E-filing has come to stay says Chidambaram

Corporate India has adopted e-filing of income-tax returns in a big way despite the initial reluctance from certain quarters.

The number of returns filed electronically by corporates till Thursday evening stood at 2,72,949, a Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) spokesperson said. The due date for filing of income-tax returns by corporates was November 30. The revenue department had, for assessment year 2006-07, made it mandatory for all corporates to undertake e-filing of their income-tax returns.

Last year, as on October 31, which was the due date for filing of returns by companies, the revenue department received 2.2-lakh paper-based returns (including 15,000 from Gujarat). "Before July 24 this year, when e-filing was made mandatory, the department had already received 25,000 paper returns. If we add this to the 2.73-lakh returns (which includes 2,000 returns from Gujarat) that have been e-filed, the total number of returns stood at 2.98 lakh," the CBDT official said.

The official also pointed out that the Finance Ministry has extended the due date for filing of income-tax returns by companies in Gujarat to December 31, 2006.

Meanwhile, the Union Finance Minister, Mr P. Chidambaram, said on Thursday that the Government was slowly but surely moving to a technology-driven tax administration.

"There would be some pain in adjusting to the technology-driven tax administration. In the long run, it will benefit taxpayers and reduce the discretion of tax collectors. It will also increase tax revenues that are vital for development. E-filing has come to stay," he said.