Income Tax

CBDT Extends ITR Filing Deadline to 31st October for Tax Audit

CBDT (The Central Board of Direct Taxes) has decided to extend the ITR Filing deadline and tax audit reports by one month. The last date has been extended from 30^th September 2019 to 31^st October, 2019. This decision has been made after continuous demands of Chartered Accountants and tax consultants, to extend the date. Even the small companies which are struggling with GST filings will get some respite till 31^st October.

CBDTs Tweet

CBDT recently tweeted: On consideration of representations received from across the country, CBDT has decided to extend the due date for filing of ITRs and Tax Audit Reports from 30^th September, 2019 to 31^st October, 2019 in respect of persons whose accounts are required to be audited.

Reasons For Demanding the Extension Of Date

 The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI)   requested a two months extension for filing of tax audit reports and related returns from 30^th September, 2019 to 30^th November, 2019. The institute had written to CBDTs Chairman PC Mody, requesting a two month extensions.

The delay caused in making available the income tax return utilities .Also the voluminous data required to be filed by assesses covered under tax audit, has been one of the reason. Apart from ICAI various other tax associations such as Gujarat Federation of Tax Consultants and Income Tax Bar Association (ITBA), Ahmadabad, wrote to the Ministry of Finance, requesting the extension of last date.

As per CBDT’s tweet a formal notification regarding the same will follow soon. This decision of CBDT will give a month’s breather to all those entities that are assessed under section 44 AB of the I-T Act, such as companies, partnership firms etc.

Also Read: Things to Know About Income Tax Scrutiny in India

Conclusion

CBDT has extended ITR filing deadline by one month. This has come out as great relief for many companies. This extension of one month, came after a prolonged demand from Charted Accountants and tax consultants across the country. So now, companies have got a breather of one month and can file their ITRs and tax audit reports till 31st October.