In case you have paid more tax than what you actually owe for a financial year, you are entitled to receive an income tax refund after you file the income tax return (ITR) for that year. However, the income tax refund will only be issued after the tax department processes your ITR and sends you an intimation notice confirming it. This intimation notice is issued under section 143 (1) of the Income-tax Act, 1961. This year, the returns need to be filed for FY 2023-24 (AY 2024-25) with the current deadline being July 31, 2024.
The refund for income tax is processed by the State Bank of India (SBI) and is directly deposited into the bank account that the taxpayer has designated in their ITR at the time of filing. Therefore, it is crucial to double-check that the correct bank account number and IFS code have been provided. Additionally, it is important to have the bank account pre-validated on the government’s new income tax e-filing portal and to link the PAN with the bank account.
Also Read: How to pre-validate bank account to receive income tax refund
How to track status of income tax refund
You can track the income tax refund on:
a) The new income tax portal or
b) The NSDL website
How to check income tax refund status on e-filing tax portal
The income tax refund status can be tracked on the tax department’s e-filing portal by following the steps below:1. Visit www.incometax.gov.in and log in to your account by entering PAN/Aadhaar number as user ID, and your password.
2. After logging in click on ‘e-file’ option. Under the ‘e-file’ option, select ‘Income tax returns’ and then select ‘View Filed returns’.
3. Check the latest ITR filed. For FY 2023-24, the latest ITR filed (presuming you have already filed it) will be for AY 2024-24. Select ‘View Details’ option. Once selected, it will show the status of ITR filed. It will also show you the date of issue of tax refund, the amount refunded and date of clearance for any refund due for this AY.
Different income tax refund status
Refund issued
Refund partially adjusted
Refund fully adjusted
Refund failed
Reasons for failure of ITR refund
As per the Income Tax Department’s website, these are the reasons for the failure of refund:
- If your PAN is inoperative, your refund will get failed and you will see a warning message to link your PAN with the Aadhaar.
- In case the bank account is not pre-validated. It is now compulsory to pre-validate your bank account.
- The name mentioned in the bank account does not match with PAN card details.
- In case of an invalid IFSC code.
- If the account that you have mentioned in the ITR has been closed.
Check tax refund status on TIN NSDL website
Another way to track income tax refund is by checking its status on the NSDL website. Do keep in mind that on this website, the taxpayer can view the status of the refund 10 days after the refund has been sent by the Assessing Officer to the refund banker.
Follow the steps below to track your income tax refund on the TIN NSDL website:
1. Visit: https://tin.tin.nsdl.com/oltas/refundstatuslogin.html
2. Enter your PAN details
3. Select the relevant assessment year for which you want to check the refund status. For FY 2022-23, the assessment year will be 2023-24.
4. Enter the captcha code and click on submit. Depending on the status of your refund, a message will be displayed on your screen.
What the status message means
The message you will receive will depend on the income tax refund status. The message displayed will be one of the following:
- Refund is credited: If the income tax refund is successfully credited into your bank account, then this message will be displayed. It will also show you the last four digits of the bank account, reference numbers as well as the date of refund.
Also read: How to claim income tax refund when filing ITR
In case refund is not credited to your bank account, then you can:
Write a letter and send it to: State Bank of India at Survey No.21 Opposite Hyderabad Central University, Main Gate, Gachibowli, Hyderabad -50001.
Send an email to itro@sbi.co.in
Call the SBI call centre at 18004259760\
- Refund Returned: This message will be displayed when your income tax refund is not credited into the bank account. Reasons for this can include wrong IFS code or bank account number, account becoming dormant/inactive due to lack of use.
- Adjusted against outstanding demand of previous year: The income tax department can adjust your income tax refund for the current year against outstanding demand of the previous assessment year either in part or full. The tax department has full authority, under section 245, to do this. However, such an action can be done only after giving an intimation in writing to the taxpayer regarding the action proposed to be taken.
Income tax refund re-issue request
If the bank details you provided are incorrect and your income tax refund cannot be credited to your bank account, you have the option to request a re-issue of the refund on the new income tax portal. You can only do this if your income tax refund credit has not been successful. To initiate the request, go to ‘Services’ and select ‘Refund Reissue’. You will need to choose the specific ITR for which the income tax refund was not credited, provide the correct bank account details, and then verify the information to submit the request.
Also read: Income tax refund: How to raise refund reissue request; a step-by-step guide