Deadline for Income Tax Audit Report Extended to October 7

The deadline for submitting the income tax audit report has been extended to October 7, as opposed to the initial deadline of September 30. The requirement for filing this audit report is to submit it online through the e-filing ITR portal. Failing to comply with this requirement could result in a penalty amounting to ₹1.5 lakh or 0.5% of total sales, whichever is less.

In a circular issued by the Income Tax Department, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) announced its decision to extend the filing deadline. The circular stated, “Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has decided to extend the specified date for filing of various reports of audit for the Previous Year 2023-24, which was 30th September, 2024 in the case of assessees referred in clause (a) of Explanation 2 to sub-section (1) of section 139 of the Act, to 07th October 2024.”

The extension applies to specific categories of taxpayers. These include individuals, companies, and other assessees who are required to conduct a tax audit and file their income tax return by October 31. The tax audit report, originally due by September 30, is now expected by October 7.

The CBDT noted in the circular, “On consideration of difficulties faced by the taxpayers and other stakeholders in electronic filing of various reports of audit under the provisions of the Income-tax Act, 1961 (Act), the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), in exercise of its powers under Section 119 of the Act, extends the specified date of furnishing of report of audit.”