ITR Due Soon: Pay Your Tax Online in 5 Steps

ITR forms for FY 2025-26 are now live. If you owe any tax, you must pay it online before filing your return. Here is exactly how to do it using the Income Tax e-pay portal — no CA needed.

Here's what happened: The Income Tax Department has officially notified ITR-1 and ITR-4 forms for FY 2025-26 (Assessment Year 2026-27), and Excel utilities are now enabled.. Taxpayers who have any outstanding tax dues — called self-assessment tax — must pay online via the e-Pay Tax facility on the IT portal before submitting their return.. Missing the payment or filing deadline can attract a late fee of up to ₹5,000 under Section 234F, plus interest at 1% per month on unpaid tax under Section 234B..

What you should do: Log in to incometax.gov.in, go to 'e-Pay Tax' under the Quick Links section, and check if you have any outstanding demand or self-assessment tax due before filing.. Use Challan 280 (ITNS 280) to pay any balance tax — select 'Self Assessment Tax' as the payment type and complete payment via net banking, UPI, or debit card.. After payment, note your BSR code and challan serial number — you will need these to fill in the tax paid details while submitting your ITR form online..

Pay your dues at least 24 hours before filing your ITR — the IT portal takes time to reflect the challan payment, and filing before it appears can lead to a mismatch notice from the department.