What is Section 234F?
In the budget of 2017, Our Indian Government added a new section to the income tax act. Section 234F, this section penalizes those taxpayers who file their income tax returns lately. In case of delay in filing income tax returns, for any taxpayer whose income is more than the exemption limits, a penalty as per section 234F is applied. If any individual does not file income tax returns in the defined time then he/she has to deposit a late fee while filing income tax returns under section 234F of income tax act. The penalty fee depends on the time of filing ITR and net income. From the financial year 2021, The maximum penalty amount is reduced to Rs.5,000.
Late filing penalties under section 234f
- If the total income of an individual is more than Rs.5,000 lakh then the penalty of Rs.5,000 is levied under section 234F.
- If the total income of an individual is less than Rs.5,000 lakh, then the penalty of Rs.1,000 is imposed under section 234F of income tax act.
For your better understanding, a list of late fees is given below-
| E- Filing Date | Total income Below Rs 5, 00,000 | Total income Above Rs 5, 00,000 |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 31st July | Rs 0 | Rs. 0 |
| Between 1st August2021to 31st December 2021 | Rs 1,000 | Rs 5,000 |
| Between 1st January 2022 to 31st March 2022 | Rs 1,000 | Rs 10,000 |
The eligible taxpayers under section 234F
All the individuals, HUFs (Hindu Undivided Family), Corporations, Companies, firms, LLP, AOP, etc will be covered under section 234F. All the above-mentioned firms and individuals are liable to pay the late fee for filing income tax returns on the due date.
Late fee for the due filing of ITR u/s 234F
As mentioned above, If any individual files income tax returns on the due date then he/she will be imposed a penalty for late filing under section 234F of income tax act. This section 234F was implemented on the 1st of April 2017. Filing income tax after the due date may attract penalties up to Rs.5,000. Earlier the amount penalty was Rs.10,000. If the total income of an individual is more than Rs.5,000 lakh then the penalty of Rs.5,000 is imposed under section 234F but If the total income of an individual is below Rs.5,000 lakh, then the penalty of Rs.1,000 is imposed under section 234F. If the total income of an individual is less than 2.5 lakhs then the late filing penalty will be nothing.
Let's try to understand it with an example- Suppose, Mrs. Anita is a salaried person and she forgot to file income tax returns within the prescribed time for F.Y. 2020-21. Her net income is Rs.7,20,000 per annum. Her employer deducted TDS from her salary and she now decides to file her income tax on the 12th of March 2022. On account of deducting TDS from her salary yet, she will be penalized for the late filing of income tax returns. As her salary is more than Rs.5 lakh so as per section 234F, the Penalty fee will be Rs. 5,000.
