Income Tax Returns: Taxpayers find it too ‘taxing’ to file ITR online on e-filing portal even as July 31 deadline nears

This is the last month to file income tax return (ITR) for individual tax payers. If you don’t intend to pay a penalty, then it is imperative to file your ITR before the month ends i.e. before July 31, 2024.

No wonder taxpayers and chartered accountants are busy filing income tax returns on the e-filing portal these days in order to meet the tax-filing deadline.

Thanks to the influx of visitors, the portal reportedly is currently facing operational issues during the peak hours and it takes a long time to submit the form, thus delaying the return filing process of tax payers.

One user named Kamlesh Patidar suggested that the income tax department improve its portal.

“We can't file with such a dead site, every time login error, login error, if we tweet only one reply (from the tax department telling us to) clear cache,” he wrote.

“income tax portal is not accessible since Monday, "what's the use of such information?" asked another user Harsh Rajpal.

One chartered accountant Rohit Ruwatia Agarwal, posted on X, “Requesting IncomeTaxIndia to kindly take cognizance of the ongoing issue with the income tax portal, which has not been functioning properly for several days. Professionals across the country are dedicated to contributing to the nation’s growth, but this technical problem is hindering their efforts.”

Sunramoniya Sarma, another CA practising in Trivandrum, wrote, “Unbelievable that these kind of glitches are still happening . One day lost means one day extension.”

Tarun Kwatra, whose profile identifies himself as a CA, wrote on ‘X’ platform, “Not able to download AIS TIS AND 26AS. It's just a waste of time for all professionals working day and night on income tax but for no use.”

Chartered Accountant Pratibha Goyal, partner, PD Gupta & Company, a Delhi-based firm, wrote on ‘X’ platform: “RIP Income Tax Portal.”

On all these queries and complaints, income tax department – through its official handle – told taxpayers to retry after clearing the browser cache. It further suggests taxpayers to share details such as PAN and mobile number at orm@cpcp.incometax.gov.in so that someone from the department can get in touch with them.

“While filing the income tax return, the I-T e-filing portal often gets hung, particularly during the peak office hours. The month of July is very crucial for taxpayers and CAs alike. These tech issues are quite mind-numbing and infuriating, and could easily have been resolved, beforehand,” CA Pratibha Goyal of PD Gupta & Co. told Livemint.