Many taxpayers plan investments or family vacations around their expected tax refunds. However, you might not have received your tax refund for fiscal year 2022-23 for several reasons.
Firstly, a common reason for not receiving tax refunds promptly is incorrect or incomplete information in the Income Tax Return (ITR) form. Any discrepancy in banking details, residential address, or email ID could cause a delay in your tax refund. Therefore, ensuring the accuracy of the information provided is crucial when filing your ITR.
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Aarti Raote, Partner, Deloitte India, said, “Reasons for delay in ITR processing could be incorrect bank details mentioned by the taxpayer on account of which the refund is not received. Sometimes, the taxpayer inadvertently misses validating the return uploaded on the portal. A return that is not validated will not be processed, and hence, taxpayers should double-check this. It is also possible that the tax officer requires some additional documents supporting the taxpayer’s claims in the return. In such cases, the tax officer would send intimations requesting the taxpayer to provide these. Once these are verified by the tax officer and approved, the return would get processed.”
Another prominent reason for a delayed tax refund is failing to verify your ITR. According to the Income Tax Department in India, taxpayers must verify their returns using either an Electronic Verification Code (EVC) or an Aadhaar-based One-Time Password (OTP) after submitting the paperwork. If an ITR is not verified within 120 days of filing, it is deemed invalid, which can prevent the issuance of the tax refund.
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Divakar Vijayasarathy, Founder and CEO of DVS Advisors, says, “The time taken for processing refunds has reduced over the last few years. As per the latest available data, out of the 3 lakh and odd crores of refunds issued during FY 22-23, 60% have been issued within 60 days of filing of return of income. In the remaining cases, the time frame could vary on a case-to-case basis depending upon the facts.”
However, Vijayasarathy says the assessees should be aware of the following points:
Filing of returns is complete only when the verification process is complete, either e-verification or otherwise. Only then will the refund be processed.
If any past tax demands are still outstanding, the assessing officer has the power to adjust the refund due to the assessee against the past due after due intimation.
Further, suppose there are any open assessments or reassessment proceedings. In that case, the assessing officer has the power, subject to certain conditions, to withhold the refund until such assessment or reassessment is completed.
Read More: Income Tax Return: Verify Your ITR Soon To Avoid Last Fee Up To Rs 5,000
In other cases, the refund processing gets delayed due to reasons such as the difference between the TDS credit claimed in the return and in Form 26AS, data mismatch between AIS and the return, etc.
The assessees are advised to regularly check the emails or e-filing log-ins for any intimation or notice from the department. In other cases, after waiting for a reasonable period, the assessees can raise a grievance for non-receipt of refund.
So, what can you do if you haven’t received your tax refund? Keep an eye on your registered email ID and mobile number for any communications from the Income Tax Department. You can also check the status of your refund by logging in to the e-filing portal of the Income Tax Department.
In conclusion, while numerous factors may delay your tax refund for FY2022-23, ensuring that your ITR is correctly filled and promptly verified should expedite your refund process.
