The deadline to file your Income Tax Return (ITR) for the financial year 2024-25 (Assessment Year 2025-26) is 15 September 2025. This applies to many taxpayers—salaried individuals, freelancers, small business owners—who are required to file returns. But what happens if you miss it? The consequences are more than just an inconvenience.
If you file after 15 September, you’ll face a late fee under Section 234F:
Any unpaid tax will attract interest under Section 234A. That’s 1% per month or a fraction of a month on the amount due. So, missing the deadline can quickly increase what you owe if there are unpaid liabilities.
One of the more serious losses is losing the ability to carry forward business or capital losses to offset future income. If you want to claim carry-forward of losses (for example from business operations or capital markets), you must file your ITR before the due date. Miss that, and those opportunities are lost for the year.
Even if you’re due a tax refund, filing late slows things down. Returns filed before the due date tend to get processed faster. Late filers may have to wait much longer to receive any refund owed.
While rare, there are cases where willful failure to file tax returns can lead to legal action. This generally happens in serious cases—fraud, large undisclosed incomes, or repeated non-compliance. Punishments can include fines or even jail terms ranging from a few months to two years in the most egregious cases.
Yes. A “belated return” can be filed up until 31 December 2025. But expect all the earlier penalties and interest to apply, and remember: loss carry-forward/benefits cannot be claimed once the deadline is past.
There’s always hope when taxes and tech glitches mix. Some taxpayers and professional bodies are pushing for extension due to system delays or new compliance burdens. Yet, so far, officials indicate no plans to extend the 15 September deadline—unless something major goes wrong with the filing systems.