Filing Income Tax Return for 2-3 years at once: ITR-U explained

Filing income tax returns for 2-3 years back is not very common, but some people need to do it for various reasons, such as visa applications, university admissions, job applications, etc.

Generally, a normal ITR can be filed under Section 139(1), and the last date for that is July 31st of that year. So for the financial year 2023-24, the last date was July 31, 2024.

After that, a belated return under Section 139(4) can be filed, and the last date for that is December 31st. Hence, for the financial year 2023-24, the last date was December 31, 2024.

If even that time period has passed and you have not filed your ITR, there is a last option given by the government: ITR under Section 139(8A), which can be filed up to 2 years from the end of the financial year. So, for the financial year 2023-24, it will be March 31, 2026.

Table Summarising last date for returns, taking FY 23-24 as an example

We must know a few things about ITR under Section 139(8A) as follows:

1. Why Some People File Under Section 139(8A)?

As discussed above, visa, college, and job applications are a few examples. Also, there are cases where the due date is gone, and someone remembered that they missed showing some income in their ITR. By filing ITR-U, they can save themselves from a notice. It is important to note that it was only introduced in Budget 2022. Before that, there was no way to file an ITR after the date for a belated return was over.

2. What Can You Show in Your ITR-U?

It is important to note that you can only file ITR-U if there is an additional tax liability that you have to pay but missed. You cannot file a nil return, nor can you file a return with lower or equivalent income from the return already filed. You cannot carry forward losses. Basically, you can only file ITR-U if, at the end of it, you end up paying more tax. If it decreases your liability in any way, you cannot file ITR-U.

3. Consequences of filing ITR-U

So we have understood that we cannot reduce our liability by ITR-U, but there are some consequences as well. You have to pay interest on tax as per Section 234. The interest will be levied similar to a belated ITR, which is 1% per month. If you are filing ITR-U for a period when an ITR was not at all filed, you also have to pay a penalty under Section 234F, which is ₹1,000 if your income is ₹3 lakh to ₹5 lakh, and ₹5,000 if your income is more than ₹5 lakh. Note here that, as we discussed in point 2, you cannot file ITR-U if your income is less than ₹3 lakh.

Additionally, specifically for this section, there is an additional tax. You have to pay 25% additional tax if you file ITR-U within 1 year and 50% if you file ITR-U after 1 year, up to 2 years. As we discussed at the start, you can only file ITR-U up to 2 years. This additional tax is covered under Section 140B(3).

Table summarising Additional Tax

4. How to File ITR-U

Now that we know the benefits and consequences, the question comes to mind: how to file ITR-U? It is important to note that you cannot file ITR-U online on the Income Tax portal. You have to download the Excel utility from the Income Tax portal, fill in your details, and then upload it again. It is important to note that ITR-U is a complex return to file, and you must take the help of your Chartered Accountant while filing.

Thanks for reading. Suggestions are always appreciated.

The author is a Practising Chartered Accountant based in Jhunjhunu, Rajasthan.