Tax Planning & Compliance

Filing is required if total income before specified deductions exceeds the basic exemption limit, and also in several other situations regardless of income, such as, for a resident and ordinarily resident individual, holding foreign assets, or, where the prescribed conditions are met, depositing large sums in bank accounts, incurring high-value expenditure, or having business turnover above prescribed limits. Companies and firms must file in every case. The return is filed under Section 139 [ITA 2025: s. 263]. The correct form depends on the taxpayer: individuals and Hindu Undivided Families use ITR-1 to ITR-4 as applicable; an eligible resident firm other than a limited liability partnership may use ITR-4, other firms and limited liability partnerships generally use ITR-5, companies generally use ITR-6, and persons covered by Rule 12 [ITR 2026: r. 164], including specified organisations, use ITR-7. Rule 12 [ITR 2026: r. 164] prescribes these forms for the tax year commencing 1 April 2026. We confirm the filing obligation and the right form for your situation.

Due dates depend on the taxpayer. Salaried individuals and others not carrying on a business file by 31 July following the tax year, while non-audit business and profession cases are due by 31 August for the current year. Taxpayers subject to audit file by 31 October, and those with transfer-pricing obligations by 30 November. A return filed after the due date is a belated return, permitted under Section 139 [ITA 2025: s. 263] up to nine months from the end of the tax year, or before the assessment is completed, whichever is earlier. Late filing attracts a fee of up to Rs 5,000 under Section 234F [ITA 2025: s. 428], and interest under Section 234A [ITA 2025: s. 423], and it can restrict the carry-forward of certain losses. We track these dates so filings are made on time.

Yes. A revised return corrects an omission or error in a return already filed, and is permitted under Section 139 [ITA 2025: s. 263] up to twelve months from the end of the tax year, or before the assessment is completed. Separately, an updated return, often called ITR-U, lets a taxpayer come forward later under Section 139 [ITA 2025: s. 263], within forty-eight months from the end of the financial year following the tax year. An updated return requires payment of additional tax, and it cannot be used to declare a loss, reduce the tax payable, or increase a refund. We advise which route fits the situation and prepare the corrected return.

A tax audit is required where business turnover exceeds Rs 1 crore in a tax year, raised to Rs 10 crore where cash receipts and cash payments are each within 5% of the total, and for professionals where gross receipts exceed Rs 50 lakh. It also applies where a taxpayer declares income below the presumptive rate while exceeding the basic exemption. The audit is conducted under Section 44AB [ITA 2025: s. 63], and the report is filed in Form 3CA [ITR 2026: Form 26, Part A]/Form 3CB [ITR 2026: Form 26, Part B] with Form 3CD [ITR 2026: Form 26, Parts C and D], generally by 30 September, or by 31 October where Section 92E [ITA 2025: s. 172] applies. For a period governed by the 1961 Act, non-compliance may attract a penalty under Section 271B [ITA 2025: s. 428(c)] equal to 0.5% of turnover or gross receipts, capped at Rs 1.5 lakh. For tax year 2026-27 onward, Section 271B [ITA 2025: s. 428(c)] instead corresponds to a fee of Rs 75,000 for delay up to one month and Rs 1.5 lakh thereafter. We prepare the audit report and the supporting schedules.

Advance tax applies where the total tax payable for the year, after reducing income-tax deductible or collectible at source in accordance with the computation provisions, is Rs 10,000 or more. It is paid in four instalments: 15% by 15 June, 45% by 15 September, 75% by 15 December, and the balance by 15 March. Taxpayers declaring income under Section 44AD [ITA 2025: s. 58(2), Table row 1] or Section 44ADA [ITA 2025: s. 58(2), Table row 3] pay the whole amount by 15 March. The advance-tax framework is in Sections 207–211 [ITA 2025: ss. 403–408]. A shortfall attracts interest under Section 234B [ITA 2025: s. 424], and deferment of an instalment attracts interest under Section 234C [ITA 2025: s. 425]. We compute the instalments and align them with your expected income and cash flow.

A business that makes specified payments must deduct tax at source at the correct rate and generally deposit it by the 7th of the following month, with a 30 April deadline for deductions made in March where that timetable applies; government deductions and other prescribed cases follow their specific Rule 30 [ITR 2026: r. 218] timing. It must also file quarterly statements under Rule 31A [ITR 2026: r. 219] and issue the related certificates to the deductee. Salary deductions are governed by Section 192 [ITA 2025: s. 392], other specified payments by the applicable legacy TDS provision [ITA 2025: s. 393], tax collected at source by Section 206C [ITA 2025: s. 394], and certificates by the applicable provision, including Section 203 [ITA 2025: s. 395]. Failure to deduct or deposit can attract interest and assessee-in-default treatment under Section 201 [ITA 2025: s. 398] and disallowance of the related expense under Section 40 [ITA 2025: s. 35]. Delayed quarterly statements attract a late-filing fee under Section 234E [ITA 2025: s. 427], and failure to furnish a statement or furnishing incorrect information can attract a separate penalty under Section 271H [ITA 2025: s. 461], subject to the statutory conditions. We manage the deduction, deposit, and reporting cycle.

The new regime is the default under Section 115BAC [ITA 2025: s. 202]. It offers lower slab rates and a standard deduction of Rs 75,000 but removes most exemptions and deductions; with the current rebate, a resident with income up to Rs 12 lakh generally pays no tax under it. The old regime keeps the Chapter VI-A [ITA 2025: Ch. VIII] deductions and exemptions such as house rent allowance but applies higher rates, and it must be opted into. The better choice depends on how much a taxpayer can claim in deductions. Salaried taxpayers may choose each year, while those with business income face a more restricted, form-based election. We compare both on your figures before filing.

Under the old regime, the main deductions sit in Chapter VI-A [ITA 2025: Ch. VIII]. Section 80C [ITA 2025: s. 123; Sch. XV] with the eligible items listed in Income-tax Act 2025 Schedule XV, allows up to Rs 1.5 lakh for investments and payments such as provident fund, life insurance, tuition fees, and home-loan principal. Others include health insurance under Section 80D [ITA 2025: s. 126], the additional National Pension System deduction, and donations under Section 80G [ITA 2025: s. 133]. Most of these are not available under the new regime, which instead offers the standard deduction and lower rates. We map the deductions you are entitled to, so nothing eligible is missed and nothing unsupported is claimed.

Capital gains are charged under Section 45 [ITA 2025: s. 67], in the year of transfer. Whether a gain is short-term or long-term depends on the holding period, simplified from 23 July 2024 to twelve months for listed securities and twenty-four months for other assets. Long-term gains are generally taxed at 12.5% without indexation, and short-term gains on listed equity at 20%; long-term gains on listed equity are taxed at 12.5% above an exemption of Rs 1.25 lakh. For land or a building acquired before 23 July 2024, a resident individual or Hindu Undivided Family may instead choose 20% with indexation, whichever gives the lower tax. We compute the gain and apply the option that produces the lower liability.

Several reinvestment exemptions can reduce or remove the tax. Under Section 54 [ITA 2025: s. 82], long-term gains on a residential house are exempt if reinvested in another house within the prescribed time. Section 54F [ITA 2025: s. 86] gives a similar exemption where the gain is on another long-term asset and the net sale consideration is invested in one house. Section 54EC [ITA 2025: s. 85] exempts gains on land or a building invested in specified bonds within six months, capped at Rs 50 lakh. For Section 54 [ITA 2025: s. 82], new-asset cost above Rs 10 crore is disregarded; Section 54F [ITA 2025: s. 86] separately disregards net consideration above Rs 10 crore. Where reinvestment is not completed before the filing due date, the amount can be parked in a Capital Gains Account Scheme. We structure the reinvestment so the exemption holds.

Charitable trusts and institutions registered under the Income Tax Act 2025 are treated as Registered Non-Profit Organisations. Registration under Section 12A [ITA 2025: s. 332] and Section 12AB [ITA 2025: s. 332] and approval corresponding to Section 80G [ITA 2025: s. 354] are separate from the donor's deduction under Section 80G [ITA 2025: s. 133]. Provisional registration or approval is sought in Form 10A [ITR 2026: Form 104], while other registration or approval applications, including renewal cases, use Form 10AB [ITR 2026: Form 105], as applicable. Provisional registration is valid for three tax years and regular registration is generally valid for five; for cases covered by Income-tax Act 2025 Section 332(5), Table serial numbers 3 to 7, it is valid for ten years where total income before the registered-non-profit provisions did not exceed Rs 5 crore in each of the two preceding tax years. To keep its exemption, an organisation must apply or validly accumulate at least 85% of its regular income for its objects, have its accounts audited where Income-tax Act 2025 Section 348 requires it in Form 10B [ITR 2026: Form 112] or Form 10BB [ITR 2026: Form 112], file the donation statement in Form 10BD [ITR 2026: Form 113] by 31 May where Income-tax Act 2025 Section 354 requires it, and file its return in ITR-7 under Rule 12 [ITR 2026: r. 164]. The return due date is 31 October where its accounts are required to be audited; another Section 139 [ITA 2025: s. 263] category, including 30 November where Section 92E [ITA 2025: s. 172] applies, may govern on the facts. We handle the registrations, renewals, and annual filings.

Records should be kept long enough to support every figure filed and to answer any later query. There is no single six-year statutory retention period for every tax record: the applicable period depends on the record and rule. Transfer-pricing documentation under Rule 10D [ITR 2026: r. 84] must be retained for nine years from the end of the relevant tax year; other specified information may have different periods, including eight years. Records tied to an asset should also be kept through its disposal and the resulting assessment cycle. Complete, reconciled documentation is what allows a position to be defended during an assessment. We help set up a retention schedule matched to each governing provision.