ITR Filing 2025: When Does Return Become Defective?

ITR Filing 2025: When Does Return Become Defective?

Filing your Income Tax Return (ITR) is an important part of being a taxpayer. Every year, individuals and businesses declare their income, deductions, and taxes paid to the government through the ITR. The Income Tax Department uses this information to check if you have paid the right amount of tax.

After filing and verifying your ITR, the income tax department starts processing it. However, sometimes, when the income tax department finds some mismatches or incomplete information in your return, it may be treated as a defective return.

What is Defective Return?

A defective return is a return that has been identified as having mistakes or incomplete information by the Income Tax Department. If a return is found to be defective, the assessing officer may intimate the defect to the taxpayer and give him/her a chance to correct the error within 15 days from the date of intimation. However, this time period can be extended on the request of the assessee by filing an application to the assessing officer. In case the assessing officer does not take any action against the extension application filed by the taxpayer, then it is considered that the assessing officer has allowed the taxpayer for the date extension.

When is a Return Considered Defective?

A return can be treated as defective by the income tax department in the following situations:

Incomplete Information: If a taxpayer does not fill in all the required information in the ITR. Taxpayers should not skip any field, row, or column in the ITR form, even if something does not apply to them. If a particular schedule or section does not apply to you, just mark it as “NA” (Not Applicable) or write “NA”. If a field requires a number but the value is zero, write “NIL”.

Incomplete Documents: While filing ITR, taxpayers are required to furnish certain documents like statements, reports, proof of tax payment, and accounts. If a taxpayer fails to submit these crucial documents, their ITR will be treated as a defective return.

Is Defective Return Same as Invalid Return?

The defective return is different from an invalid return. A defective return is not always an invalid return. A defective return is a return that has errors or incomplete information. If the taxpayer does not correct the defect within the specified time, their ITR will be treated as an invalid return as if it was never filed.