Understand First Income Tax Refund Rules if You are Waiting for Refund in 2024
The deadline for filing income tax returns (ITR) was July 31, 2024. More than 7.28 crore (72.8 million) people filed their returns for the financial year 2023-24. This marks a 7.5% increase from last year. Last year 7.77 crore (77.7 million) returns were filed, according to the finance ministry report on August 2, 2024.
Who Can Get a Tax Refund and How?
You can get a tax refund if the taxes you paid are more than what you owe. This includes taxes deducted at source (TDS) from your income, taxes collected at source (TCS), advance tax and self-assessment tax. After you e-verify your return, it usually takes about 4-5 weeks for the refund to show up in your bank account.
How to Claim a Tax Refund if You Missed the Deadline?
Even if you missed July 31 deadline you can still claim tax refund for up to six years. To do this, you need to apply for a condonation of delay. Once approved you can file your ITR online for the past six years.
Why Your Refund Might Be Withheld?
The income tax department might hold back your refund if you have unpaid taxes from previous years. They will inform you if this occurs. If you believe there has been a mistake you can file a complaint on the income tax website. However, you can’t use a refund from the previous year to pay taxes owed for a later year.
Conclusion
Understanding these rules will assist you in knowing when and how you can expect a tax refund. It will also guide you on what steps to take if there are any issues.
