Less than 7 days left to file ITR:CA charging extra? Step-by-step guide on how you can file taxes on your own without paying fees

Less than seven days are left for filing the Income Tax Return for the Financial Year 2025-26 (FY26). Like always, the deadline falls on 31 July, 2026. So if you haven’t filed your ITR yet, you should do it as soon as possible. Many people believe that if their annual income is less than ₹2.5 lakh and they don’t fall under the income tax bracket, so, they don’t need to file ITR, but that’s not true. Even if you don’t fall under the income tax bracket, you should still file returns because filing ITR provides you with many benefits. Filing ITR makes it easier to get loans. Now the question is whether you should file on your own or get somebody’s aid. If you approach any Chartered Accountant (CA), then, you will have to pay them a fees. How much do CAs charge for filing ITR? In India, a Chartered Accountant (CA) generally charges between ₹500 and ₹8,000 to file an individual’s Income Tax Return (ITR). The exact price depends on where your income comes from and how complicated your finances are. Nevertheless, if you don’t want to pay the CA fees, then, you can obviously file the documents on your own. But first, let’s see, after all, what exactly an ITR is. What is Income Tax Return (ITR)? ITR is a type of accounting that you submit to the government. In this, you declare how much you earned last year, how much income is taxable how much tax you have paid in advance. After you enter these details, the ITR filing portal gives an idea whether you will pay more money to the government as tax or if the government will refund some money to you. Online tax filing: Step-by-step process: 1. Visit I-T Department’s e-filing website at https://www.incometax.gov.in/iec/foportal/ 2. On right of screen click on ‘Login’ 3. Mention either of following inputs and click on ‘Continue’: 4. Give your password and again click on ‘Continue’ 5. Under ‘e-File’ click on ‘File Income Tax Return’ 6. Select the relevant Assessment Year and Filing Type 7. Select the applicable form ITR 1 to ITR 4 under ‘ITR Type’ 8. Now you will be required to give the reason for filing ITR 9. Select the correct reason from the three options given and go to the next page 10. Then you are required to validate your return. The information will be pre-filled 11. Next you will be required to disclose your income, exemptions, and deduction details. Again, most of this information will be pre-filled. 12. Next step is verification, which can be done both online and offline Verification is mandatory, without which tax filing is incomplete The entire process of ITR filing will be considered as complete only after verification. A taxpayer gets 30 days windows to verify filed returns. After the returns submission process is complete, the assessee can download copy of taxes filed from the portal. ITR filing filing – benefits 1. Easy loan approval: ITR serves as proof of your income. All banks and NBFCs accept it as income proof. When you apply for a bank loan, banks often ask for ITR. If you file ITR regularly, you can easily get loans from banks. 2. Required for visa: If you are going to another country and applying for a visa, you may be asked to show ITR docs. Many countries’ visa authorities ask for 3 to 5 years of ITR for visa purposes. Through ITR, they check the financial status of the person who wants to enter their country. 3. To claim tax refund: If tax has been deducted from your income and deposited with the government, you cannot get it back without filing ITR, even if your income is within the basic exemption limit according to the tax regimes. If you want to claim tax refund, it is necessary to file ITR. When you file the return, the Income Tax Department assesses it. If you are eligible for a refund, it is directly credited to your bank account. 4. Carrying forward losses remains easy If you invest in shares or mutual funds and incur a loss, it is necessary to file income tax returns within the specified time limit to carry forward the loss to the next year, because if you make capital gains next year, this loss will be adjusted against that profit and you may get tax relief on the gains made.