as information about all bank accounts and bank balances.

Tapati Ghose, partner, Deloitte Haskins and Sells LLP, said the tax return forms are trying to ensure that individuals take cognizance of the domestic and foreign income accruing to them and are not omitting anything. “As compared with last year, the income tax return forms seek many more details with regard to the foreign assets held, like the type of ownership and the income accruing from these assets. For domestic income also, the details sought regarding capital gains are much higher,” she said.

The government has been trying to curb black money both within and outside India and has introduced legislation to this effect. Archit Gupta, founder and chief executive officer, ClearTax, said the new ITR 2A form will make it much more simple to file tax returns.

“Taxpayers who don’t have capital gains but own more than one house property will be filing a much shorter new form 2A. Even those who have long-term capital gains accruing to them from the sale of shares on a stock exchange can fill form 2A,” Gupta said.

8179 - Simplified income tax returns norms notified; deadline 31 Aug; Aadhaar number mandatory - First Post

Simplified income tax returns norms notified; deadline 31 Aug; Aadhaar number mandatory

Jun 24, 2015 07:10 IST

New Delhi: The Income Tax department has notified the new set of ITR forms, including a three-page simplified one, for taxpayers to file their returns for assessment year 2015-16.

Simplified tax regime. AFP

With the finance ministry publishing the gazette order yesterday, taxpayers and other entities can now file their Income Tax Returns (ITR) till 31 August, the new deadline set in this regard by the government after it dropped the earlier forms which had attracted criticism for seeking numerous additional details like that of filers' foreign travel and about dormant bank accounts.

The most simplified form, ITR-2A, to be filled by those individuals and HUFs who do not have income from either business, profession or by way of capital gains and do not hold foreign assets, only asks for the passport number of the tax-filer, with the words "if available".

Filers now will have to declare only about the "total number of savings and current bank accounts" held by them "at any time during the previous year (excluding dormant accounts)."

The form also has space to fill up the IFSC code of the bank and in an additional feature, tax filers have been given an option to indicate their bank accounts in which they would want their refund credited.

The I-T department, in the new ITRs, has also sought the Aadhaar number of filers and has also given options for providing two email ids to it.

"The inclusion of Aadhaar and emails are to ensure a regime of online ITR filing in the country," a senior official said.

The department has also provided for an additional four-page schedule to this simplified form for those who wish to file anymore details, applicable in a case-to-case basis.

In the ITR-2, for individuals and HUFs having income from business or profession, the form remains simple but they will have to declare if they hold any foreign assets abroad or have income from "any source outside India."

The new ITRs have replaced the 14-page form that were notified earlier this year, triggering a major controversy with individuals, industrialists and MPs saying tax filing would become cumbersome as those forms had sought details including foreign trips and bank accounts details.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had ordered putting these forms on hold following the controversy.

The last date for filing of the ITR has already been extended for this year to 31 August.

Also, in the new ITRs, an expat who is not an Indian citizen and is in India on business, employment or student visa, would not mandatorily be required to report the foreign assets acquired by him during the previous years when he was non-resident and if no income was derived from such assets during the relevant previous year.

PTI

8148 - I-T dept plans an app to map all taxpayer details via PAN - Live Mint

I-T dept plans an app to map all taxpayer details via PAN

Income Tax Business Application to allow assessing officer get all details about taxpayer in a single window

Remya Nair 

The tax department has already started seeding Aadhaar numbers with the PAN database to weed out duplicate PANs. Photo: Pradeep Gaur/Mint

Soon, the taxman will be able to access all the financial information of taxpayers in a single window.

The income-tax (I-T) department is embarking on a project called Income Tax Business Application to collate all information on a taxpayer from various sources based on the permanent account number (PAN).

Of the total 30 million tax returns filed annually, the I-T department selects 300,000- 400,000 cases annually for scrutiny, based on risk profiling by the tax department. For this purpose, currently, the tax department collects all such information—but at a macro level.

“We are trying to improve internal data mining. We get information from various sources like tax deducted at source, annual information return (AIR), CEIB (Central Economic Intelligence Bureau), excise, service tax and value-added tax. But they are all in silos,” said Anita Kapur, chairperson of Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) on Tuesday.

“We have started a pilot project wherein an assessing officer will get the entire information about a taxpayer whose tax return has been selected for scrutiny. It will include all financial transactions data of an individual or entity, including human intelligence collected. We hope to make it operational by the next calendar year,” she said.

The project is being rolled out in phases. The department has already started seeding Aadhaar numbers with the PAN database to weed out duplicate ones.

To incentivize taxpayers to voluntarily disclose Aadhaar numbers, the department has proposed a plan wherein the Aadhaar number of taxpayers will be used to validate online tax returns filed by taxpayers. So taxpayers will not need to send signed acknowledgement copies of the I-T returns to the Central Processing Centre in Bengaluru.

“If a taxpayer gives his Aadhaar and mobile numbers, we will send a one-time password to the taxpayer once he uploads his I-T return on the website. The taxpayer can then validate their return using the one-time password,” Kapur said.

Taking a strong stand against tax evaders, Kapur said the tax department has no option but to take a tough action against evaders to encourage compliance. “We try to ensure that our tax regime remains non-intrusive....but there are certain people or cases against whom intrusive action is required. Because not everybody is willingly compliant,” she said.

Sunil Jain, Partner at J Sagar Associates, a law firm, said the department gets a lot of information from various sources. “Many institutions are obligated to report a transaction above a certain threshold level. So the tax department has a lot of information. But once it accumulates and collates all this information, it will have to talk to the assessee and ask for an explanation,” he said.

“This is going to increase the workload of the tax department and you will need a corresponding increase in manpower. And staffing and training continues to remain a major challenge for the tax department,” he said.

8147 - Aadhaar will help do away with sending I-T verification form after e-filing - Hindu Business line

Aadhaar will help do away with sending I-T verification form after e-filing

OUR BUREAU

Tax Dept working on complete profiling of each tax payer

NEW DELHI, JUNE 16:  

If you have given your Aadhaar number while filing your income tax returns, then you don’t need to submit the Income Tax Return – Verification (ITR V) form.

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) Chairperson Anita Kapur said that Aadhaar record has all the biometric including signature, so verification can be done on the basis of the unique identity number and filing will be completed.

Sharing with the media the strategies adopted by CBDT to go paperless and make the system hassle-free for the individual tax payers, she said that refund will not be delayed.

“If the Aadhaar number and your PAN number match, then on your mobile, we will send you OTP (one-time password). So, once you upload your return instead of going and printing ITR V printout, there will be icon showing where you need to put the OTP and validate the return,” she said while adding that the OTP life is likely to be for 24 hours. However, one can make another request for OTP if the first one has lapsed.

At present, digital signature is a must for filing corporate tax returns, but not for individual income tax payer. Such electronic signature can be procured from the Government agency and it has a validity of 2-3 years. This is one of the main reasons why individuals prefer to dispatch ITR V by speedpost or courier.

However, there were complaints about forms not reaching Bengaluru on time or getting lost in transit. Keeping this in mind, the new system has been planned. The return filing process will start in a couple of days, after the tax department uploads new forms (with space for Aadhaar).

But, tax payers who do not have either the Aadhaar or the digital signature can continue sending the ITR V form.

If any individual income tax payer does not have digital signature, he needs to take print out of ITR V after uploading the return form and send it to Bengaluru within 120 days, where the return is assessed and refund issued, if any.

Rise in e-returns

Law requires signature on the form to establish that information given is correct and any wrong declaration can lead to punitive or prosecuting action. Over 2.96 crore e-returns were filed in 2013-14 which rose to over 3.41 crore in 2015-16. Any individual tax payer with income over ₹5 lakh needs to mandatorily file e-return.

Kapur said that the Tax Department will do complete 360 degree profiling of individual tax payers with the help of a new system called ‘Income Tax Business Application’ (ITBA). This will be rolled out in phases and completed by next year.

(This article was published on June 16, 2015)

7933 - Income Tax Returns: What to Expect From the Revised Forms - NDTV

Income Tax Returns: What to Expect From the Revised Forms

Cleartax.in | Updated On: May 08, 2015 21:23 (IST)

The new Income Tax Return (ITR) forms which the tax department released have invited much clamor and discussion. While the tax department is working on a refreshed form or possibly a clarification on the forms it released, here's a quick check on what to expect.

An abysmally low percentage of Indians file their income tax returns. Successive governments have endeavored to up this number. The Saral or simple tax form, introduced in 2009, is intended at making tax filing simple and understandable for the lay person. The goal of the department is to increase compliance such that more number of people file their tax returns; as well as focus on generating more revenue from the direct taxes.

Of the three ITR forms (ITR-1, ITR-2 and ITR-4S) which were announced, the new addition that asks for bank account information has attracted significant debate. Several tax payers are unsure why the government wants to have access to their bank details. The requirement of disclosure of joint account information has led to further anxiety. Take a case where a non working spouse is a joint holder in a bank account but does not make significant contributions to it. In such a case, there may appear to be significant disparity in the bank balance and the earnings of the joint account holder who has been added only for convenience. While one may expect the department will continue to seek bank details in the revised forms, possibly a clarification for the disclosure for the beneficiary is in order.

It's getting easier and cheaper for most tax payers to indulge themselves in a foreign jaunt. Visits to nearby Asian and gulf countries have become a norm. The occasional holiday traveler is dazed with the need for this disclosure. There has been information that the department may only seek disclosure where multiple trips have been undertaken, it's worthwhile to mention that a trip within the country from the north to the south may sometimes turn out to be more expensive.

Usually a foreign trip involves a few significant purchases; the ticket, cost of stay and the currency spent abroad. The government has approached the undisclosed money issue from several angles and this is one aspect of that - so the tax department is expected to keep this disclosure and look at tweaking it to for those who make several trips and spend large amounts on foreign travel. At the same time it may be worthwhile for the government to look at the sources of foreign currency purchases made by the frequent travelers.

Of the many changes, a significant one is the electronic verification of ITR for those who hold an Aadhaar Card. This is a very welcome change that will make the e-filing process completely electronic. Having access to a printing facility and sending the ITR-V via speed post led to failure in submission for several tax payers. While the debate on other changes took centre stage, this change will make life simple for those who hold an aadhaar card. This is set to make e-filing process smooth as well as bring the focus on the universal identity that the government hopes to have large scale enrollment for.

The Finance minister has assured the forms shall be 'saral' in their true spirit.

(Preeti Khurana is a chartered accountant and chief editor at www.cleartax.in)

Disclaimer: All information in this article has been provided by Cleartax.in and NDTV Profit is not responsible for the accuracy and completeness of the same.

Story first published on: May 08, 2015 17:46 (IST)

7811 - Taxpayers to disclose bank accounts, foreign travel to Income Tax department - Deccan Chronicle

Taxpayers to disclose bank accounts, foreign travel to Income Tax department

PTI | April 17, 2015, 19.04 pm IST

ITR forms will also feature a new column to include the Aadhaar number (Representational Image)

New Delhi: Taxpayers will have to disclose all bank accounts held by them in the country and instances of  foreign travel to the Income Tax department while filing their  returns for the assessment year 2015-16. 

The Central Board of Direct Taxes, the apex policy making body of the Income Tax department, has notified new Income Tax Return (ITR) forms for the current assessment year, making  some additions to the existing format as part of obtaining new  information to check the menace of black money. The new ITR forms, including the ITR-1 and ITR-2, require an assessee to furnish the number of bank accounts held by the individual "at any time (including opened/closed) during the  previous year" with the last balance in his or her account on  March 31 of the just concluded fiscal. 

The assessee will also have to furnish the name of the bank, account number/numbers, it's address, IFSC code and any  possible joint account holder.  When it comes to disclosure of foreign travel, the taxman wants the assessee's passport number, the issuance place of  the passport, countries visited, number of times such sojourns  made and in case of a resident taxpayer, the expenses incurred  from "own sources in relation to such travel.

"The I-T department, last year, had made it mandatory for taxpayers to mention details of all assets they hold in a foreign soil under a new schedule-details of foreign assets  and income from any source outside India.  "The new measures are part of the government's effort to  tackle black money in an non-obstrusive manner. The details will add to the taxman's knowledge about a particular  assessee," a senior I-T officer said.  The new ITR forms, this time, also feature a new column to include the Aadhaar number of the assessee.  

7650 - IT department to send One Time Passwords and include Aadhar to ease taxpayer e-filing - Economic Times

IT department to send One Time Passwords and include Aadhar to ease taxpayer e-filing

PTI Mar 24, 2015, 08.01PM IST

BANGALORE: Taxpayers will soon get relief from sending a paper acknowledgement of their e-filed return as Income Tax department is set to introduce a new customer verification system for the task by sending One Time Passwords, validating net banking identity and enrolling Aadhaar number in the returns form.

The I-T department, through its policy making body Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), has decided to completely do away with the "cumbersome" procedure undertaken currently by a taxpayer to send his ITR-V (Verification) form to the department's Central Processing Centre (CPC) based here through post.

"We are fastly moving towards a regime where the taxpayer will not have to send the paper acknowledgement of the ITR-V ( Income Tax Return Verification).

"We want to make e-filing completely hassle-free and easy for taxpayers," CPC Director and I-T Commissioner RK Mishra told a group of visiting journalists here.

A number of taxpayers have complained to the department that despite they sending the hard copy of ITR-V by "speed or registered post" their forms were being acknowledged by the CPC as "not received" and hence the department, for long, has been looking at options to do away with this system altogether.

The CPC Director said the department has already submitted a blueprint for introducing these new measures to the CBDT and these will be implemented very soon.

In order to ensure another layer of security and authenticity to the e-filed I-T returns, the officer said, the return forms will have a new column for mentioning the unique Aadhar number of the taxpayer.

"Last year, we introduced a new column in the ITR where taxpayers had to share their personal mobile numbers and email ids. That exercise has given us good results and taxpayers have benefitted as we could promptly inform them about their tax issues.

"Aadhar will not only add to the security of the ITR but also give it a unique and distinct identity," he said adding however, it was "not" mandatory.

As per existing rules, a person who files his or her tax return online, has to send a copy of the ITR-V to CPC within 120 days for processing of the return.

"We have made some categories in this regard (for stopping ITR-V totally). Like in case of low-risk category of taxpayers like salaried class we will send a One Time Password (OTP) on their mobile phone to authenticate their e-return.

"In case of high risk category of taxpayers like corporate and big entities we can ask them to do it through their net banking accounts which are already vetted and cleared by respective banks," he said.

7649 - I-T department to send OTP, include Aadhaar to ease taxpayer e-filing - First Post

I-T department to send OTP, include Aadhaar to ease taxpayer e-filing

Mar 24, 2015 20:45 IST

Bangalore: Taxpayers will soon get relief from sending a paper acknowledgement of their e-filed return as Income Tax department is set to introduce a new customer verification system for the task by sending One Time Passwords, validating net banking identity and enrolling Aadhaar number in the returns form.

The I-T department, through its policy making body Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), has decided to
completely do away with the "cumbersome" procedure undertaken currently by a taxpayer to send his ITR-V (Verification) form to the department's Central Processing Centre (CPC) based in Bangalore through post.

"We are fastly moving towards a regime where the taxpayer will not have to send the paper acknowledgement of the ITR-V (Income Tax Return Verification).

"We want to make e-filing completely hassle-free and easy for taxpayers," CPC Director and I-T Commissioner RK Mishra told a group of visiting journalists in New Delhi.

A number of taxpayers have complained to the department that despite they sending the hard copy of ITR-V by "speed or registered post" their forms were being acknowledged by the CPC as "not received" and hence the department, for long, has been looking at options to do away with this system altogether.

The CPC Director said the department has already submitted a blueprint for introducing these new measures to the CBDT and these will be implemented very soon.

In order to ensure another layer of security and authenticity to the e-filed I-T returns, the officer said, the return forms will have a new column for mentioning the unique Aadhaar number of the taxpayer.

"Last year, we introduced a new column in the ITR where taxpayers had to share their personal mobile numbers and email ids. That exercise has given us good results and taxpayers have benefitted as we could promptly inform them about their tax issues.

"Aadhaar will not only add to the security of the ITR but also give it a unique and distinct identity," he said adding however, it was "not" mandatory.

As per existing rules, a person who files his or her tax return online, has to send a copy of the ITR-V to CPC within 120 days for processing of the return.

"We have made some categories in this regard (for stopping ITR-V totally). Like in case of low-risk category of taxpayers like salaried class we will send a One Time Password (OTP) on their mobile phone to authenticate their e-return.

"In case of high risk category of taxpayers like corporate and big entities we can ask them to do it through their net banking accounts which are already vetted and cleared by respective banks," he said.

We hope, Mishra said, to put all these measures in place before the upcoming tax filing season.

The CPC Director Mishra said, the CBDT, in October last year had amended the provisions of the I-T Act and made it easy for the department to undertake these new methods for "validation" of e-returns.

"We were thinking about bringing in a regime of electronic signatures which are also valid under the law of the land.

"We understand asking normal taxpayers to get digital signatures is going to cost the taxpayer some money and trouble. Hence, we got the new protocols of OTP, net banking and Aadhaar inclusion done.These all are electronic signatures of a customer which hold legal validity," he said.

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At CPC, a senior officer working here said, the aim is to reduce the workload on junior staff of the I-T department who could concentrate their energies in undertaking other mandates of the department which is to curb tax evasion and widen the tax base.

"When we take care of I-T returns at CPC and subsequently the refunds and other issues, our officers on the field have an opportunity to deploy their energies on other tasks," the officer said.

Mishra said the CPC, till now, has received 3 crore e-returns and by 31 March the numbers are expected to touch an all-time high of 3.2 crore.

"We want to urge taxpayers to take up more and more e-filing as it enables the I-T department to quickly address their issues related to refunds, grievances and returns mis-match," he said.

E-filing of I-T returns is mandatory for those taxpayers whose annual income is Rs 5 lakh or more. However, people below this income bracket can also file e-returns.

"Seventy-five percent of those who are not supposed to file e-returns have done so and this is what encourages us," Mishra said.

The official e-filing portal of the department has also introduced a new link which enables taxpayers to get a redressal of their grievances in five days time.

PTI