Income tax returns

What the work covers

A return starts with what has to be reported, not with the form. The firm works through each head of income and compares it with the department's tax credit statement and the Annual Information Statement before anything is filed, so that a mismatch is dealt with in advance rather than in reply to a notice.

• Salary, including allowances, perquisites and the employer's TDS certificate
• Business and professional income, including the presumptive schemes
• Capital gains on shares, mutual funds and property
• House property and other sources
• Foreign income and foreign assets of residents
• Indian income of non-residents

New or old tax regime

The new regime is the default. The old regime is worth considering only where the deductions actually available are large enough. Tax is computed both ways on the real numbers before a choice is made.

Choosing the right form

The ITR form depends on who the taxpayer is and what kind of income there is. A return on the wrong form can be treated as defective, so the form is settled once the income has been classified.

Correcting a filed return

A filed return can be revised within the time allowed. After that, an updated return may be available on payment of additional tax. Which route applies depends on the dates and on what has to change.