5 things every Taxpayer should know

by Seema J. Online Tax Filing

As a taxpayer we must be aware of the procedure and the facilities we can avail, while filing Income Tax Returns. Paying Income Tax is just not enough, a taxpayer should know the basics of Income Tax, so that they can file their Income Tax without any errors. Here are 5 things which a taxpayer must know before filing ITR: -

What does Financial and Assessment Year mean?

Financial year is the year in which you earn the Income, it starts from 1 April every year and ends on 31st March the following year. Assessment year is the year following the financial year. For e.g. If 2017-18 is the Financial year we are talking about, the relevant Assessment year would be 2018-19.

Income Tax Slabs

There are different income tax rates for different classes of taxpayers. As a taxpayer you must know which tax slab you fall under and what is the rate at which you are supposed to pay your income tax. To know about which Income Tax Slab you belong to, click here

Check Form 26AS to claim TDS

If any tax is deducted you can check it in your Form 16, which your employer provides you. However, for tax deducted on other incomes can be checked in Form 26AS. Other than TDS, Form 26AS also reflects payment of Advance Tax etc.

How to E-Verify your ITR?

E-verifying your ITR is something you cannot afford to ignore. Every year once you file your ITR, you are supposed to E-verify it, as not E-verifying your ITR is as good as not filing your Income Tax Returns. You can E-verify your returns either manually or electronically, by sending the acknowledgement of ITR to CPC Bangalore within 120 days of filing returns.

Income from previous employer

After changing the job taxpayers often forget to give the information of their previous employer to their new employer. In this case tax is deducted on the assumption that income for the remaining months is the only income for the year. However, this poses a problem when such individual files their tax returns after the year-end. As, the incomes from the two employers are added and the deduction and exemption are halved, and tax liability arises on the taxpayer’s part.