8 ITR Mistakes That Cost You ₹5,000+

Filing your income tax return for AY 2026-27? The tax department now uses AI to cross-check your data. Even small errors like missing interest income or wrong bank details can trigger notices, penalties, or lost refunds.

Here's what happened: The Income Tax Department is using AI and data analytics to match ITR data against Form 26AS, AIS, and TIS — leaving almost no room for errors or omissions.. AY 2026-27 returns cover income earned in FY 2025-26; the deadline for salaried taxpayers is July 31, 2026, with a penalty of up to ₹5,000 for late filing.. Common filing errors — like mismatched personal details, unreported bank interest, or wrong ITR form selection — are now flagged automatically by the department's systems..

What you should do: Download your AIS (Annual Information Statement) from incometax.gov.in and cross-check every income entry — savings interest, dividends, and FD payouts — before filing.. Verify that your bank account IFSC and account number in the ITR are 100% correct, or your refund will bounce and you will have to re-file a rectification request.. Choose the correct ITR form: use ITR-1 only if your total income is below ₹50 lakh with no capital gains; if you sold mutual funds or stocks in FY25-26, use ITR-2 instead..

Pre-filled ITR data is convenient but not always accurate — especially for job changers. Always manually verify salary figures against your actual Form 16 before clicking submit.