Tax
Filing your income tax return, step by step
The portal does most of the work now. Knowing what it is asking for is the part that still takes a little preparation.
ShePays Team6 min read
Filing a return is the act of telling the tax department what you earned and what tax was already paid on it. Often the result is a refund rather than a payment, which is reason enough not to skip it.
Who needs to file
- Anyone whose total income before deductions exceeds the basic exemption limit.
- Anyone with income from more than one source, such as property, capital gains or investments.
- Anyone holding foreign assets or earning foreign income.
- Anyone meeting certain high-value criteria, such as large deposits, substantial foreign travel spending or high electricity payments.
What to have ready
- PAN and Aadhaar, linked.
- Form 16 from your employer, if salaried.
- Form 26AS and the Annual Information Statement, which show the tax already credited against your PAN.
- Bank statements and interest certificates.
- Proof of any deductions you intend to claim.
- Capital gains statements from your broker or fund house, if applicable.
Reconcile against Form 26AS before you file, not after. Most notices arise from a mismatch between what you declared and what is already recorded.
The process
- Log in to the income tax e-filing portal with your PAN.
- Choose the assessment year and the correct return form for your income type.
- Review the pre-filled data carefully. It is usually right and occasionally is not.
- Add anything missing, particularly interest income and capital gains.
- Claim your deductions and confirm which regime you are filing under.
- Check the computed tax, and pay any balance due.
- Submit, then verify.
Worth knowing
A return is not filed until it is verified. Verification can be done instantly with an Aadhaar OTP. An unverified return is treated as never having been filed, and this catches people out every year.
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