E-Paper
ITR filing season begins as income tax department launches ITR-1, ITR-4 utilities
An Income Tax Return (ITR) is a form used by taxpayers to report their income, deductions and tax liabilities to the Income Tax Department.
The Income Tax Department on Friday released the Excel utilities for ITR-1 and ITR-4 for Financial Year 2025-26 (Assessment Year 2026-27), allowing eligible taxpayers to start filing their income tax returns. The offline utilities are available for download on the IT department’s e-filing portal. With the release of these forms, the ITR filing season for AY 2026-27 has officially begun.
Taxpayers can use the Excel-based utilities to enter their income and tax details offline, compute tax liability, generate a JSON file and upload it to the e-filing website for submission and verification.
The move is expected to help salaried individuals, pensioners, small business owners and professionals covered under presumptive taxation schemes begin the filing process early and avoid last-minute rush closer to the deadline.
What is an ITR form?
An Income Tax Return (ITR) is a form through which taxpayers disclose their income, deductions and tax liability to the Income Tax Department. Taxpayers are generally required to file their returns by July 31 every financial year.
At present, there are seven different ITR forms, ITR-1 to ITR-7. The applicable form depends on the taxpayer’s category, nature of income and total earnings.
What are ITR-1 and ITR-4 forms?
ITR-1 is meant for resident individuals, other than not ordinarily residents, with a total annual income of up to ₹50 lakh. The form can be used by taxpayers earning income from salary or pension, income from up to two house properties, and income from other sources such as bank interest. Agricultural income up to ₹5,000 is also permitted under this category.
Additionally, taxpayers having long-term capital gains under Section 112A up to ₹1.25 lakh can also file returns using ITR-1.
ITR-4 is applicable to resident individuals, Hindu Undivided Families (HUFs) and firms other than Limited Liability Partnerships (LLPs) with total income up to ₹50 lakh. It is designed for taxpayers opting for presumptive taxation schemes under Sections 44AD, 44ADA or 44AE. Taxpayers with long-term capital gains under Section 112A up to ₹1.25 lakh are also eligible to use this form.
