CBDT Addresses Delayed Tax Refunds Amidst Mismatch Issues

CBDT Addresses Delayed Tax Refunds Amidst Mismatch Issues

VoM News Desk | October 10, 2023 | 07:34 PM IST | Breaking News | Follow on Google News

CBDT Addresses Delayed Tax Refunds Amidst Mismatch Issues

CBDT Addresses Delayed Tax Refunds Amidst Mismatch Issues

The Income-Tax Department is currently grappling with approximately 35 lakh cases where tax refunds have been held up due to issues related to mismatched and unverified taxpayer bank accounts. CBDT Chairperson Nitin Gupta revealed this issue on Tuesday, explaining that the tax authorities are actively reaching out to these affected individuals through a specialized call centre. Their primary goal is to expedite the resolution of these refund-related problems and ensure that the refunds are accurately credited to the taxpayers’ bank accounts.

Mr. Gupta emphasized, “We want to credit the refunds to the correct bank accounts of the taxpayers quickly.” When asked about instances where refunds were delayed due to taxpayers receiving old demands from the years around 2010-11, Mr. Gupta explained that the department underwent a significant technological shift around 2011, transitioning from paper-based records to computer-based systems. Consequently, some of these older demands resurfaced in the accounts of taxpayers.

He further elaborated on the measures taken to address these challenges, stating, “We have started a unique demand management facilitation system about a year back for all such cases where refunds are held up due to a variety of reasons.” This system involves triggering an email to the taxpayer, followed by a call from a specific number three days after the email dispatch. This conversation helps resolve the issues.

Over the past year, through this interaction with a call centre based in Mysuru, 1.4 lakh such entries have been successfully resolved. Taxpayers have the option to either accept the demand or contest it after this interaction. Initially, the call centre served four ranges in Karnataka and Goa, Mumbai, Delhi, and the north-west region. However, there are plans to expand its services to cover other regions and cities.

Mr. Gupta also highlighted other reasons for refund delays, such as unvalidated bank accounts due to bank mergers or changes in the assessee’s city leading to altered IFSC codes. The CBDT is actively communicating with taxpayers in these situations through official channels and the call centre.

For the assessment year 2023-24, official data indicates that 7.27 crore Income Tax Returns (ITRs) were filed, of which 7.15 crore were verified by taxpayers. The department processed 6.80 crore ITRs, with 93.5% of duly verified ITRs being processed.

Mr. Gupta also discussed the introduction of ITR-U (income tax return-updated) in Budget 2022-23, stating that the department collected an additional ₹1,300 crore in taxes after 16.8 lakh such returns were filed by taxpayers during the current fiscal year of 2023-24.

Regarding the new tax regime introduced in the last Budget, he mentioned that approximately 60% of corporates filed their profits under the new tax regime last fiscal year. Additionally, it is expected that 60-70% of individual taxpayers will shift to this new tax regime. The new tax regime simplifies deductions and offers a flat and reduced tax rate to taxpayers.

Mr. Gupta expressed confidence in the direct tax collection, reporting that the department had collected ₹9.57 lakh crore in net revenue as of the current fiscal year, including ₹1.50 lakh crore in refunds. The 2023-24 budget has set the direct tax collection target at slightly over ₹18.23 lakh crore, reflecting a 9.75% increase from the previous fiscal year.

VoM News Desk

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