Deadline for seeking tax refunds extended

In order to address grievances of taxpayers who filed their I-T returns electronically and are seeking refunds, the CBDT has extended the deadline for filing a fresh ITR-V to March 31 for cases where postal receipts did not reach the tax office in Bangalore.

The relaxation has been allowed only to those taxpayers who had filed their e-returns for the assessment years (AYs) 2009-10, 2010-11 and 2011-12 "seeking a refund."

The fresh copies of ITR-V, by such category of taxpayers, should be sent to the Central Processing Centre (CPC) of the I-T department in Bangalore only by "speed post".

"In order to mitigate the grievances of the taxpayers pertaining to non-receipt of tax refunds, the Central Board of Direct taxes, in exercise of powers under section 119(2)(a) of the I-T Act hereby further relaxes and extends the date for filing ITR-V for AYs 2009-10, 2010-11 and 2011-12 till March
31, 2014 for returns e-filed with refund claims..," a notification circulated by the CBDT to all I-T offices across the country said.

The CBDT took the decision, sources said, in the wake of several representations made by taxpayers to it stating that "despite sending ITR-V through post to CPC in Bangalore within the prescribed timeframe, the same did not reach the CPC and hence such returns became non-est (null)."

According to rules, once a taxpayer files his e-return, he or she needs to send his ITR-V by post within 30 days.

The taxpayers then need to punch in their PAN card number and AY or type in the e-filing acknowledgement number on the website to check their status.