The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) recently issued a circular on the application for condonation of delay in filing ITR. Income taxpayers often file this application requesting the tax department to condone delay in filing/revising ITR in order to claim income tax refund and carry forward of losses and set off. This condonation of delay application allows them to file an income tax return (ITR) to claim past tax refund and/or claim carry-forward of loss and set-off in cases where the due date for filing tax return is long past.

The latest circular has reduced the time limit to apply for condonation of delay to five years from the end of the financial year in which the ITR was actually required to be filed. The earlier 2015 circular allowed taxpayers to file the condonation delay application within six years from the end of the financial year in which the ITR was required to be filed.

Hence, taxpayers will get one year less to file delay condonation requests to apply for old income tax refunds. CBDT issued the circular on October 1, 2024.