Missed the ITR deadline: your options

File late: the belated return

After the due date you can still file a belated return, but only up to an outer date, and that date depends on the year you missed.

For FY 2025-26, which the 1961 Act still governs, the outer date is 31 December 2026, or the date the assessment is completed if that is earlier.

For tax years from 2026-27, under the Income-tax Act, 2025, the outer date is nine months from the end of the tax year, or the date the assessment is completed if that is earlier (section 263(4)).

For FY 2024-25 and earlier, the belated window has closed. An updated return, below, is the route that remains.

Filing is nearly always better than not filing. A year with no return leaves you open to notices, and a pending refund cannot be claimed without one.

What it costs

There are two charges. The first is a late filing fee of ₹5,000, or ₹1,000 where total income is ₹5 lakh or less. It is section 234F of the 1961 Act for FY 2025-26 and earlier, and section 428 of the Income-tax Act, 2025 from tax year 2026-27, at the same amounts.

The second is interest on any tax you still owe, at 1% for each month or part of a month from the due date until you pay. Interest runs on the tax unpaid, so paying what you owe first stops it growing even before the return is ready. That is the rule for years up to FY 2025-26, which the 1961 Act governs. For later years we confirm the position when we look at the facts.

What you can lose

A return filed after the due date generally cannot carry forward most losses, such as business or capital-gains losses, to set against future income. The exception is a loss from house property. For someone with a loss this is usually the largest cost of being late, and it is not shown in the fee.

After the belated window: the updated return

An updated return (ITR-U) can still be filed for an earlier year. Under the 2025 Act the limit is 48 months from the end of the financial year after the tax year (section 263(6)); the 1961 Act has its own limits for earlier years (section 139(8A)).

It comes with additional tax on top of the tax and interest, payable under section 267 at rates that step up the longer you wait. We give you the exact figure for your year before you decide.

It has limits. It cannot be a return of loss, reduce your total tax or increase a refund, and only one updated return can be filed for a year. It is also closed to you once an assessment for that year is pending or complete, after a search or survey, or where the department has already told you it holds information about a violation of laws such as the Black Money Act. We check each of these before preparing one.

What to do this week

1. Work out how much tax you owe for the year and pay it, to stop interest growing.
2. Collect Form 16 or your income details, Form 26AS and the annual information statement, and proof of any deduction you plan to claim.
3. Check the outer date for that year on the compliance calendar.
4. File the return. If you are past the belated window, ask which of the updated-return limits applies before you spend time preparing it.