Income Tax Audit Report Due Date: ICAI CIRC seeks Extension citing "Complexities, Operational Challenges"

In a representation addressed to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, CIRC remarked that taxpayers and professionals continue to face significant operational hurdles in meeting the statutory deadline of 30th September 2025.

According to the ICAI’s regional body, while the recent extension of the income tax return (ITR) filing deadline for individuals to 15th September 2025 was a welcome step, the timelines for tax audits remain constraining. The CIRC emphasized that complexities in reporting, overlapping regulatory requirements, and persistent technical bottlenecks on the Income Tax e-filing portal are creating severe challenges for professionals and stakeholders.

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The letter underlined that the compliance calendar from July to October is unusually crowded. During this period, taxpayers and firms are expected to manage GST filings, company law obligations, MCA annual returns, and sector-specific regulatory submissions in addition to income tax compliance. This convergence of deadlines, the council said, is creating workflow pressures that impede accurate and timely tax audit filings.

The CIRC also flagged that systemic and technical issues on the e-filing portal have compounded the difficulties. Professionals report frequent glitches and delays in uploading forms, further constraining their ability to comply within the statutory deadline. Such bottlenecks, coupled with the late release of updated ITR forms, have narrowed the effective working window available to professionals.

In its appeal, the ICAI CIRC has requested the Ministry to extend the due date for filing tax audit reports for FY 2024-25 from 30th September 2025 to 31st December 2025. The council argued that this extension would provide much-needed relief to both taxpayers and professionals, ensuring statutory requirements are met efficiently and without compromising accuracy.

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The representation was signed by CA Ankur Kumar Gupta, Chairman of CIRC, and CA Jayendra Kumar Tiwary, Secretary of CIRC. They expressed hope that the Ministry would consider the request in the interest of smooth administration and compliance.

The ICAI, established under the Chartered Accountants Act, 1949, is the statutory body responsible for regulating the Chartered Accountancy profession in India. Through its five regional councils, it represents the concerns of tax professionals across the country. The latest request by its Central India Regional Council reflects the widespread concerns within the profession about the feasibility of meeting current statutory timelines without additional support from the government.

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