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In a major relief for taxpayers and chartered accountants across the country, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has extended the deadline for filing Income Tax Returns (ITRs) for Assessment Year 2025-26 by one day. The new deadline is now September 16, 2025, instead of the earlier cut-off of September 15.
This last-minute extension was announced after persistent complaints of glitches on the Income Tax Department’s e-filing portal, which disrupted the filing process for lakhs of taxpayers in the final days before the deadline. Users reported portal slowdowns, login errors, and difficulties while uploading or downloading crucial documents such as the Annual Information Statement (AIS). Many professionals also noted that even advance tax payment modules were facing disruptions.
The ITR deadline had already been extended once earlier. Traditionally, non-audit taxpayers are required to file their returns by July 31. However, this year, the government had extended the date to September 15, 2025, owing to technical updates and heavy traffic on the e-filing system. The latest announcement provides an additional 24 hours, moving the final cut-off to September 16.
The decision reflects the government’s recognition of the practical challenges faced by taxpayers and tax professionals due to portal instability. While over 7.3 crore ITRs had already been filed by September 15 — surpassing last year’s filing figures of 7.28 crore — lakhs of users were still left stranded due to last-minute glitches.
According to the official notification, the e-filing portal would also undergo a scheduled maintenance window between midnight and 2:30 AM on September 16, in order to implement updates and ensure smoother functioning for the remaining filers. The Department reassured taxpayers that efforts were being made to address the complaints swiftly.
The Income Tax Department also issued troubleshooting guidelines for taxpayers facing access issues. Among the suggested solutions were:
Clearing browser cache and cookies.
Using incognito or private browsing modes.
Switching to a different web browser.
Disabling ad-blockers or extensions that might interfere with the portal.
Trying an alternative internet connection in case of connectivity bottlenecks.
These measures, the Department explained, could help resolve common problems faced by users on the platform.
Despite the extension, many chartered accountants expressed frustration, pointing out that a one-day relief may not be enough to clear the massive backlog of pending filings. With thousands of clients depending on timely submissions, CAs were already working extended hours to meet the September 15 deadline. Technical snags, they argued, added unnecessary stress to the process.
Professional bodies have been urging the government to strengthen the robustness of the e-filing portal and consider more reasonable extensions during peak filing seasons. This demand has grown louder in recent years, as the volume of taxpayers filing electronically continues to rise.
The ITR filing deadline is crucial because missing it can attract penalties and interest charges. For most individual taxpayers, the penalty ranges from ₹1,000 to ₹5,000 depending on their income bracket. In addition, late filers lose the ability to carry forward certain losses.
The CBDT’s decision to extend the deadline by one day thus provides a narrow but significant window for those who were unable to complete their filing due to technical problems. It also reflects the government’s sensitivity to the difficulties caused by last-minute system overloads.
The extension underscores the growing importance of digital infrastructure in India’s tax administration. With over 7 crore taxpayers now relying on the online filing system, the robustness and reliability of the e-portal are critical to ensuring compliance.
Experts believe that long-term improvements in system capacity, server management, and real-time troubleshooting support will be necessary to prevent such disruptions in the future. While the additional day is welcome, many argue that more proactive planning could spare taxpayers and professionals the last-minute scramble.
The new ITR filing deadline of September 16, 2025, offers taxpayers one final opportunity to complete their submissions without penalty. While the technical glitches have once again raised questions about the resilience of the e-filing infrastructure, the extension ensures that genuine filers are not unfairly penalized for circumstances beyond their control.
As the deadline approaches, the Income Tax Department has urged taxpayers to avoid waiting until the last moment and to complete their filings as soon as possible.