The Income Tax department will soon be launching a new web portal for taxpayers to make the routine ITRs filing process easier and hassle-free, officials said on Thursday. The officials added that the existing web portals will be shut for six days between June 1 and 6, this year. And, by June 7, the new e-filing web portal would be made operational for taxpayers.
An order issued by the systems wing of the department said the “transition” from the old portal — www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in — to the new –www.incometaxgov.in — will be completed and made operational from June 7.
“In preparation for this launch and migration activities, the existing portal of the department at www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in would not be available for a brief period of six days from June 1 to 6,” the order said.
The exiting portal will “not be available” to both the taxpayers as well as Income Tax Department officers during this period, it said.
“All officers may be directed to fix any hearing or compliances only from June 10 onwards to give taxpayers time to respond to the new system,” it said.
Any work scheduled between the taxpayer and the assessing officer of the department may be preponed or adjourned, the order said.
The e-filing portal is used by the taxpayers to file their individual or business category income tax returns (ITRs) and also to raise complaints seeking refunds and other works with the tax department.
Meanwhile, the I-T department has issued over ₹24,792 crore refunds to more than 15 lakh taxpayers so far this fiscal.
Of this personal income tax refunds worth ₹7,458 crore has been issued in over 14.98 lakh cases. Corporate tax refunds of ₹17,334 crore have been issued to 43,661 taxpayers.
“CBDT issues refunds of over ₹24,792 crore to more than 15 lakh taxpayers between 1st April 2021 to 17th May 2021,” the Income-tax department tweeted.
The I-T department did not specify the financial year for the refunds. However, it is believed that the refunds are for tax returns filed for 2019-20 fiscal.