How to check your I-T refund status
Tax experts say that currently refunds are taking 7 to 15 days. The taxpayer should keep checking the status of refund from time to time.
Akhil is very happy and why not? Rs 22,540 is going to come in his account. Along with his friend Ritesh he had filed income tax return. Ritesh has got his refund but Akhil has been waiting for it. Even after several days days, when the money did not come into his account, he got worried. What went wrong after all that his refund didn’t arrive? What could be the reason for not receiving the refund, let’s find out.
A taxpayer is entitled to get income tax refund when the tax paid by him is more than his tax liability. If you have paid more tax then you can claim refund by filing income tax return (ITR). Keep in mind that the tax for which the refund is being claimed should appear in Form 26AS. Refund will be given only if the claim is found valid by the Income Tax Department.
According to the information available on the portal of the Income Tax Department, so far 11 crore 50 lakh individuals have been registered on the portal. Talking about the current season i.e. assessment year 2023-24, over 6.77 crore income tax returns have been filed so far. Out of these, more than 5 crore 20 lakh income tax returns have also been verified. The Income Tax Department has processed more than 3.36 crore verified income tax returns so far. Most of this refund money has been credited to the eligible taxpayer’s account or will be credited in a few days.
The time taken to receive income tax refund depends on the internal process of the Income Tax Department. Generally the refund is processed within 20 to 45 days from the date of filing the return. However, in the recent times the refund process has become quick. Tax experts say that currently this is taking 7 to 15 days. In such a situation, the taxpayer should keep checking the status of refund from time to time.
The biggest reason for refund getting stuck is not verifying it after filing income tax return. Many times people make mistakes in bank details, due to which refund also gets stuck. Bank account not being pre-validated, PAN not linked to bank account, mismatch in refund claim in ITR and tax deducted in Form 26AS or even if there is any kind of tax demand for previous years, are some of the reasons why refunds get stuck. The income tax department receives crores of returns, in such a situation there can be delay in processing.
How to check refund status?
You can check income tax refund by visiting the e-filing portal of the Income Tax Department (eportal.incometax.gov.in)
Login using User ID and Password
Go to ‘Income Tax Returns’ by going to the option of e-File
Click on ‘View Filed Returns’ in ‘Income Tax Returns’
Then you will be able to check the status of the refund
If your refund has failed or refund is on hold, then the reason for this will also be known. If your refund has failed i.e. rejected, then you have to request for re-issuance of refund through e-filing portal.
If you are waiting for your refund like Akhil and have not received your refund yet, you can check your refund status by following the process which we have told you about. In order to make sure that there is no problem in refund, it is necessary to make some preparations beforehand. Like the registered bank account with income tax should be pre-validated. Bank account should be linked to PAN and make sure you check Form 26AS while filing return.