Two dates, one big question: July 31 moved to September 15, and now taxpayers want to know if that will move again. As of today, there is no fresh notification from the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) announcing any extension beyond September 15, 2025 for Assessment Year 2025-26. If you’re waiting for a last-minute breather, treat it as uncertain. The safest assumption is this—plan to meet the ITR filing deadline.
The September 15 due date was already a one-time relief. CBDT extended it in May after overhauling ITR schemas and utilities. The new forms needed integration, testing, and alignment with back-end systems. TDS statements for the last quarter were due by May 31, and corresponding credits started reflecting only in early June, leaving a narrow compliance window. The extension was meant to give non-audit taxpayers—mainly salaried individuals, professionals, and small businesses—enough time to file accurately.
Why September 15 was set—and why some want more time
This year’s ITRs aren’t just cosmetic tweaks. The forms have deeper validations, tighter schedules, and more cross-checks with AIS/TIS and Form 26AS. That’s good for accuracy, but it also slows you down if your data doesn’t line up neatly. Tax preparers say the biggest friction points are mismatches in interest income, TDS/TCS credits that got corrected late, and capital gains breakups that need scrip-wise detail.
Here’s the timeline that shaped the current deadline—and the anxiety around it:
- May 31, 2025: TDS statements due for Q4 FY 2024-25.
- Early June: TDS credits began reflecting in 26AS and AIS, with some revisions trickling in later.
- May 2025: CBDT extended the due date to September 15, citing major ITR form changes and system readiness.
- September 2025: With days to go, calls for another extension grew, citing persisting reconciliation issues for some taxpayers.
Why are people still asking for more time? Three practical reasons keep coming up:
- Revised ITR utilities and tighter validations: Even small mismatches (say, a minor interest difference) can hold up filing.
- Capital gains reporting: Broker statements and corporate actions take effort to reconcile with the new capital gains schedules.
- AIS/TIS alignment: Late or corrected entries (bank interest, dividends, TCS on foreign spends) need manual checks before you hit submit.
Will CBDT extend again? There’s no official word. In past high-friction years—think the pandemic era or the portal’s early rollout—deadlines did move. But the board has also stuck to dates in years when it believed systems were stable. Read that as: prepare for September 15, hope for nothing, and you won’t be caught out.
What happens if you miss the deadline—and what you should do now
If you miss September 15, the law gets predictable:
- Late fee (Section 234F): Rs 5,000 if your total income exceeds Rs 5 lakh; Rs 1,000 if it’s up to Rs 5 lakh.
- Interest (Section 234A): 1% per month (or part of a month) on unpaid tax from September 16 until the date you file and pay.
- Advance tax interest: Sections 234B and 234C may also apply if you didn’t pay enough advance tax during the year.
- Belated return window: You can still file a belated return until December 31, 2025, with the late fee and interest.
- Loss carry-forward: Miss the due date and you generally can’t carry forward business and capital losses (house property loss is an exception).
A quick example helps: suppose you owe Rs 20,000 in self-assessment tax and file on October 10. Interest at 1% under 234A applies for September (part month counts as full) and October—so 2% of Rs 20,000 = Rs 400. Add late fee (depending on your income slab). If you also underpaid advance tax, 234B/234C interest stacks on top.
Still filing this week? Work smart, not frantic. Here’s a tight checklist to avoid avoidable errors and rework:
- Reconcile income data: Match Form 16/16A, Form 26AS, AIS/TIS, and your bank/broker statements. If AIS shows extra interest or dividend, cross-check passbooks and broker P&L.
- Capital gains: Use your broker’s realized gains statement, include corporate actions (splits/bonuses), and map ISIN-wise if your utility requires it. Verify grandfathering and indexation where applicable.
- Deductions: Keep proofs for 80C (PPF, EPF, ELSS), 80D (medical insurance), home loan interest certificate, education loan interest, and donations (80G). Don’t forget HRA and rent receipts if eligible.
- Other income: Savings and FD interest, recurring deposits, winnings, freelance or consulting receipts, and foreign income if applicable.
- Foreign assets/schedule FA: If you’re resident and hold foreign bank accounts, stocks, ESOPs, or crypto on overseas exchanges, fill this correctly. This schedule is sensitive—double-check dates and peak balances.
- Choose the right return form: ITR-1 and ITR-4 are simpler but only if you actually qualify. Salary plus modest other income may fit ITR-1; business/professional income often needs ITR-3 or ITR-4.
- Tax regime: Run both regimes if you can—old (with deductions) vs new (lower rates, fewer deductions). Pick the lower tax outgo, but remember regime switch rules differ for business income.
- Pay before you file: Clear any self-assessment tax first so 234A interest stops ticking when you submit.
- E-verify within 30 days: If you don’t e-verify in time, your return is treated as not filed. Aadhaar OTP, net banking, and EVC are the fastest methods.
What if an extension does come at the eleventh hour? It won’t change your numbers, just the timeline. Use any extra days to resolve AIS mismatches, fix capital gains schedules, and get a clean acknowledgment. But don’t bank on it. History shows late-night portal rushes can slow down submissions, and that’s the worst time to discover a mismatch.
Belated vs updated return—know the difference. Belated returns (till December 31, 2025) carry late fees and interest, and they limit loss carry-forward. Updated returns, a newer option under Section 139(8A), let you voluntarily add income later—usually up to 24 months—with an extra 25% or 50% tax over and above normal tax and interest. That’s a backstop, not a shortcut.
For those with audits or transfer pricing reports, your timelines are separate and follow their own due dates unless CBDT notifies a change. Today’s focus is the non-audit crowd—the bulk of individual filers and small businesses who simply need to get a clean return in on time.
Bottom line: the clock is still set to September 15. Keep an eye on any official CBDT notification, but behave as if nothing more is coming. If you have all your documents, you can still wrap this up in a day: reconcile, pay any balance tax, file, and e-verify. That beats rolling the dice on an announcement that may never land.
