What to do if you have not got tax refund yet ?

What to do if you have not got tax refund yet ?

RDJ Consultants   October 22, 2019

What to do if you have not got tax refund yet ?

Are you wondering why you have not received your income tax refund yet despite having filed your income tax return (ITR) within the due date for assessment year (AY) 2019-20? There could be various reasons for the same. However, a common reason could be furnishing incorrect bank account details in the ITR form.

While tax refund was earlier issued either in the form of cheque or direct credit to bank accounts, the income tax department now credits tax refunds only in the form of direct credit in the bank accounts of taxpayers. Moreover, from this AY, these accounts need to be pre-validated and linked to the taxpayers’ permanent account number (PAN).

You are eligible to claim a refund if excess income tax has been deducted from your income during the year. This could happen in cases of multiple incomes or where tax is deducted at source (TDS). The income tax department does refund this excess tax paid, but you have to apply for it when filing your ITR for the relevant financial year.

Track the status

In case you have not received your refund yet, you first need to check the status of your refund. “About five to six years ago, one had to approach the assessing officer to find out the status of refunds. Now one can check it online within minutes," said Amit Maheshwari, partner, Ashok Maheshwary and Associates Llp, a chartered accountancy firm. Except in few cases, now most people get their refunds in a few months of filing returns, added Maheshwari.

You can track the status of your refund on www.incometaxindia.gov.in or www.tin-nsdl.com. Click on “Status of Tax Refunds" tab, enter your PAN and the AY for which you want to track the refund. If the refund has been processed, a message will pop up, stating the mode of payment, a reference number, status and date of refund.

However, if there is an issue because of which refund has not been issued or declined, the message will say so. For instance, if the message states “refund unpaid", it could be because the bank account details (account number or IFS Code) that you have submitted to the income tax department are wrong. In that case, check your bank account details you have mentioned in your ITR.

Bank account information

According to income tax rules, you are supposed to provide details of all the savings and current accounts held by you at any time in India during the previous year, while filing your returns. It is not mandatory to provide details of dormant accounts which have not been operational for more than three years. However, “if the income from all the bank accounts has been duly included though the details of the account itself may have been omitted, no penalty may be leviable in such cases," said Maheshwari.

If you have more than one bank account, you are required to indicate the account in which you would like to get your refund credited, irrespective of whether you have a refund or not. Bank details include the name of the bank, account number, and the 11-digit IFS Code of the bank or details of international bank account number (IBAN) in case you have a foreign bank account.

Taxpayers who filed returns for AY2019-20 were also required to ensure that the bank account chosen for the refund is pre-validated with the e-filing account and linked with their PAN.

Failure to provide any of the above mentioned details may result in the refund not getting credited.

Making correction

If you find you have made a mistake in providing your bank account details, you have the option to update it, before placing a request for re-issue of refunds.

Remember that you can update your bank account details only in case where your return has been processed and your refund was failed or not credited in your bank account because of an issue with your bank account details.

In such a case, you need to modify your account details and place a request for reissue of refund. It can be done online by logging into the e-filing portal, www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in, with your user ID and password. Next, go to “My Account" and then click on “Refund re-issue request". Follow the steps and enter the new bank account number or make a correction in the already mentioned bank details and submit the request.

Before doing so, make sure this account is linked with your PAN and is pre-validated. In order to link your bank account with PAN, you need to visit your bank’s branch with a copy of PAN. It is a simple process and does not take much time. Once you link your bank account with PAN, pre-validate the bank account through the income tax e-filing account. Log on to e-filing accounts, go to “profile setting" and choose which bank you want to pre-validate. You will need to provide information like bank name, bank account number, IFS Code, mobile and email ID to validate your bank account.

Once you update the bank account and place a request for reissue of refunds, it will most likely get credited to your account in a few days.

10 Reasons Why You Have Not Received Your Income Tax Refund

10 Reasons Why You Have Not Received Your Income Tax Refund

RDJ Consultants   October 09, 2019

10 Reasons Why You Have Not Received Your Income Tax Refund

Every taxpayer in India awaits the time when he/she gets the tax refund. The government of India proceeds the refunds after you have filed the tax returns. As per the IRS (Indian Revenue Service) norms, it generally takes about 21 working days to issue the refund after it is processed.

If you do not receive the refunds beyond the stipulated time, the delay could be because of various reasons. Before you hit the panic button, it advisable that you check your income tax refund status online. You can also call the check the status of your refund by calling the IRS hotline. Typically, the delay in the tax refund happens because of the following reasons:

1. Incorrect information

While filing your returns if you have committed any mistake or if the IRS finds a numerical error, it can significantly slow down the refund process. When an error is detected, the return is earmarked for review, which means that the IRS employee will personally go through the file and identify the mistake. This can extend the refund process by a few days or weeks.

2. Victim of tax fraud

While you check income tax refund status online, check if you have become a victim of tax fraud; your tax refund might be delayed because of identity theft. If someone else uses your social security number or if the tax prepare alters the direct deposit information, you can become the victim of a fraud and getting refund will be delayed until the situation is resolved.

3. Form 8379

If you have filed a joint tax return with your spouse and if all or a part of the tax refund was applied the spousal support debts, your own refund can be delayed. In such a case, you need to fill Form 8379 for injured spouse allocation. This process usually takes about 60 to 90 days to process.

4. Spousal demise

A common income tax refund enquiry is related to the death of a spouse. If your spouse was due for returns, but if they passed away before filing the tax refund, you would need to submit IRS Form 1310 (Statement of a Person Claiming Refund Due to a Deceased Taxpayer) to avoid delay in your refund.

5. Communication address not update

This is another common reason why several people experience a delay in receiving their tax refund. If the communication address provided is wrong, you need to update the same on the income tax website before you claim the refund back.

6. False Bank Account Information

Today, most people prefer getting their tax refund deposited directly into their bank account than getting the paper cheques as it takes longer to process the refunds. However, to ensure that you get online income tax refund without delay, you must enter the bank information correctly. Even a simple mistake like spelling error in the name or entering incorrect bank account number can delay the refund by a few weeks or even months.

7. The IT department needs additional information

If the IT department while assessing your tax refund claim finds that your claim for the refund is questionable, then they might request you to provide supporting documents to support the claim. In such cases, the refund on tax returns will be delayed until you provide the necessary documents.

8. Defective returns filed

Your income tax refund process can be delayed if the IT department treats your income tax returns file as a defective return. In case of delay of the tax refund, you can check income tax refund status online on the income tax website.

9. Amendments made to the returns file

In some cases, you may want to make changes in the tax returns after it is filed. The amendment may be necessary because you realised that made a spelling error or you have missed out on claiming a deduction. In such cases, the processing time can be extended by 12 to 16 weeks before the refund is initiated.

10. Refund adjusted with outstanding demand of the previous year

If your online income tax refund status shows, refund claim rejected it could because the refund tax refund for the current year would have been adjusted with the outstanding demand of the previous years.

So, now that you know the various reasons why tax refunds could be delayed, check your status online and take appropriate measures to claim the refund.

how to track income tax refund