ITR Filing AY 2026-27: Key Changes, New Due Dates & CA Checklist

These Forms Are Still Under ITA 1961 — Why That Matters

The Income Tax Act 2025 takes effect for Tax Year 2026-27 (FY 2026-27, starting April 2026). AY 2026-27 covers income earned in FY 2025-26 — which is still assessed under ITA 1961. That means:

• Section references on these returns use the old ITA 1961 numbering (194C, 44AD, etc.).
• Form 16 (not Form 130) applies for TDS certificates for FY 2025-26.
• The "Assessment Year" field remains — the Tax Year concept does not apply yet.

CAs should be careful not to use ITA 2025 section numbers on AY 2026-27 returns. That transition starts with returns for Tax Year 2026-27.

Which ITR Form for Which Income Type

Key Changes Per Form — AY 2026-27

Schedule AL Change: What the ₹1 Crore Threshold Means

Schedule AL (Assets and Liabilities) is mandatory when total income exceeds a threshold. For AY 2026-27, that threshold has been raised from the earlier limit to ₹1 crore. If a client's gross total income is below ₹1 crore, Schedule AL disclosure is not required in their return.

For CAs, this reduces Schedule AL compliance work for a significant chunk of individual filers. However, if a client crosses ₹1 crore due to a one-time capital gain or business income, they must still complete the full asset and liability disclosure — including immovable property, financial assets, and loans.

ITR-U: The 48-Month Updated Return Window

ITR-U (Updated Return) now allows taxpayers to file a corrected return up to 48 months after the end of the relevant assessment year. The additional tax payable increases with delay:

Additional tax is on the incremental tax payable in the updated return, not on total income. ITR-U cannot be used to claim a refund or reduce tax liability — only to declare additional income.

Documents Your Clients Need to Provide for AY 2026-27

Send clients this checklist 3–4 weeks before the filing deadline. Glomiq lets you generate personalised document request letters from a single template in under 2 minutes.

• Form 16 (Part A and Part B) from employer(s)
• Form 16A from all TDS deductors (bank interest, rent, professional payments received)
• AIS / Form 26AS downloaded from income tax portal (cross-check all entries)
• Bank statements for all accounts — FY 2025-26
• Capital gains statement from broker / mutual fund house (if applicable)
• Buy-back proceeds and cost of acquisition (new field in ITR-2/3)
• House property loan certificate (for interest deduction)
• Rent receipts and landlord PAN (if HRA claimed)
• Section 80C investment proofs (LIC, PPF, ELSS, home loan principal)
• Section 80D health insurance premium receipts
• Details of all assets and liabilities (if income exceeds ₹1 crore — Schedule AL)
• Previous year ITR copy (for carry-forward loss verification)

How Glomiq Automates AY 2026-27 Client Communications

Every ITR season involves sending the same three types of documents to dozens of clients: document request letters, ITR computation summaries, and advisory letters. With Glomiq:

• Document request letter: Upload your standard checklist letter once. Generate personalised versions for each client in 60 seconds — with their name, PAN, applicable form, and deadline.
• ITR computation summary: Build a computation template. Fill client-specific income, deduction, and tax figures. Download a formatted computation sheet in 2 minutes.
• Tax advisory letter: Template the advisory with conditional sections (e.g., include ITR-U section only for clients with missed income from prior years). Generate the right version automatically.

500+ CAs use Glomiq to cut document generation time from 40 minutes per client to under 2 minutes. At 80 clients per ITR season, that recovers 50+ hours of billable time.

Frequently Asked Questions

The ITR-3 deadline is 31 August 2026 — does that apply to all ITR-3 filers?

The 31 August 2026 extended deadline applies specifically to non-audit business and professional filers using ITR-3. If the taxpayer is subject to tax audit (turnover above ₹1 crore for business or ₹50 lakh for professionals), the audit deadline remains 31 October 2026. Non-audit ITR-3 filers previously had to file by 31 July — the one-month extension is for them.

My client has 2 self-occupied house properties. Do they need to file ITR-2 this year?

No — for AY 2026-27, ITR-1 now accommodates up to 2 house properties. If both properties are self-occupied and the client has no capital gains or foreign income, ITR-1 (Sahaj) is sufficient, provided total income stays below ₹50 lakh. This is a significant simplification introduced in the corrigendum of 10 April 2026.

Can a client file ITR-U for AY 2021-22 this year?

The 48-month window means the last date for AY 2021-22 ITR-U would be 31 March 2027 (48 months from the end of AY 2021-22, i.e., 31 March 2023). Yes — if the window is still open and they have additional income to declare, they can file with +70% additional tax. Confirm the window is still open and that no assessment order has been issued before advising.