The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has rolled out as many as seven ITR (income tax return) forms incorporating some key changes in them to align with budget announcements made last year to meet policy objectives and evolving tax norms. These forms, however, have been notified with quite a delay this year if compared with previous year. In addition to this, the Income Tax Department is yet to made available the online Excel utilities of these forms to facilitate e-tax filing on the income tax portal.

All this has led to taxpayers wondering if the tax department will give them some extra time beyond July 31 to meet their tax return filing obligation. Experts, however, are of the view that the government might not give an extension in the ITR filing deadline this year because in the past, whenever such a call was taken, it was due to technical glitches impacting the return filing process or on account of some extraordinary circumstances.

According to CA (Dr.) Suresh Surana, while queries around possible extensions are common at this time of year, it is important to note that it is still too early in May to reasonably state whether such a decision will be taken.

His statement aligns with the fact that historically, any announcements related to deadline extensions that were warranted have typically been made closer to the due date, and only under specific circumstances.

Also read: Income Tax Return 2025: How to file ITR without Form 16? Check out THESE easy alternative documents

No notification from I-T Dept regarding deadline extension

Also, as of now, the Income Tax Department has not issued any notification regarding an extension of the 31 July, 2025 deadline for filing Income Tax Returns (ITRs) for individuals and non-audit cases.

Extensions in previous years have been granted only in limited situations such as widespread technical disruptions on the e-filing portal, significant delays in the release of Form 16 or Annual Information Statements (AIS), or exceptional events like natural calamities or public health emergencies, Surana emphasised.

“As of yet, no such extraordinary circumstances have emerged that would justify a revision of the filing timeline. As such, unless unexpected developments occur in the coming months, an extension of the 31 July deadline appears unlikely at this stage,” he added.

ITR forms notification delay has no material impact

While it is true that for Assessment Year 2025–26, the CBDT notified the ITR forms later than the usual timeline seen in previous years, this is unlikely to have a material impact on return filing readiness for most individual taxpayers, feels Surana.

“In particular, salaried taxpayers who form a significant share of non-audit filers typically commence tax return filing only after receiving Form 16 from their employers, which can be issued as late as 15th June under Rule 31(3) of the Income-tax Rules. Similarly, non-salaried taxpayers relying on Form 16A (for TDS on non-salary income) also wait for the due issuance date before finalizing their returns,” he said.

Given this sequencing, most taxpayers only begin compiling and uploading their returns from the second half of June. With the availability of e-filing utilities and key reporting tools like AIS/TIS and Form 26AS available on the portal, taxpayers will have sufficient time between mid-June and the July 31st deadline to file their returns comfortably.

Therefore, while the forms were notified slightly later this year, it does not materially shorten the effective compliance window for the majority of filers.

Also read: ITR Filing 2025: Key changes in capital gains reporting and disclosure norms you must know

ITR deadline extension unlikely at this stage

“Unless there are extraordinary technical challenges or systemic delays in June or July, an extension of the deadline seems unlikely at this stage. Taxpayers are still advised to prepare the necessary documentation in advance and not leave filing to the last few days to avoid late fees under Section 234F and interest implications under Section 234A,” says Surana.

Abhishek Mundada, Partner, Dhruva Advisors, echoed similar views. According to him, the CBDT’s notification has come later than usual — typically, in recent years, these have been announced in the first half of April, the ITR forms were notified only in May this year. This delay could affect early filers, especially those awaiting form availability in utility software, he feels.

However, with the due date for individuals being 31st July and for tax audit cases falling in September/October, there still remains adequate time for timely compliance, adds Mundada. Additionally, there have been relaxation/ simplification in terms of using simplified forms for specified categories of income levels, he says.