Final Hours to File Income Tax Return: Know Who Must Submit ITR Today?:

Taxpayers filing Income Tax Return (ITR) using ITR-1 and ITR-2 have only today, July 31, to submit their returns. With the deadline ending tonight, those who have not yet filed should do so as soon as possible to avoid last-minute technical issues, penalties, interest, or compliance notices.

According to official data, more than 5.5 crore ITRs have already been filed. This shows that many taxpayers are rushing to complete the process before the deadline.

The July 31 deadline is meant for resident individuals who are not required to get their accounts audited. That’s most salaried workers, pensioners and students. It also includes people who earn income from more than one house property, from interest, from dividends, from capital gains or from other sources.

Taxpayers can e-file their returns online on the Income Tax Department’s e-filing portal by logging in with their PAN as the user ID and password. Don't wait until the last few hours, the experts say, because the website may get bogged down with heavy traffic.

Besides the government portal, there are many fintech platforms offering paid ITR filing services. Usually the services provide expert advice, tax saving tips and pre-filled tax details to make it easy.

But not all have to file ITR by July 31. Those filing the ITR-3 with income from business or profession and those opting for the presumptive taxation scheme under the ITR-4 (Sugam) have later deadlines.

The deadline is 31 August 2026 for freelancers or business owners who are not under a tax audit. If your business or professional income is under tax audit, you have to file your returns by 31st October 2026.

There are certain cases when even if your income is below taxable limit, you may still need to file an ITR. Under the old tax regime, the basic exemption limit is Rs 2.5 lakh for individuals below 60 years, Rs 3 lakh for senior citizens aged 60 to below 80 years, and Rs 5 lakh for super senior citizens aged 80 years or above. Under the new tax regime, the basic exemption limit is Rs 4 lakh for taxpayers of all age groups.

ITR filing is mandatory if your savings bank deposits exceed Rs 50 lakh, current account deposits cross Rs 1 crore, foreign travel expenses are more than Rs 2 lakh, your annual electricity bill exceeds Rs 1 lakh, or if you own foreign assets or have signing authority in a foreign account.