The government recently said it was expediting all tax refunds in view of the coronavirus pandemic, and had issued over 10.2 lakh refunds totaling around Rs 4,250 crore until April 14.
The tax department added that about 1.75 lakh more refunds were in the process of issuance which would get credited directly to the taxpayer bank account in 5-7 business days from issuance.
But in case taxpayers have not received the tax refund yet, here's a quick guide.
Taxpayers should check their email to see if there is any communication from the income tax department, seeking response, say tax experts. It's vital to respond to the email, if any, at the earliest.
Also, taxpayers can check the refund status online on the official website of Income Tax -- incometaxindia.gov.in by clicking on “Status of Tax Refunds" tab. A message will pop up, giving the mode of payment, a reference number, status and date of refund.
There could be various reasons for not getting the tax refund including inaccurate information uploads, incomplete filing, wrong bank transactions, among others.
There are chances that the taxpayer did not furnish the correct bank account number or other bank details while filing the income tax return (ITR). Or there may be a need for additional documentation.
According to ClearTax, an income tax e-filing portal, the delay could also be at 2 levels: the I-T department may be taking time to process the request or the I-T department has already processed but there is a delay at the bank’s end.
Finally, taxpayers can also raise a service request on the e-filing portal.
|