ITR due dates AY 2026-27 are now staggered: who actually gets till 31 August 2026 (and who already missed 31 July)
The 31 August 2026 deadline is only sixteen days away — but it is not everyone's deadline. Finance Act 2026 permanently split due dates into four buckets. And the biggest misconception is that people are deciding their date from their form number. The law looks at the nature of income, not the form.
Prabhakar Kumar
Chartered Accountant (ICAI, Nov 2019)
📅 15 Aug 2026
↻ Updated 16 Aug 2026
⏱ 6 min read
1,231 words
31 July 2026 has passed. 31 August 2026 is only sixteen days away. And the greatest confusion right now is over who holds which date.
One clarification first: 31 August is not an extension. It is a separate statutory due date for a different category of taxpayer. Several news portals ran the headline "CBDT extends ITR deadline to 31 August 2026" — that framing is wrong, and because of it a number of salaried taxpayers believe they still have time. They do not.
Finance Act 2026 replaced Explanation 2 to Section 139(1) entirely. Previously there was one general date for everyone and a separate one for audit cases. The law now creates four buckets, permanently.
Who you are
Due date AY 2026-27
Where Section 92E (transfer pricing) applies
30 November 2026
A company, or accounts subject to audit
31 October 2026
Business/profession income, accounts NOT subject to audit
31 August 2026
Any other assessee (salary, house property, capital gains, other sources)
31 July 2026 — passed
# The biggest error: deciding your date from your form number
You will find this shorthand everywhere — "ITR-1/ITR-2 → 31 July, ITR-3/ITR-4 → 31 August". That is an approximation, not the law.
The statute reads: "assessee having income from business or profession, whose accounts are not required to be audited". It does not mention the ITR form at all.
In practice:
You filed ITR-3 but declared no business or profession income in it — say you showed rental income under house property — your due date was 31 July, not 31 August. You are already late.
You filed ITR-4 (Sugam) with presumptive income — you are declaring business income, accounts not audited — 31 August.
You are a freelancer or consultant declaring under Section 44ADA — 31 August.
You have salary plus F&O trading — F&O is business income, audit not applicable — 31 August.
You have only salary and capital gains — 31 July, passed.
Do not panic, but understand the cost. You can file a belated return until 31 December 2026, and the following will apply:
Section 234F — late filing fee
Total income
Fee
Up to ₹5 lakh
₹1,000 (maximum)
Above ₹5 lakh
₹5,000
Section 234A — interest
1% per month or part of a month, simple interest, on unpaid self-assessment tax, from the day after the due date until the return is filed. If your tax was already fully covered by TDS and advance tax, the 234A burden will be minimal or nil — this interest applies to unpaid tax, not to total income.
And remember: filing a belated return means losses cannot be carried forward (house property loss excepted). Carrying forward an F&O or capital loss required filing within the due date.
More than 5.9 crore ITRs had been filed for AY 2026-27 by 31 July, per the Income Tax Department's own statement. But that is not a full-season figure — the 31 August, 31 October and 30 November cohorts are still to come. Comparing it directly against last year's "as at 31 July" numbers is apples to oranges.
Also watch the utility roll-out: the ITR-5, ITR-6 and ITR-7 utilities only went live in August 2026, quite late in the season.
# What happens once the Income-tax Act 2025 applies
To avoid confusion:
Item
Income-tax Act, 1961
Income-tax Act, 2025
Return filing
Section 139
Section 263
Late filing fee
Section 234F
Section 428
But — your current filing is governed by the Income-tax Act, 1961. The Income Tax Department has specifically stated in its FAQ that the return for AY 2026-27 on FY 2025-26 income is filed under the 1961 Act's provisions. The new Act applies to the return you will file in July 2027 (for Tax Year 2026-27).
Notably, Finance Act 2026 amended both statutes in parallel — Section 139 of the 1961 Act and Section 263 of the 2025 Act. So this staggered structure carries forward.
Confirm your category. The question is not which form you are filing. It is whether you are declaring business or profession income, and whether accounts are subject to audit.
If 31 August is your date — sixteen days left. Finalise books, reconcile Form 168 (previously 26AS) and AIS, and decide now if you are opting for a presumptive scheme.
If 31 July was your date and you missed it — file the belated return immediately. 234F is fixed, but 234A grows every month. There is nothing to gain by waiting.
Check advance tax too. Late filing often brings 234B and 234C alongside, which apply separately.
E-verify within 30 days of filing. Without e-verification the return is treated as not filed — and no refund is processed either.
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FY 2026-27 ka tax abhi plan kariye — July mein nahi.
Only if you have business or profession income and your accounts are not subject to tax audit. If your income is from salary, house property, capital gains or other sources, your due date was 31 July 2026 and it has passed. You can still file a belated return until 31 December 2026, but Section 234F late fee (Rs 5,000, or Rs 1,000 if total income is under Rs 5 lakh) and Section 234A interest will apply. 31 August is not an extension for you — it is a different category's due date.
Has CBDT extended the 31 July date to 31 August?
No, and this is the most common misconception. There is no CBDT extension circular here. It is a statutory amendment made by the Finance Act 2026, which replaced Explanation 2 to Section 139(1) entirely. That means it is a permanent structure that will repeat every year, with no question of extension. Some news headlines reported it as CBDT extending the deadline to 31 August — that framing is wrong.
I am filing ITR-3, so do I automatically get 31 August?
Not necessarily. The law does not look at the ITR form number at all. Explanation 2 refers to an assessee having income from business or profession whose accounts are not required to be audited. If you filed ITR-3 but declared no business or profession income in it, say you showed rental income under house property, your due date was still 31 July. The form is a proxy, not the law. In roughly 90% of cases ITR-3 and ITR-4 filers do fall in the 31 August bucket, but deciding from the form is wrong in the edge cases.
What are the belated and revised return dates for AY 2026-27?
Belated return under Section 139(4) is 31 December 2026, or before assessment is completed, whichever is earlier. Revised return under Section 139(5) has moved from nine months to twelve, so 31 March 2027. But there is a new catch. Finance Act 2026 introduced Section 234-I. Revising between 1 January 2027 and 31 March 2027 attracts a fee of Rs 1,000 where total income is up to Rs 5 lakh, otherwise Rs 5,000. Revising up to 31 December 2026 is free.
What is the due date for tax audit cases?
Where accounts are subject to audit, or for a company, the ITR due date is 31 October 2026. Where Section 92E on transfer pricing applies, it is 30 November 2026. Both of these dates now sit in the same Explanation 2 table as a matter of statute.
How much are the 234F fee and 234A interest?
The Section 234F fee is Rs 5,000, capped at Rs 1,000 where total income does not exceed Rs 5 lakh. Section 234A interest is 1% per month or part of a month, simple interest, on unpaid self-assessment tax, running from the day after the due date until the return is filed. Because due dates now differ by assessee, on 1 August 2026 a non-audit business filer owed nothing while a salaried filer already had both 234F and 234A running.
Will these sections change once the Income-tax Act 2025 applies?
Yes, but not yet. Under the Income-tax Act 2025, return filing becomes Section 263 (previously Section 139) and late filing fee becomes Section 428 (previously 234F). Those apply from Tax Year 2026-27, meaning the return you will file in July 2027. Your current filing for FY 2025-26 and AY 2026-27 remains under the Income-tax Act 1961. The Income Tax Department has clarified this specifically in its FAQ.
What if I have both business and salary income?
If you are declaring income from business or profession and your accounts are not subject to audit, you fall in the third row of Explanation 2, which is 31 August 2026. Having salary as well does not push you into the 31 July category for any other assessee. That residual category is for those who have no business or profession income at all.
⚖️ THE AUTHORITIES
The case law on s.139
Every proposition in this article traces to a decision or an instrument. They are all on TaxSphere, free, with the source linked on each one.
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