Income tax dept won’t ‘appreciate’ if you pay tax but file returns late

Paid all your taxes? You may not qualify for a certificate of appreciation from the income tax (I-T) department if you happen to file your tax return after the due date or have got a notice with a query for any previous year.

The department awards a certificate to all those, who pay income tax above ₹1 lakh.

While it has given out lakhs of such certificates, many who have paid taxes diligently have not been appreciated leading to apprehension among citizens.

A query from taxmen can be of any nature including for a completely legitimate yet a large payment through a credit card.

“The department will honour only those, who have not only diligently paid taxes but also paid them on time and filed returns on time too .... otherwise the tax payer is not eligible to get a certificate,” a Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) official said.

There are three categories of certificates sent to all eligible tax payers online.

All those paying an annual tax of ₹1-10 lakh are given a bronze certificate, while those who pay between ₹10-50 lakh get a silver one and those paying between ₹50 lakh and ₹1 crore come under the gold category.

Those paying ₹1 crore and above are categorised as platinum tax payers.

K Raghu, a former president of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, said that those filing tax returns this year must ensure that all information provided is “correct.”

The department will also screen returns of those depositing large amounts of cash during the demonetisation period.

MANY WHO HAVE PAID TAXES DILIGENTLY HAVE NOT BEEN APPRECIATED LEADING TO STRONG APPREHENSION

AMONG CITIZENS