The I-T Department’s SMS to salaried taxpayers is meant to provide clarity on TDS deductions. However, some individuals may have misinterpreted the message and are wondering if they owe additional taxes. Here’s what they need to do.
Some salaried taxpayers across the nation may have received messages from the Income Tax Department regarding their total tax deducted at source (TDS). The message, sent as an SMS, includes details of TDS deducted by the employer for the quarter ending December 31 and the cumulative TDS for the financial year 2023-24.
The message, which reads, “Total TDS by employer of PAN xxx for Qtr ending Dec 31 is ₹xxx and cumulative TDS for FY 23-24 is ₹xxx. View 26AS for details. ITD Team,” aims to provide acknowledgment of the TDS deposited during the final quarter and the previous financial year.
However, some taxpayers could have misinterpreted this message, speculating whether they owe more taxes to the department.
This SMS alert service was introduced at the end of 2016 with the purpose of notifying taxpayers about their total TDS deductions.
It serves as a useful tool for individuals to match their office salary slips with the details provided in the message.
Wait till June 15
In fact, salaried individuals will have to wait till mid-June to file income tax returns (ITR) for the financial year 2023-24 as this is the time when employers issue Form 16.
As per the rule, employers must issue Form 16 every year on or before June 15, soon after the financial year in which the tax is deducted.
However, taxpayers eager to file early can use the e-filing portal enabled by the Income Tax Department.
Despite this option, experts suggest waiting for a while to ensure that Form 26AS and AIS are duly updated, thereby streamlining the ITR filing process.
Form 16, a certificate issued by employers, contains essential information required for ITR filing, including details of TDS and tax collected at source (TCS) for various transactions between the employer and employee.
Source: https://www.cnbctv18.com/personal-finance/income-tax-message-tds-payments-what-should-taxpayers-do-itr-return-filing-form-16-19396933.htm
© 2018 CA Chandan Agarwal. All rights reserved.