8 Tax Notices: Which One Is in Your Inbox?
The Income Tax Department sends notices for many reasons — wrong ITR, unpaid tax, missing income. Knowing which notice you got and what to do next can save you from fines, scrutiny, or legal trouble.
More Indians got IT notices last year than the entire population of Chennai — and most ignored them.
Your delay in responding to a tax notice can cost you this much — per default
Key Takeaways
Log into incometax.gov.in under 'e-Proceedings' to check if any notice is pending — do this even if you haven't received an email, since portal notifications are legally valid.
Match the section number on your notice to its specific deadline: 143(1) gives 30 days, 139(9) gives 15 days, and 148 gives 30 days — calendar these immediately after reading.
Respond only through the official portal — never share documents over WhatsApp or email with someone claiming to be an IT officer, as this is a common impersonation scam.
The Income Tax Department sends notices for many reasons — wrong ITR, unpaid tax, missing income. Knowing which notice you got and what to do next can save you from fines, scrutiny, or legal trouble.
Here's what happened: The Income Tax Department issues notices under different sections of the Income Tax Act — each with its own reason, deadline, and required response from the taxpayer.. Common triggers include mismatches between Form 26AS and ITR figures, high-value cash transactions, missing foreign income disclosures, or simply filing a defective return.. Most notices arrive via the income tax e-filing portal (incometax.gov.in) and are also sent to your registered email — failing to act within the deadline invites penalties or formal scrutiny..
What you should do: Log into incometax.gov.in under 'e-Proceedings' to check if any notice is pending — do this even if you haven't received an email, since portal notifications are legally valid.. Match the section number on your notice to its specific deadline: 143(1) gives 30 days, 139(9) gives 15 days, and 148 gives 30 days — calendar these immediately after reading.. Respond only through the official portal — never share documents over WhatsApp or email with someone claiming to be an IT officer, as this is a common impersonation scam..
If you receive a Section 245 notice, check your old ITR records before agreeing — departments sometimes raise stale or incorrect demands that can be legally contested within the adjustment itself.
For readers weighing their credit and loan options, our personal loan guide and CIBIL score resources put this update in context.
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- [1]“Income tax notice: 8 common notices, why you get them and how to respond” Wealth-Economic Times · 22 Aug 2026
This article is reported by GoCredit's Editorial Team based on the source above. GoCredit synthesises, contextualises, and adds India-borrower-relevant analysis. We are not the original publisher.