The sooner you file your income tax returns, the sooner you will get the refund, if any. As time goes on, the tax department has more returns to handle, which might slow down your refund. Nevertheless, there could be various other factors causing delays in getting your expected refund. Read on to know the reasons why your income tax refund might be delayed and what you to do if your refund is delayed.
What is an Income Tax Refund?
When you have paid more taxes than you were required to pay by way of TDS, TCS or advance tax, you get the additional amount paid as a tax refund. It's like receiving a refund for overpaying.
- TDS, TCS or advance tax > Final Tax Amount = Tax Refund
- Final Tax Amount > TDS, TCS or advance tax = Balance Tax Payable
For instance, if a taxpayer has paid Rs. 10,000 in taxes for the financial year 2023-2024, yet their actual tax liability is only Rs. 8,000, they are eligible for a refund of Rs. 2,000 from the Income Tax Department. Once the income tax return is filed and it has been verified, the income tax department will initiate the processing of the tax return. After the tax return is processed, it will take around four to five weeks for the refund to get credited to the bank account of the taxpayer.
Reasons Why the Refund is delayed and How to Handle it?
There can be many reasons for your refund not reaching you. Here is a table of reasons and the action plans you need to follow in each of those cases.
| Reasons why the refund not received | Action Plans |
| Refund request rejected. As per the IT department, you owe them taxes. | The department will compute the tax liability and compare it to the calculations you provided in your tax return. If they find any differences and it turns out you still owe taxes, you might get a notice from the department stating the amount you need to pay. If this happens, take a look at all your documents and double-check the taxes you owe and the refund you're supposed to get. - If the numbers you entered in your tax return are right, you can file a rectification return under Section 139(4) to explain your case. |
| Wrong Bank Account number | Reconfirm the bank details you have entered while filing your taxes |
| Bank Account not pre-validated | Refunds are credited only to a pre-validated bank account. make sure to pre-validate your bank account on the income tax e-filing portal. Check the steps here. |
| Incorrect name in Bank Account: | The name on your bank account needs to be exactly the same as the name on your tax return. If the names don't match, your tax refund will not get credited to your bank account. |
| Bank account details provided to the IT department while filing returns have changed. | If the refund could not get credited to the bank account then to resolve the issue, raise the grievance in the income tax portal. In certain cases, the income tax department may ask you to raise a refund reissue request. Otherwise, it may ask you to attach the latest bank details along with other required information to e-mail at orm@cpc.incometax.gov.in. |
| Refund request under process. The delay could be the IT department is taking time to process your request. | Due to huge volume of returns, it may take some time to process your return. You can check the status of you refund here. 1. Make sure that you have e-verified your return within 30 days from the date of filing your return. 2. Also, check whether the IFSC code is valid. A bank might have undergone a merger and there has been a change in the IFSC code. In case you have failed to update the same, update it and pre-validate your bank details. |
| Return Under Scrutiny | The Income Tax Department selects some returns for scrutiny to ensure accuracy and compliance. If your return gets picked for scrutiny, it could slightly slow down the refund process until they finish the assessment. |
| Mismatch in Form 26AS | Form 26AS is a summary of all the taxes you've paid under your PAN number. If the TDS information in your tax return doesn't match with what's in Form 26AS, it might lead to a delay in getting your refund. |
| Filing returns through offline and not online. | Processing physical filing forms takes time. Wait for the IT department to reconcile the paperwork. |
What to do if you have Not Received the Refund yet?
Please reach out to the IT department to have your refund-reissue. When getting in touch with the IT department, ensure you provide them with your PAN, the assessment year for which the refund was issued, and the exact refund amount. You have the option to contact the IT department through phone, mail, or their e-filing portal.
Here's how you can raise a refund re-issue request:
- Visit the e-filing portal and log in to your account
- Navigate to "My Account" section
- Select “Refund Re-issue” then click on and "create Refund Reissue Request”
- Fill in the necessary details, including your PAN, assessment year, and refund amount
- e-Verify
- Submit the refund re-issue request
How to Check your Refund Status on Income Tax Portal?
If you have not received the refund yet, check the refund status by logging in to income tax e-filing portal. Follow the below steps to view the refund status:-
Step 1: Visit the income tax e-filing portal and log in to your account using the log in credentials.
Step 2: Click on ‘e-File’>‘Income Tax Returns’>’View Filed Returns’.
Step 3: Go to the relevant assessment year for which you want to check the refund and check the ITR status. In the given screenshot below, you can check the refund status of the assessment year 2024-25. To view the details, you can click on ‘View details’.
Step 4: The status of your refund will be displayed in a new window along with the information.
If your ITR is processed but refund is not issued, it will show status ‘Processed with refund due’. It normally takes 20 to 45 days after the ITR processing to receive the refund amount.
You can also visit the tin-nsdl website (https://tin.tin.nsdl.com/oltas/refundstatuslogin.html) to check the income tax refund status. The refund status will be displayed after you enter the PAN, relevant assessment year and the captcha code in the above link.
What is the Status if Income tax Refund is Received?
The status will be ‘refund issued’ when the refund is received. And you can find all the refund details, such as mode of payment, refund amount, and the clearance date, as shown below.
Related articles:
Process to claim income tax refund
How to claim TDS refund
Income Tax Refund
