IT Dept Launches Offline Utility For Taxpayers Filing ITR 1, 4 For FY 20-21

The Income Tax Department has issued an offline utility for taxpayers filing ITR 1 and 4 for the financial year 2020-21. "The user can now download and fill the offline utility for ITR 1 & 4 (AY 2021-22)," according to the online e-filing site. It also claimed that the utility for other ITRs will be unlocked soon. The offline utility is accessible on the e-filing platform and is centered on emerging technologies "JSON" (JavaScript Object Notation), a lightweight data storage format. The offline utility is available for use on computers running Windows 7 or later editions. While issuing the procedure for filing, the department also confirmed that "This Offline Utility is enabled only for ITR-1 and ITR-4. Other ITRs will be added in the utility in subsequent releases." ITR Form 1 (Sahaj) and 4 (Sugam) are forms that serve a significant number of small and medium-sized taxpayers.

An individual with an income of up to Rs 50 lakh who earns income from salary, one house property / other sources, interest, and so on can file a Sahaj. Individuals, Hindu Undivided Families (HUFs), and firms with a total income of up to 50 lakh and income from business and profession can file ITR-4. IT return tax preparers can import and pre-fill data from the e-filing site, as well as fill in the gaps. Because the option to upload ITR to the e-filing portal is not yet available, filers can use the offline utility to fill out and save their returns. The department further added that "Once filing is enabled, you can upload the same at e-filing portal."

Taxpayers need to use the offline utility to retrieve pre-filled data from the income tax e-filing site and upload it into the new utility, which allows taxpayers to edit and save returns, pre-filled data, and profile data as well. According to Nangia Andersen India Director Neha Malhotra, the fresh utility is a user-friendly functionality for filing returns and will provide greater convenience to taxpayers. She further confirmed with PTI that "The utility itself provides help in the form of FAQs, guidance notes, circulars and provisions of the law so as to enable hassle-free return filing. The government's efforts, to build a favourable tax regime for taxpayers cannot be disregarded. Augmenting simplicity and removing impediments will go a long way in increasing compliance and facilitating good governance."

According to the newly notified forms, an individual whose tax has been deferred due to ESOPs allotted by an eligible startup is not permitted to file ITR 1 or 4. Now, the employee does not have to pay tax when exercising the option, i.e. when converting the ESOPs into shares.