India’s Income Tax Department has revealed that more than 7 crore Income Tax Returns (ITRs) have been filed so far for Assessment Year 2025-26, as of September 15. The figure continues to climb. The department expressed its thanks to taxpayers and tax professionals for their cooperation and urged those who have not yet filed to make use of additional time to complete the process.

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) late on Monday night (15th September), made a last-minute decision due to technical glitches and high traffic on the e-filing portal on September 15, the ITR filing deadline has been extended by one day ,now September 16, 2025 is the final date to file without incurring penalties.

Those who miss the September 16 deadline will be required to pay a late fee of ₹5,000 under Section 234F of the Income TaxAct. For taxpayers with income below ₹5 lakh, the penalty is restricted to ₹1,000. In addition to the monetary fine, late filing also has other consequences such as loss of the option to carry forward certain losses, possible delays in refund processing, and the chance of closer examination by the tax department.

To support the surge in filing and help address problems, the department’s helpdesk remains active 24×7, offering assistance via calls, live chat, WebEx sessions, and social media (e.g., Twitter/X). Whether it’s clarifying deductions, helping with tax payments, or resolving login or portal-utility issues, support is being amplified during this critical period.

Officials explained that the deadline was earlier pushed from July 31 to September 15 because the income tax return (ITR) forms and related systems had undergone major changes this year. These “structural and content revisions,” notified in April and May, required updates to the online filing utilities as well as the back-end processing system.

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