Filed ITR for AY 2019-20? Here’s How You Can Check the Status of Your Returns

With the deadline to file income-tax returns (ITR) for assessment year 2019-20 over on 31 August 2019, the focus for taxpayers now shifts to tracking the status of returns.

It is important to note that taxpayers can only check the ITR status once they have filed their IT returns and have also verified them within 120 days of uploading the returns.

Checking the status of your income-tax refund is easy. The taxpayer can simply log in to the income tax department’s e-filing website with his/her user ID and password. Then click on ‘View Returns and Forms’ on the display page. From the drop-down menu, go to select 'Income Tax Returns' and then select the last assessment year. The status is then displayed on the screen.

If it says ‘submitted and pending for verification’, it means ITR has been filed but not verified yet by the taxpayer. If the status shows ‘successfully verified or verified’, it means that the taxpayer has verified his/her ITR, but it has not been processed yet by the income-tax department. If it shows ‘processed’, it means that the ITR has been cleared by the income-tax department and the refund, if any, will be issued soon. A status like ‘Defective’ or ‘Transferred to Assessing Officer’ would need a further follow-up action.

Also, from this year, taxpayers will have to make sure that they have pre-validated their bank accounts in which they wish to receive the income-tax refund, either while filing their ITR or after their return is filed.

Apart from pre-validating the bank account, taxpayers are also required to link their PAN with the bank accounts as well. If their PAN is not linked with the bank account, then they are not eligible to receive any income tax refund. To link PAN with the bank account, taxpayers will need to visit their nearest bank branch.

The income tax department had previously announced that from 1 March 2019, it will issue only e-refunds. These tax refunds will be credited only to those bank accounts which are linked with PAN and are also pre-validated on the income tax e-filing website, i.e., www.incometaxefiling.gov.in.