More than 7 crore ITRs filed till 7 pm on 31 July: Income Tax Department

Income Tax Department on Wednesday said more than 7 crore ITRs (income tax returns) have been filed till 7 pm on 31 July.

Out of this number more than 50 lakh ITRs were filed on Wednesday till 7 pm, said the tax department.

Urging all those taxpayers who have not filed ITR for financial year 2024, the Income Tax Department said that its helpdesk is functioning on a 24x7 basis to assist taxpayers for ITR filing.

In a post on social media platform X (formerly twitter), the Income Tax Department said: “More than 7 crore ITRs have been filed so far (31st July), out of which over 50 lakh ITRs have been filed today till 7 pm.”

“To assist taxpayers for ITR filing, tax payment and other related services, our helpdesk is functioning on a 24x7 basis. We urge all those who haven't filed ITR for AY 2024-25, to file their ITR,” it added.

July 31 is the last date for filing income tax returns for taxpayers who do not have to get their accounts audited.

The total number of ITRs for AY 2023-24 (fiscal year 2022-23) filed till July 31, 2023 were more than 6.77 crore, with over 64.33 lakh ITRs filed on July 31, 2023.

On Tuesday, revenue secretary Sanjay Malhotra had said that about 6 crore income tax returns were filed for income earned in 2023-24, of which 70 per cent were filed under the new simplified tax regime which offers lower rate of tax.

“About 6 crore filed for last year and 70 per cent is under the new income tax regime. The whole move has been towards simplicity with the ultimate purpose being to reduce the compliance burden,” Malhotra had said.

The idea behind comprehensive income tax review as announced in the Budget is to make the tax law simpler.

“We will come up with a draft and then we will seek suggestions,” Malhotra said.