Income Tax Return Filing AY 2026-27: Government notifies ITR forms, know from when will you be able to file returns.:The Income Tax Department has already notified forms such as ITR-1 (Sahaj), ITR-2, ITR-4 (Sugam), and ITR-6. This means that the return format for this year is ready.

News Topical, Digital Desk : With the start of the new financial year on April 1, the government has released all ITR forms for Assessment Year (AY) 2026-27. This marks the beginning of the upcoming filing season. Taxpayers can begin filing their returns this month.

The Income Tax Department has already notified forms such as ITR-1 (Sahaj), ITR-2, ITR-4 (Sugam), and ITR-6. Shortly thereafter, utilities (first offline and then online) will be launched to help taxpayers file their returns. Now that the ITR forms have been notified, the utilities will also be implemented soon.

According to a News18 report, an income tax practitioner, speaking on condition of anonymity, said, "Typically, ITR filing begins in April. Last year, major changes to income tax rules—including LTCG, STCG, and indexation—caused a delay. This time, since the Income Tax Department has already notified tax return forms, ITR filing is expected to begin this month. However, salaried individuals should wait for their Form 16 before filing ITR for AY2026-27."

Keep this in mind

It's important to note that even though the Income Tax Act, 2025, which came into effect on April 1, replaced the 1961 Act, since you're paying tax on income for the financial year 2025-26, the rules in effect for that year will apply. This means that the Income Tax Act, 1961, will guide this return. The new 2025 Act will apply to income earned after April 1, 2026. Taxpayers will still see terms like 'Previous Year' and 'Assessment Year', which have been part of the system for decades; these terms will replace the proposed new 'Tax Year'. It's worth noting that this year's ITR deadline will remain July 31.