Government may need to further extend the tax return deadline if COVID Cases continue to rise

Coronavirus cases are increasing day by day and it has become very difficult for the taxpayer to follow all the norms.

Finance ministry has taken a number of initiatives to help taxpayers during this time of pandemic however it has become quite difficult for taxpayers to adhere to the timelines even after getting extended. So so much is to be done in this context until the situation becomes normal.

The income tax department has extended timelines to help the taxpayers, but it has still become difficult for them to cope up with it. Lockdowns and clustered zones are an add on to their problems.

Relief measures in the context of the extension of timelines and also waiving interest were done by the government on March 31 but still, taxpayers are not able to cope up with the situation.

Considering the current situation, Gaurav Mohan, CEO AMRG & Associates told that while considering the current situation, more and better relief measures are needed now for the taxpayers so as to keep the economy rolling.

Impact of Corona Virus on Income Tax Deadline

The clock of coronavirus is currently ticking at 6.5 lakhs and no one is aware of where it would stop. Moreover, it is difficult to have a guesstimate of when it’s vaccine will float in the market.

Naveen Wadhwa, DGM, Taxmann has said that the due dates for filing of ITR for the financial year 2019-2020 had been extended to November 30, 2020. Usually, it is to be done before July 31 and October 31. Hence all the taxpayers can pay their taxes till November 30, 2020, without paying any charges for late payment. It was clear after considering the pandemic and government’s decision to extend the lockdown and date of filing income tax return.

Taxpayers will get exempted from paying tax if the tax liability is less than one lakh.

If the taxpayer has the tax liability of more than one lakh, then interest is to be paid by the taxpayer under section 234A as per the income tax act.

On consideration to the government’s decision to extend the deadline for claiming tax deductions, Kapil Rana, Chairman and founder of HostBooks told that the relief would be of great help to taxpayers while building their tax plan and also would reduce liability for the ones who failed to have their savings for the financial year 2019-20.

A new schedule named Schedule DI has been introduced by the government. The government has also extended the last date to have an investment in tax saving instruments for the current financial year from March 31 to June 30, 2020.

This date has been again extended till July 31, 2020.

All in all, the government has tried to rescue the taxpayers from this difficult situation yet, much is to be done to bring the situation back to normalcy.