You can now file revised ITRs up to March 31
01 Feb 2026

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has announced several changes in direct tax rules.

The new measures, aimed at simplifying compliance and improving transparency, are set to ease the burden on small taxpayers.

The tax filing deadline for non-audit trusts has been extended to August 31. However, salaried taxpayers will continue to file by July 31 as before.

TDS on sale of immovable property by non-residents
Compliance updates

The filing deadline for ITR-1 and ITR-2 will also remain July 31.

To tighten compliance, the government has proposed mandatory TDS on sale of immovable property by non-residents.

The supply of manpower services will also come under the TDS mechanism.

Sitharaman said that the government is considering staggering tax return filing timelines to ease system load and taxpayer congestion.

Revised ITRs up to March 31
Revision extension

The Budget has proposed extending the time limit to revise income tax returns up to March 31, subject to a nominal fee. This move is aimed at providing relief to taxpayers who miss earlier deadlines.

New income tax return forms to be notified shortly
Tax reduction

On overseas spending, Sitharaman announced that the TCS rate under the Liberalized Remittance Scheme (LRS) will be lowered to 2% for education and medical purposes.

She also revealed that the new income tax return forms under the proposed legislation will be notified shortly.

The New Income Tax Act is set to come into effect from April 1, with corresponding forms and procedures to be rolled out ahead of implementation.

Old tax regime continues with age-based exemptions
Tax structure

Last year, Sitharaman revamped the income tax structure by widening the slabs under the new tax regime and raising the basic exemption limit to ₹4 lakh.

However, no changes were made in this year's budget announcement.

The old tax regime continues with age-based exemptions: ₹2.5 lakh for individuals below 60 years, ₹3 lakh for resident senior citizens, and finally ₹5 lakh for super senior citizens aged above 80 years.