Completing an Income Tax Return (ITR) is a crucial procedure that necessitates thorough preparation and having all essential documentation on hand to simplify the process.

No matter if you are a paid worker, an entrepreneur, or receive income from various sources, specific paperwork is necessary for everyone filing taxes.

These papers demonstrate your earnings from different sources and detail the investments you completed in the fiscal year.

Every paperwork is crucial in correctly establishing your tax duties. Losing any document can impact the total tax you owe annually.

Listed below are key documents necessary for filing your income tax return for the financial year 2023-24 (assessment year 2024-25).

PAN and Aadhaar 

PAN is the initial document required when submitting income tax return. According to section 139AA of the Income Tax Act, individuals are required to furnish their Aadhaar for filing their income tax return. It is mandatory to connect your Aadhaar and PAN in accordance with the law.

Form-16

If your income is in the form of employer-provided wages, Form-16 is one of the main documents required for tax return. Form-16 is a claim form issued by your employer giving information about your salary earned during a financial year, and the Tax Deducted at Source (TDS) on it, e.g. like a bet. Form-16 is divided into two parts - Part A and Part B.

PART A shows information about TDS by employer during the year, including your PAN and employer's TAN. While PART B contains the details of your gross salary and its components like exempted allowances, perquisites, income before salary etc.

Account Details

 You need to show all active bank accounts in your ITR, specifying one account for tax return. Bank statements or passbooks should show interest earned on savings accounts or fixed deposits.

Form 26AS

 This tax statement is issued every year and displays the taxes credited to your PAN. It includes information on TDS from banks, employers, or other entities. Ensure that you are claiming all applicable deductions for your account in the correct tax deductions.

Home loan statement

It is important to include information about the principal and interest payments of the home loan when filing taxes. Get statements from banks if you've borrowed money to buy a house.

Tax saving instruments

 Have all necessary documents for tax filing handy, such as those related to tax-saving investments like FDs or ELSS.

TDS certificates

 To do this, you will require three TDS certificates that show the tax deducted from your savings, investments, and loans.

 First, Form-16A is a TDS slip issued by the bank for tax deducted on non-payment of interest earned in the form of interest earned on deposits such as deposits fixed deposits, recovery deposits, etc.

The second is the Form-16B given by the seller which shows the tax deducted when you sell a property.

 Thirdly, the Form-16C issued by the tenant to the landlord shows the details of TDS deducted from the rent received by you. It is used in cases where the rent paid by the landlord is more than Rs 50,000 per month.

Salary Slips

 Salary slips are one of the most important documents to submit, as they contain other tax details like House Rent Allowance (HRA), Leave Travel Allowance (LTA), medical allowance, personal allowance , and so on.

By making sure you have these documents, you can simplify your tax filing process and fulfill your obligations as a taxpayer.

Keep these records safe and organized to facilitate communication with tax consultants or the Income Tax Department when required. Remember, accurate documentation is the key to hassle-free tax compliance.

The deadline for submitting ITR for FY24 is July 31, 2024.

FAQs

Q. Which of the following document is necessary for filing income tax return?

A. This is the first and foremost prerequisite if you are filing an income tax return. PAN is also required to deduct TDS and should be linked with your bank account for direct credit of income tax refund (if any).

Q. What is mandatory for filing income tax return?

A. Who is Required to File an ITR for FY 2023-24? Under the old regime, individuals below 60 years of age have to file an ITR if their income exceeds Rs. 2.5 lakhs, and individuals above 60 years of age have to file an ITR if their income is more than Rs. 3 lakhs

Q. Can we file ITR without CA?

A. Indeed, people in India do not require the help of an attorney, tax adviser, or Chartered Accountant to self-file ITR. Individual taxpayers can fill out along file of their returns for taxes independently

Q. Is it mandatory to show all bank accounts in ITR?

A. Many taxpayers have multiple bank accounts, yet a large number of those filing returns do not mention all their bank accounts in their ITR. This omission is against Income Tax rules as all assessees must disclose details of all their domestic and foreign bank accounts.

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