Many taxpayers who have claimed deductions under Section 80GGC of the Income Tax Act, 1961, have received income tax notices. The Income Tax Department has enabled a new facility on its portal, allowing taxpayers who have received notices under Section 158BC of the Income Tax Act, 1961 on how to respond to such notices.
What is Section 80GGC?
Section 80GGC of Income Tax Act, 1961, allows individual taxpayers to claim deductions for contributions made to political parties or electoral trusts. These deductions encourage transparent political contributions and have specific eligibility criteria, documentation requirements, and deduction limits. Understanding the features and procedures of Section 80GGC helps taxpayers maximize benefits while complying with tax regulations.

However due to rising instances of fake claim being made, the income tax department has taken this new initiative to curb the misuse of this deduction.

Months ahead of the 15 September 2025 deadline for filing income tax returns for FY 2024–25, the Income Tax Department has launched a support service called ‘TAXASSIST’ to help taxpayers with queries and notices during the current filing season.

As part of this campaign, the Income Tax Department sends messages or emails to taxpayers, reminding them of important notices or other tax-related actions.

Describing the latest initiative, the Income Tax Department said: “Introducing TAXASSIST, your go-to support for all tax concerns! From helping you navigate departmental communications and keeping your finances in check, to reminding you of key tax deadlines. This campaign is designed to guide, support, and simplify.”

The post shared an example highlighting three scenarios in which a taxpayer claimed a deduction under Section 80GGC—a provision that allows tax deductions for donations made to political parties or electoral trusts. The Income Tax Department outlined these scenarios to show how TAXASSIST can assist taxpayers in managing and responding to 80GGC-related claims.

The income tax returns (ITR) filing for AY 2025-26 started at the end of May this year, and so far, more than 75 lakh returns have been filed. Of these, about 71.1 lakh returns have been e-verified, according to the details shared by the I-T department on its official website. Earlier, the number of ITRs processed used to be updated regularly on the website, but now that data is no longer visible. Here’s a screengrab of the webpage where the section is now showing blank. The number of ITRs processed used to appear just below the number of ITRs verified.

Your ITR processing and tax refunds may take time this year – know why
Tax experts are of the view that the Income Tax Department will issue refunds only after it fully examines the assessment reports and old tax returns of the past years.

This year, the income tax return filing too started quite late at the end of May, almost with a month’s delay. And now ITR processing and refunds are said to be taking time.

Look out for random alphabets scribbled on a piece of paper or long strings of what may seem like gibberish, sprinkled with alpha numerals. Watch out for ‘wallet.dat’ or 'key.dat' files and pen drives tucked in closets. Gently remind a person of interest of possible imprisonment for holding back passwords they have memorised instead of jotting them down somewhere -- a trick that techies call ‘brain wallets’.

As cryptocurrencies are increasingly used to store and hide wealth, tips like these are being passed on by the Income tax (I-T) department to its investigators to trace and freeze this complex, little-understood digital asset. Tax officials, many of whom are probably innocent of cryptos, are being groomed to spot the clues they may stumble upon during a search and seizure operation. They are told not to mistake certain files and notings that may hold the keys to cypoto wallets, as irrelevant information or meaningless griffonage.

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet on Saturday said that it ha approved the re-appointment of Ravi Agrawal, as Chairman of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), the apex policy-making body of the Income Tax Department.

His re-appointment is on a contract basis for a period of one year, effective from July 1, 2025, to June 30, 2026, or until further orders, whichever is earlier.

The terms of his service will follow the usual conditions applicable to re-employed Central Government officers, the government said in a notification.

Agarwal, a 1988 batch Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer from the income tax cadre, has been serving as a member, CBDT (Administration), since July 2023.

He succeeded Nitin Gupta, 1986 batch IRS officer (IT), in June 2024 as Chairman of the tax body.

Filing your Income Tax Return (ITR) is only the beginning of the compliance journey. The more challenging part could be if you receive a notice from the Income Tax Department for any potential error or mismatch of data in your ITR filing.
It's important for taxpayers to know how to respond to an income tax notice effectively and avoid potential complications.
Why Scrutiny Is Tighter This Year
The Income Tax Department has picked nearly 1.65 lakh cases for scrutiny for Assessment Year (AY) 2026, which is three to four times more than usual.

Of these, over one lakh scrutiny notices have already been served under Section 143(2) of the Income Tax Act. This section empowers the I-T Department to conduct a detailed assessment of the return if it finds discrepancies or high-risk financial behaviour.

The CBDT has directed Income Tax Department officials across the country to ensure "due application of mind" while issuing notices for scrutiny and assessment of a taxpayer's return, emphasising that all queries should be "relevant" and "specific".

The policy-making body for the direct taxes administration has also asked all the region heads (PCCIT or principal chief commissioners of I-T) of the department to have an "effective supervision" over their assessing officers and make sure that questions sent by them to a taxpayer are "justified" and that "irrelevant" queries are completely avoided.

PTI has accessed a communication sent by the office of Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) Chairman Ravi Agrawal to the PCCITs, directing them that queries sent by FAOs (faceless assessing officers) to the taxpayers should be "relevant", "specific" and "grounded" in the specific circumstances of the case in question.

The Income Tax Return (ITR) filing for the financial year 2024-25 (Assessment Year 2025-26) has picked up pace with more than 60 lakh ITRs filed so far. Nearly 1 lakh returns have been processed, as per data available on the Income Tax Department’s website. Meanwhile, the department has implemented new guidelines for ITR scrutiny this year. Tax authorities have been told to intensify the crackdown on tax evasion – and their biggest weapon to help in this is data analytics, say tax experts.

Now, taxpayers’ bank accounts, spending habits, investment patterns and their declared income – all these are being investigated by linking them together. Special attention is being paid to those people whose bank accounts show less cash transactions, but they are spending big amounts on real estate, foreign travel or luxury brands.

Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday directed income tax (I-T) officers to accelerate the disposal of disputed tax demands, timely process tax refunds, and proactively resolve taxpayer grievances.

Chairing the Conclave of Principal Chief Commissioners of Income-tax (Pr.CCsIT) here, she said that all departmental appeals falling below the revised monetary thresholds as notified in recent policy changes should be identified and withdrawn within a period of three months.

Sitharaman also commended the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) for its work in drafting the new income tax Bill, which successfully embodies the Prime Minister’s vision of simplification and clarity in laws. She asked the department to be prepared to conduct nationwide awareness and capacity-building programmes once the Bill is duly passed by the Parliament.

Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday asked income-tax officials to ensure that tax compliance processes are made simpler, more transparent and taxpayer-friendly.

In a meeting with senior tax officials, the FM took stock of zone-wise tax collections.

India's net tax collections as on June 19 in the ongoing fiscal 2026 fell 1.4% from a year earlier to Rs 4.58 lakh crore.

The finance minister directed all principal chief commissioners of income tax to prioritise and accelerate the disposal of disputed tax demands that are currently pending before the faceless appellate authorities, the finance ministry said in a statement.

About 577,000 appeals were pending at the start of the current fiscal year. The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) is targeting to address more than 225,000 appeals in FY 2025-26 involving over Rs 10 lakh crore of disputed demand.

The finance minister underscored that prompt and time-bound disposal of taxpayer grievances is essential for ensuring responsive governance.

All set to file your income tax return? Well, be extra careful this time. Under the new ITR rules, claiming false deductions or hiding income can cost you big. The Income Tax Department has said that if you are caught giving wrong information in your return, you could face a penalty of up to 200% of the tax due, 24% annual interest, and even prosecution under Section 276C.

This means a small mistake or a false claim can lead to a huge fine. To avoid trouble, make sure your income details and deductions are accurate. Read on to know what the new rules say and how to stay safe.

Common ITR Filing mistakes that can cost you heavily:
Even small errors in filing ITR can lead to a big trouble. Always double-check your claims and documents before filing. Here are some common mistakes that you should avoid:

ITR Mistake 1: Claiming deductions under Section 80C without having proper bills or proof

ITR Mistake 2: Choosing the old tax regime to get deductions, then switching to the new one later

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has exempted payments made by finance companies, fund management entities, recognised clearing corporations and stock exchanges to International Financial Services Centre units from deducting tax at source (TDS), effective July 1.

CBDT said Saturday the exemption will cover payments under several categories, including those made by stock exchanges, commission incentives, interest from leases, freight or hire charges from finance firms, portfolio management fees, advisory charges and other service fees, professional and technical fee and rent for data centres. The payee must furnish a statement-cum-declaration to the payer. The relief is available for 10 consecutive assessment years chosen by the payee.

The income tax department has extended the due date to file an income tax return for FY 2024-25 (AY 2025-26) from July 31, 2025, to September 15, 2025. The last date to file the ITR has been extended beyond July 31 for taxpayers whose accounts are not required to be audited, such as salaried taxpayers, NRIs, and pensioners.

Typically, July 31 is also the due date for taxpayers to deposit their self-assessment tax. It is the amount of tax that a taxpayer is liable to pay after deducting the TDS, TCS and advance tax payments. If a belated ITR is filed (i.e., the income tax return is filed after the due date) and the self-assessment tax is also paid after the due date, then the taxpayer has to pay penal interest under Section 234A on the self-assessment tax due.

The deadline to file ITR has been extended, but does this mean taxpayers can deposit their self-assessment tax without penalty till September 15, 2025, i.e., has the due date for payment of self-assessment tax for FY 2024-2025 (AY 2025-26) also been extended?

The income tax department is taking action against non-compliant people having foreign income, the finance ministry on Friday said, adding that as many as 5,483 taxpayers have filed belated returns reporting foreign assets worth Rs 29,208 crore.

The finance ministry’s statement comes amid reports that money deposited in bank accounts of Indian entities in Switzerland has increased in 2024.

Indian money parked in Swiss banks more than tripled in 2024 to 3.5 billion Swiss francs on the back of a huge jump in funds held through local branches and other financial institutions, annual data released by Switzerland’s central bank showed on Thursday.

“In cases of continued non-compliance, enforcement and statutory actions are being taken as per extant law,” the ministry said. A total of 24,678 taxpayers reviewed their ITRs and 5,483 taxpayers filed their belated return for the assessment year (AY) 2024-25, reporting foreign assets of Rs 29,208 crore and additional foreign income of Rs 1,089.88 crore, the ministry said.

The Income Tax department has sent bulk emails to numerous taxpayers who either haven’t paid the correct income tax on their cryptocurrency dealings or have failed to report their cryptocurrency transactions in Schedule VDA (virtual digital assets) of the Income Tax Return (ITR). [1] [2]

Keep in mind that if you are using foreign crypto exchanges like Binance or others, then you need to file Schedule FA in addition to the VDA schedule in the ITR. Overlooking any of these requirements, could get you into trouble with the tax authorities.

It's true that in the past similar bulk emails and notifications were sent out regarding unreported incomes, but this time things are different. The income tax department now has access to information and data about undisclosed crypto income even if the crypto transactions did not go through any Indian exchanges. Multiple experts told ET Wealth Online that their clients received this notice and in some instances, the tax department even conducted search and seizure operations and confiscated hardware-based crypto wallets.

India's gross direct tax collection for the financial year 2025-26 rose by 4.86% to Rs 5.45 lakh crore as of June 19, according to the latest figures released by the government. However, net collections saw a marginal decline due to a sharp spike in refunds.

The total gross collections which include corporate tax, non-corporate tax, securities transaction tax (STT), and other levies stood at Rs 5,45,207 crore, up from Rs 5,19,936 crore during the same period last year.

There was the 58.04% jump in tax refunds, which soared to Rs 86,385 crore from Rs 54,661 crore a year ago. This surge in refunds likely reflects improved taxpayer services and faster processing.

As a result, net direct tax collection saw a marginal decline of 1.39%, falling to Rs 4,58,822 crore from Rs 4,65,275 crore in the previous year.

Overall advance tax receipts grew by 3.87% to Rs 1,55,533 crore. Corporate advance tax grew by 5.86% to Rs 1,21,604 crore, but non-corporate advance tax slipped 2.68% to Rs 33,928 crore.

The Central Board of Direct Taxes plans to make Aadhaar authentication compulsory for a new Permanent Account Number (PAN) card from July 1, officials said.

"The move for Aadhaar-based verification aligns with the digitalisation drive and efforts to ensure accountability and compliance in tax filing," said a senior official, who did not wish to be identified.

Currently, an application for a PAN can be made using name, proof of date of birth or any other identification, although existing PAN owners have been asked to link it with Aadhaar. For existing PAN card holders, the last date to link Aadhaar with PAN is December 31, 2025, without penalty. PAN not linked with Aadhaar will become inoperative from next year.

The income-tax portal will activate the new requirement for applications from July.

TheI-T authorities had made Aadhaar linkage mandatory after detecting issuance of multiple PANs to a single individual or use of PANs registered in names of others to evade tax.

The Centre’s advance tax collections have grown at a tepid pace till June 15 this fiscal, suggesting muted income growth amid global headwinds.

The total collection was Rs 1.54 lakh crore, up 4% from a year earlier, slowing sharply from the corresponding 27% growth last year, dragged down by lower personal income tax payments.

The amount collected was as of 11 pm on June 15. To be sure, with the last two days for making payments falling on a weekend, collection may improve further when these are reconciled later this week, officials added. Advance tax is paid in four instalments in a fiscal year—June 15, September 15, December 15 and March 15.

“A low growth amid high refunds in Q1 may be suggestive of a moderate pace of growth and expected profits, given the continuing global uncertainties related to tariffs and geopolitics,” said Aditi Nayar, chief economist, ICRA.

For tax assessees, AY 2025-26 is likely to be one of the years with the most significant changes in the way income tax returns (ITRs) are filed. Since the last ITR filing season, the Income Tax Department has introduced several changes, including updates to ITR forms, tax slabs, and other regulations.

The Income Tax Department has now issued new guidelines related to mandatory scrutiny of Income Tax Returns for the financial year 2025-26 (assessment year 2026-27). These guidelines were issued by the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) on June 14, 2025.

The ITR filing process is in full swing, with nearly 25 lakh income tax returns already filed and about 23 lakh verified. The most important development is that the Income Tax Department has started processing returns, as reflected on the tax portal, which shows that some ITRs have already been processed for the current assessment year. This means taxpayers with refunds due will start receiving them soon.

This year, the return filing started relatively late. The main reasons for this were the late release of ITR forms, technical changes in the e-filing utility, and time taken to update tax deduction (TDS) data.