Income Tax Return (ITR) Filing 2019-20 Last Date, Penalty: August 31, 2019, is the last day for filing the Income Tax Return (ITR) for the assessment year 2019-20 (the financial year 2018-19). If your gross total income — before allowing deductions under Section 80C and 80U — exceeds Rs 2,50,000 in a financial year, it is mandatory to file returns. The limit for senior citizens, who fall in the age bracket of 60-80 years, is Rs 3,00,000, while it is Rs 5,00,000 for super-senior citizens, whose age is more than 80 years.

What is the deadline to file your ITR?
The Income Tax Department which had initially set the last date for filing ITR as July 31, extended it for 30 days setting the final date as August 31. For other categories such as companies and working partners of a firm, the deadline is September 30. Meanwhile, taxpayers who have undertaken international transactions during the relevant financial year and has to furnish report under section 92E can pay their taxes till November 30.

What happens if you miss the ITR deadline?
Anyone who misses filing the ITR before their respective deadline will have to pay a penalty. While earlier there was no fine on delayed ITRs, the government in 2017 announced a fine for the same. Filing your tax after the due date is called belated ITR and it can be submitted till March 31, 2020. However, if you fail to adhere to this deadline as well, you will have to wait for a notice from the tax department for filing your ITR. If you file your IT return by December 31 then the fine is Rs 5,000. The penalty for filing January 1 and March 31, 2020, is Rs 10,000. For those whose income is below Rs 5 lakh, the late fine is capped at Rs 1,000.