If you've been putting off filing your ITR, now is not the time to delay — the income tax portal is showing login failures, filing errors, and payment glitches with just days left. Missing the July 31 deadline means a late filing fee of up to ₹5,000, and your refund — if you're owed one — could get stuck for months. No extension has been announced, so assume the deadline holds.
What this means for you
- File after July 31 and you'll owe ₹1,000–₹5,000 as a late fee depending on your income — money you didn't need to spend.
- Refunds for late filers go to the back of the queue — that ₹10,000–₹20,000 you're owed could take 6+ months to arrive.
- Portal issues are on the government's radar, but fixes aren't guaranteed — try filing today, not July 30.
What you can do
- Try filing early morning or after 11 PM — portal traffic is lower then and it's less likely to crash.
- If a payment fails, screenshot the error with the timestamp — this has helped taxpayers contest penalties in past years.
You're ahead just by knowing this today — don't hand over ₹5,000 because the portal was busy.