Income Tax Dept enables AY2026-27 return filing for individuals, small businesses

The Income Tax Department has enabled online filing along with Excel utilities for ITR-1 and ITR-4 forms for AY 2026-27 on its e-filing portal.

Written by: Hritika Mitra Edited by: Hritika Mitra

Published: May 15, 2026, 12:37 PM IST

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https://www.india.com/business/income-tax-return-filing-itr-1-sahaj-itr-4-sugam-ay2026-2027-individuals-small-businesses-8415523/ Copy

Income Tax- Representational image

The Income Tax Department enabled online filing and Excel utilities for ITR-1 and ITR-4 forms for AY 2026-27 on its e-filing portal, kicking off this year’s tax return filing process for individuals and small businesses on Friday (May 15).

Income Tax Department announces e-filing on portal

In a post on X, the department said taxpayers can now file returns using the ITR-1 (Sahaj) and ITR-4 (Sugam) forms through the official portal. The Income Tax Department announced, “The Excel utility and online filing for ITR-1 and ITR-4 for AY 2026-27 have been enabled and are now available for taxpayers on the e-filing portal.”

Attention taxpayers!
The Excel utility and Online filing for ITR-1 and ITR-4 for AY 2026-27 has been enabled and is now available for taxpayers on the e-Filing portal.@nsitharamanoffc @officeofPCM @FinMinIndia @PIB_India

— Income Tax India (@IncomeTaxIndia) May 15, 2026

Taxpayers who are eligible can visit the official e-filing portal, download the relevant forms, complete them, create a JSON file and submit it online after cross-checking all details.

With this rollout, the income tax return filing process for FY 2025-26 has formally begun, giving taxpayers enough time to file their returns ahead of the July 31 due date for non-audit cases.

Also Read: New Income Tax rules to be effective from 1 April; What’s new with your PAN cards, Form 16, HRA, ITRs, and Meal Cards? All you need to know

The Excel-based utilities allow taxpayers to prepare returns offline before uploading them digitally.

Details on using ITR-1 and ITR-4

Known as ‘Sahaj’, the ITR-1 form is meant for resident taxpayers with annual income of up to Rs 50 lakh earned through salary, pension, interest, two house properties and limited agricultural income. Individuals with long-term capital gains up to Rs 1.25 lakh under Section 112A can also use this form.

Meanwhile, known as ‘Sugam’, ITR-4 can be filed by resident individuals, HUFs and eligible firms (excluding LLPs) with annual income up to Rs 50 lakh under the presumptive taxation provisions of Sections 44AD, 44ADA and 44AE.

Also Read: Income Tax Draft Rules 2026: PAN limits raised for cash deposits, withdrawals and property deals – What it means for you

These utilities for the two commonly used forms have been made available ahead of the July 31 deadline for individuals who are not required to undergo a tax audit.

The department follows a phased rollout of income tax return utilities annually, typically enabling forms for salaried taxpayers and small businesses first, while other forms are added gradually later.