Central Board of Direct Taxes has notified the new ITR Forms AY 2017-18 (for FY 2016-17). In order to make Income Tax Return filing easy, quite a few changes in ITR Forms have been implemented.
The new ITR forms in PDF format have been made available, while the excel utilities (or) Java Utilities for AY 2017-18 will soon be made available on incometaxindia e-filing website.
What is AY & FY?
Financial year (FY) is the year in which you have earned the income. If you are filing a return this year, the financial year will be 2016-17.
For example, if you have had an income between 1st April 2016 and 31 March 2017, then 2016-17 will be referred to as FY. Assessment Year (AY) is the year in which you file returns i.e., 2017-18. The last date to file returns for the financial year 2016-2017 is July 31st 2017 (as of now).
Income Tax Slabs & Rates for FY 2016-17 (AY 2017-18)
The below table gives you clear idea about Income tax slabs / rates for all Tax payer categories. (For general category, Senior Citizens & Very Senior Citizens).
Income Tax Returns Filing & New ITR Forms AY 2017-18 | Which ITR Form should you file?
Below are the main details about new ITR forms. You can download the ITR Forms which are in PDF format.
- The number of ITR Forms have been reduced from the existing nine to seven forms.
- Kindly note that it is now mandatory to quote your Aadhar number / Aadhar Enrollment ID and also disclose Cash deposits of more than Rs 2 lakh made during demonetisation period (between 9-Nov-2016 & 30-Dec-2016). (Quoting of Aadhaar number in ITR forms is not mandatory for NRIs / individuals who are not citizens of India / who are above 80 years of age / who are residing in States of Jammu & Kashmir, Meghalaya & Assam.)
- The existing ITR Forms ITR-2, ITR-2A and ITR-3 have been rationalized and a single ITR-2 has been notified in place of these three forms.
- The existing ITR 4 has been re-numbered as ITR 3.
- ITR 4S (Sugam) is now ITR 4 (Sugam).
- All ITR forms have to be filed electronically. The only exception being ; in the case of individuals of the age of 80 years or more, whose income does not exceed Rs 5 lakh and who has not claimed any refund in the return of income, have an option to file return in paper form.
New ITR 1 (Sahaj) Form For Assessment Year 2017-18 :
- The existing multiple pages ITR 1 form has now been simplified into a single page ITR Form.
- ITR 1 Form (Sahaj) can be filed by an individual having income of up to Rs 50 lakh from salary, one house property and interest income.
- In this ITR form, important tax deductions like Section 80C, 80D, 80G & 80TTA have only been provided. For other tax deductions, you can just mention the section and amount details.
- If you have LTCG of Rs 2.5 Lakh or more, It is mandatory to e-file tax returns, even if your total taxable income may be below Rs 2.5 lakh.
- A separate provision has been provided to disclose Long Term Capital Gains (LTCG) as Exempt income under section 10 (38).
- A separate provision has been provided to disclose Dividend income received from an Indian company as Exempt income under section 10 (34).
- Click here to download new simplified ITR 1 Form for AY 2017-18.
New ITR 2 Form for Assessment year 2017-18 :
- ITR2 form can be filed by an Individual or Hindu Undivided Family (HUF). This form can be used if you have;
- Salary or Pension Income
- Income under the head ‘Capital Gains’
- Income from multiple houses
- No business / professional income under any proprietorship
- An asset in foreign country or income from a source outside India
- Agricultural income of more than Rs 5,000
- Income from lottery or horse racing
- If your income is more than Rs 50 Lakh, ITR 2 has a Schedule AL requiring assessees to declare their assets and liabilities at the end of the fiscal.
- Click here to download new ITR 2 Form.
New ITR 3 for AY 2017-18 Income tax filing
- The existing ITR 4 is now re-numbered as ITR 3 form.
- New ITR 3 form is for individuals and HUFs having income from a proprietary business or profession (or having income as a partner in a Partnership firm).
- This ITR covers all kind of businesses and professions irrespective of any income limit. Assesse can also report his income from salary, multiple house properties, lottery winnings, capital gains, speculative income i.e. horse race in ITR3 together with the Business Income.
- Click here to download new ITR 3 Form.
New ITR 4S (Sugam) form for AY 2017-18
- This form can be used by individuals who have;
- Presumptive income from Business or Profession.
- No Capital Gains
- Agricultural Income which is less than Rs 5k
- No asset in foreign country or no income from a source outside India
- Income from one house property
- Income from other sources
- Click here to download new ITR 4S form.
Latest Update (31-July-2017) : Income Tax Return filing deadline for AY 2017-18 has been extended till 5th August, 2017. (Source : ET)
Continue reading :
(Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net) ( (Post first published on 31-March-2017) (This post will be updated with more information after going through the latest ITR forms in detail..)
This post was last modified on July 11, 2023 6:25 pm
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Sir,
I downloaded an Excel utility(ITR-2-PR3 ) during middle of June'17 for e-filing IT return. The excel file was filled up completely & XML file was generated. But due to non-availability of "Exempted Income" data, the .xml file was not uploaded for completing return. Now, after getting "EI" data, I generated a fresh xml file yesterday & attempted upload to complete e-filing. But to my surprise, uploading xml file was refused with a remark "xml file schema not valid" I tried 4-5 times but with same remark every time. Then I downloaded ITR2 afresh & found that Excel utility version has been changed (New: 2017-ITR-2-PR5). There were some important changes in PR3 version, but most detrimental point is that in Chapter VIA page, I was disallowed to deduct expenditure u/s 80D(in my case- around 12,000.00). A new drop-down menu was added u/s 80D from where there were 4 options, e.g, Self & family; self & family including parents; including sr. citizen parents etc. Notable fact is that an individual/sr. citizen are allowed Rs.25000/30000, but in drop-down menu, "Individual" option is absent. Moreover, I was refused validation unless I select one of the 4/5 options. Now, when I selected "self & family", I was told that I cannot write on a protected sheet & I have to unprotect it first after putting appropriate password which I don't possess. I don't know what type joke IT deptt is doing with us at a fag end. Anybody have a solution so that I can generate a xml file from new ITR-2_PR5 ??
Regards,
S.K. De
Same problem. Please update if you received any solution.
I am also facing same issue, How should we go about filing returns if the system has error. I had sent a mail explaining the same to department hope the reply, please update me if advice/solution is found.
Regards,
e-Nivaran had responded to my grievance request , now there is a new version PR6 of ITR2 (old version was 2017_ITR2_PR5)but still the issue is unresolved. Some how, I started exploring the ITR2 workbooks I noticed the new drop-down menu added in u/s 80D changes from grey to green when you go back in PART A-General and re selecting drop down menu of Status (I-Individual,H-HUF) and choosing your appropriate option. This trick work fine in PR5 version (ie., you can select from drop down menu) enter your amt in next column and last column is automatically updated). This trick does not work in latest PR6 version (latest version, ie., it allows to select from drop down menu but the entered amount is not updated automatically in last column).
Please share if you find any other solution, since tax filing dead line is nearing, I want to use latest version to upload my returns.
(Also check if you are using windows 7 and above OS & dot net framework is version 3.5 and above)
Good news, latest ITR2 ver PR6 is also working fine, you have to enter all appropriate previous workbooks. Happy filing IT Returns.
Thank you dear Manjunath for sharing the update! Appreciate your efforts!
I am facing the same issue. Please update if any solution has been provided.
I have been sending mail, but no reply. Its is strange how such errors are kept unaddressed and how others would have filed their returns if they had medical insurance premium paid.
Hi,
Same problem faced when uploading returns via the Java utility. What happens
is that when section 80 D is filled by selecting any one of the 4 options (Self and Family/Self and Family including Parents/Self and Family including Senior Citizen Parents/Self (Senior Citizen and Family including Senior Citizen Parents)), this option is not saved in the .xml file. If the saved xml file is reopened the option under 80D (entered as one of 4 options above) is not taken into account while computing the tax return. This looks to be a bug in the software version
Regards,
Amit P
Dear Amit..You may submit your grievance online through e-Nivaran portal..
I sent a mail to IT helpdesk today requesting a fruitful solution. They sent prompt reply today evening. I was told to delete all temp. files, history, cookies, browsing data etc & then download ITR2 file. I did that but no change. Same problem persisted. Also in Schedule Part A-General: Line 26(claiming benefit u/s 115H) also creating problem. You cannot select 'Yes or No'. Does anybody have idea how to unprotect sheet without a password ?
Regards,
S. K. De
Dear shri S K De
Your Problem:
Also in Schedule Part A-General: Line 26(claiming benefit u/s 115H) also creating problem. You cannot select ‘Yes or No’.
Solution: Schedule Part A-General: Line 26(claiming benefit u/s 115H) is having cross linkage with Schedule Part A-General: Line 25(Residential Status). So you first remove your selection in Residential Status. You will notice that now Line 26(claiming benefit u/s 115H) becomes editable. Now select appropriate option in Line 25(Residential Status). And then you will be able to select applicable option in Line 26(claiming benefit u/s 115H) .
All the best
It seems working fine try downloading latest ITR2 PR6.
In 2017_ITR2_PR6 (Excel Utility) at Schedule VI-A 80D. Dropdown is not editable. It's grey! Any help?
same issue even in PR6 version. sent e-grievance, they have asked for a screen shot..!! I have sent it today...
I see some answer that it is working in PR6 - any process to be followed to make it work?
Dear Mr De ..As of now, I do not have information on this issue. You may take help of a CA.
Dear Sir
I work as Data processing, answering emails , calls and IT related work for an overseas client. Basically I am self employed or data freelancer. Information Technology
is mentioned in the list of professions in ITR 4S. Am I eligible to file ITR - 4(Sugam) please?. Currently I file returns through ITR 4 (now ITR 3) but it is really
cumbersome for maintaining various expenses like salary, internet and other work expenses.
1) If yes, I understand for example to an income of 12 lacs, 50% needs to be considered as profit. So ie 6 lacs. I understand I can futher claim 80C exemptions upto 1.5 lacs and further standard exemption limit of 1 lacs. So in other words, i am liable to pay tax for 6 lacs less 1 lakh (standard deduction) + 1.5 lacs (Tax saving) = 3.5 lacs. Am I getting it right here.
2) I have been reading various articles regarding this Presumptive tax scheme 44ADA. With my limited understanding, It says for those who have Capital Gains, they cannot use ITR 4S. I am confused regarding this. I have recently done churning of my Mutual Fund Portfolios due to underperfoming funds. Some of the funds I switched to better performing funds while for some I had to redeem and then again invest in performing ones. Since I have switched and redeemed funds, I believe it is considered LTCG , so am I not eligible to file my returns through ITR 4S.
3) Lastly what is the last date for filing returns for ITR 4S. I think it is 31st July but it also says somewhere (sorry if i am wrong, i have read so many articles and my unexpert mind cannot absorb more), you have to pay all advance by March 15th at one stroke. So for example, if I am filing my returns for this year 2016-2017, I should have paid by 15th March 2017. Am I right on this please?
Thank for your inputs in advance (Sorry for the long post)
Vikas
Dear Vikas,
The last for filing your income tax return is 31st july. You are referring to Advance Tax.
The capital gains on MF redemptions are based on holding period. Kindly go through this article.
Suggest you to take help of a CA and file your ITR.
Hi, Please tell me Which ITR to be used if the income from salary is more than 50 lakhs and have bank interest 100000.
Hi,
Please suggest me which ITR form is to be filed for An Employee Credit Co operative society Ltd.
Dear Ankit ..It depends on sources of income..kindly go through above article.
Dear sushma ..You may consider filing ITR 2 form.
Now ITR 4 has been changed to ITR 3 for business or profession , but how could we import XML file. Whether we should download XML file for ITR 4 of 2017-18 or ITR 3 for 2016-17 AY's . Please clarify me....I need clarification because It is saying wrong AY or Wrong ITR
Dear shakeel ..You need to download ITR 3 excel utility and XML file can be generate from within the excel utility.
I am a salaried person and i have opened demat account for investmen purpose but done intraday 3,4 days only by mistake sell value 80k.
I don't want show this as business income. Can I show this income in short-term capital gain. I am filing my return 1st time .
Dear Vicky ..You can show it as speculative income and file ITR 3.
Hi,
I have salary income as well as interest income.
Last year I have filed Form 2A as there was exempted income of Rs. 2 Lakh.
This year I fall under the category of Form 1.
Do I need to file Form 2 (as Form 2A is discontinued) or shall I file Form 1.
Please guide me.
Dear Champaka,
ITR form type is applicable based on your sources of income and other points as given in the article.
It is not necessary same form type is applicable every Financial year..
HI Sreekanth,
I have a query related to the procedure for investing in debt mutual funds.
- I want to invest in debt mutual funds and i want to fall under window for LTCG (investment for more than 3 years)
- Please advise options for monthly and lumpsum investments
- As per my understanding, i can fill ITR1 if LTCG is less than some threshhold and indexation benefit would be applied
fyi, i am in 30% tax bracket and a long term investor. I already have other investments in equity related MF schemes like icici value discovery/sbi blue chip/hdfc midcap.
Thanks
Dear Saurabh,
That threshold limit is applicable for LTCG which is an exempt income..(like LTCG on sale of equity funds/shares..)
Kindly read :
What are different types of Debt funds?
Best Debt funds
Best MIP Funds
Mutual fund taxation rules
List of best investment options
Which ITR form to file?
Hi Sreekanth,
Thanks for your response.
Since i have investment horizon of 3-5 years, i have zeroed in on following dynamic funds:
Birla Sun Life Dynamic Bond Fund - Direct Plan (D)
HDFC High Interest Fund - Dynamic Plan (QD)
- Please suggest if my choice is OK. I hope these funds pay DDT.
- From your mentioned blogs it is not clear where to show LTCG for debt mutual funds. As per my understanding, tax on LTCG will be 20% after indexation benefit. Please advise if i can show this LTCG in "Income from other sources" in ITR1 and calculate the tax and pay a self assessment tax.
- By looking at your blogs, my understanding is that MIP funds are like balanced funds having more of debt portion. While dynamic funds are pure debt funds. No equity exposure. Please confirm.
Dear Saurabh,
Birla dynamic bond fund returns are fine but it has a very high RISK grade.
Same is the case with HDFC Fund.
If you have capital gains then ITR 1 form can not be filed.
You need to disclose the capital gains under the relevant section of ITR 2.
Your understanding on MIPs is correct (they are balanced - debt oriented funds).
Sreekanth,
I have selected both the funds from your suggested list of funds from article best debt funds :-).
Can you suggest any other fund?
My understanding is that dynamic funds are more safer as compared to MIP funds (because of no equity portion). please confirm.
Thanks.
Dear Saurabh,
Your understanding is correct.
These are good funds but with higher risk and higher returns proposition..highlighted this point.
Also, need to update the Debt funds post or I have to publish a new review!
UTI Dynamic bong has also been performing well.
OK Sree.
Desperately waiting for your latest review on debt funds :-)
Hi Sreekanth,
I was going thru your following blog: MIP funds..
But i noticed that there is no option for adding queries. Not sure why. Adding my query in this post.
I want to purchase birla sun life MIT Savings 5 fund for lumpsum investment. Investment period - 3+ years. Please advise your suggestions. I am looking for a alternate of FD with least risk.
Dear Saurabh,
'Blog comments' feature has been disabled for the posts which are more than 1 year old (as of now..testing few things!).
You may kindly go ahead.
Dear Srikanth
For housewife having tuition income of 80000 and interest income of 60000 which itr should be used.
Regards
Dear Biswajit ..ITR 4 (Sugam) can be filed.
Sreekanth
is there any way to cliam loss of STCG and speculative loss by filing belated return.
Dear Ravi ..If the income tax return is not filed before the due date and a belated return is filed after the due date, capital loss would not be allowed to be carried forward.
Kindly read :
How to set off capital losses?
Dear Srikanth,
I have Salaried Income+Bank Interest+Short Term Capital Loses and Speculative/Intraday Loses, can you please advice which ITR form I should use to submit IT returns. Also please clarify should I include interest on tax saver FD's earned during FY16-17 or just declare interest earned on savings accounts only while declaring interest earned.
Regards,
Kishore Kumar Reddy
Dear Kishore,
You can file ITR -3 form.
Kindly read : Taxes on FDs/RDs
Dear Sreekanth,
Tax audit requirement on intraday trading(speculative business) is bit confusing. Can you please clarify, I have speculative loss of 1k on turnover(total value of profit/loss) of 12k. Should I get an audit done on this speculative business? Or is it fine just to mention losses in ITR-3 to carry forward.
Regards,
Kishore Kumar Reddy
Thank you Sreekanth.