Income Tax Returns Filed By 6.68% Of India's Population In FY24: Finance Ministry In Rajya Sabha

From a population of over 140 crore, about 8.09 crore income tax returns were filed in fiscal 2024 in India. And that comes down to around 6.68% of the country's population, the Parliament was informed on Tuesday.

However, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said that there has been a consistent rise in the filing of ITRs. The total number of returns filed in fiscal 2023 stood at 7.4 crore, preceded by 6.96 crore in fiscal 2022, 6.72 crore in fiscal 2021 and 6.48 crore in fiscal 2020.

“In FY 2023-24, the percentage of population that files Income Tax Return is 6.68%,” Chaudhary said in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha. The total number of persons who filed the ITR stood at 8,09,03,315, he added.

The total number of individuals reporting zero taxable income in their income tax returns stood at 4.9 crore for the assessment year 2023-24, which has risen from 4.64 lakh in 2022-23.

Recently, in November, the Income Tax Department issued notices to several taxpayers who claimed disproportionate refunds, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The department has raised concerns over the rising number of suspicious tax returns and refund claims, particularly from unscrupulous individuals, the people said.

The department has targeted chartered accountants and agencies that promise large refunds, often using fraudulent means, the people quoted above told NDTV Profit, adding that many of the refund claims involve bogus expenses and medical claims.

The notices were issued for the assessment years 2021-22 and 2022-23, covering taxpayers across the country, the persons privy to the development said.

Major cases have been reported in cities like Gurugram, Ghaziabad, Mumbai, and Bengaluru, said the people, adding that the Income Tax Department is closely monitoring large tax refund claims.