ITR e-Verification: Received an e-verification notice? Here's what you can do next

ITR e-Verification: The income tax filing season is about to start and to encourage voluntary tax compliance and facilitate a transparent and non-intrusive tax administration, the Income Tax Department (ITD) recently tweeted about e-Verification Scheme, 2021.

According to a recent tweet of ITD, 68,000 cases from FY 2019–20 were selected for e-Verification on a pilot basis and approximately 35,000 cases of were completed, stated a Press Information Bureau press release.

e-Verification Scheme has been introduced by ITD to encourage voluntary tax compliance & facilitate a transparent & non-intrusive tax administration.

Using technology, information of such financial transaction is shared with taxpayers as is unreported/under-reported in the ITR. pic.twitter.com/TcNsfBtUD0

— Income Tax India (@IncomeTaxIndia) March 13, 2023

“On a pilot basis, in about 68,000 cases, information of financial transactions pertaining to FY 2019-20 has been taken up for e-Verification. Details of the transactions have been initially shared with the individual taxpayer through an e-campaign. So far, e-Verification has been completed by the designated Directorate in approximately 35,000 cases, and the remaining is under verification,” the PIB said in a release dated March 13, 2023. 

What is e-Verification?

Under the e-Verification Scheme, 2021, the ITD aims to verify and share such financial transaction information with taxpayers which appears to be unreported in the Income Tax Return (ITR) filed by the taxpayer. The taxpayers through the e-Verification process get a chance to match the information received from financial institutions with the information provided in the ITR by taxpayers and if necessary, file an updated ITR. 

How does the e-Verification process work? 

The process of e-Verification is digital, with notices issued electronically and responses by the taxpayers also submitted electronically. On completion of the inquiry, a verification report is prepared electronically without any physical interface with the taxpayer.

ITD collects information of financial transactions from multiple sources and shares a portion of it with the taxpayer in the 26AS statement. 

"Earlier, a part of it was shared with the taxpayer in the 26AS Statement. However, with a view to effectively utilize the data collected from various sources, the entire information is now displayed to the taxpayer through the Annual Information Statement (AIS). 
The AIS provides a facility to the taxpayer to object to any information if the Source has misreported any such information. The Department confirms the said information with the Source and if the Source states that there is no error, the said information is subjected to risk assessment for e-Verification," the PIB said in the release.

What to do when taxpayers get an e-Verification notice? 

The notice issued under the e-Verification scheme will be visible to taxpayers in the Compliance Portal (accessible through https://eportal.incometax.gov.in). 

Usually, one also gets an alert through SMS on their registered mobile phone and registered email address.

The steps involved in accessing the notice and filing the response electronically are: 

Step 1: Taxpayers can log in to the e-filing portal by using the URL https://eportal.incometax.gov.in/ Step 2:Go to “Pending Actions” tab, click on “Compliance Portal” and select “e-Verification” 

Step 3: Click on applicable Financial Year 

Step 4: Click on the 'DIN' to download the notice. 

Step 5: Click on 'Submit' link to provide the response. 

Step 6: Enter the remarks, attach the supporting document, and click on "Submit" to submit the response to the notice. 

What should taxpayers do if their transaction is incorrectly recorded or which does not pertain to the specified person? 

Once taxpayers viewing information under AIS should click on specific information. Once the information details are seen, on the right click on the feedback button using which taxpayers can provide feedback from the menu options available. 

Is the e-Verification Scheme same as the e-Verification of return? 

According to the ITD website, The e-Verification Scheme 2021 is totally different from the e-Verification of return.

Catch the latest stock market updates here. For all other news related to business, politics, tech, sports and auto, visit Zeebiz.com.