Govt to review new ITR Forms, make them simple

There has been criticism of the new ITR forms with experts and consultants saying government was seeking too much data.

The decision comes in the wake of difficulties expressed by various sections and tax experts on the new ITR forms. Photo by: K. Gopinathan

Government today announced that new Income Tax Return (ITR) Forms that require disclosure of details regarding bank accounts and foreign trips undertaken by an individual will be reconsidered, a move that comes after criticism from tax experts and others.

It will come out with simplified ITR forms, it was officially announced.

“The Finance Minister has called me from Washington and said the whole matter related to new ITR form will be reconsidered. The government will simplify the ITR form,” Revenue Secretary Shaktikanta Das told PTI.

He said this decision comes in the wake of difficulties expressed by various sections and tax experts on the new ITR forms relation to financial year 2014-15.

There has been criticism of the new forms with experts and consultants saying government was seeking too much data.

They felt that the addition of new information would make process of filing returns difficult.

Yesterday, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), the apex policy making body of the Income Tax department, notified the new ITR forms for the current assessment year, seeking additional details to check the menace of black money.

As it stands, the new ITR forms, including the ITR-1 and ITR-2, require an assessee to furnish the number of bank accounts held by the individual “at any time (including opened/closed) during the previous year” with the last balance in the account on March 31 of the just—concluded fiscal.

The assessee will also have to furnish the name of the bank, account numbers, their address, IFSC code and any possible joint account holder.