New ITR utilities out for AY2025-26 — but filing remains on hold! Here’s what’s missing

The Income Tax Department has launched Excel-based offline utilities for ITR-1 and ITR-4 for the Assessment Year 2025-26, following a delay of nearly two months. These tools are designed to assist individual taxpayers with annual incomes under Rs 50 lakh, allowing them to prepare their income tax returns offline by entering income details, validating the data, and generating a JSON file for submission. 

However, as noted by CA (Dr.) Suresh Surana, the e-filing portal required for online submission of these returns, is still not operational, hindering taxpayers who prefer or need an online interface for filing their returns. This delay has caused significant inconvenience to many taxpayers who rely on the online system for its ease of use and accessibility. 

Despite the release of these offline utilities, taxpayers are unable to proceed with filing their income tax returns due to the absence of a complete online filing system. The necessary online utilities for returns beyond ITR-1 and ITR-4 remain unavailable. Furthermore, important documents such as Form 16, which employers must provide by 15 June 2025, are pending. 

Dr. Surana advised taxpayers to wait until after this date to ensure all required documents and updates are accessible, thereby facilitating a smoother and more accurate filing process. This waiting period can be frustrating for taxpayers eager to complete their filings early. 

The newly released ITR-1 and ITR-4 Excel utilities mark a significant change for taxpayers with long-term capital gains from equity cases not exceeding Rs 1.25 lakh. Previously, such taxpayers were required to file ITR-2 and ITR-3.

The ITR-1 Excel Utility, also known as Sahaj, is specifically designed for use by residents (excluding non-ordinarily residents) with a total income up to ₹50 lakh. It covers income from salaries, one house property, other sources (such as interest income), and agricultural income up to ₹5,000.

The ITR-4 Excel utility is designed for use by individuals, Hindu Undivided Families (HUFs), and firms (excluding Limited Liability Partnerships) who are residents of India with a total income of up to ₹50 lakh and have income from business or profession under presumptive taxation schemes outlined in Sections 44AD, 44ADA, or 44AE. This form is suitable for taxpayers with the following types of income:

Business income under presumptive taxation
Income from one house property
Income from other sources (such as interest income)
Agricultural income not exceeding Rs 5,000

Delays and new ITR deadline

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has recognised these noted delays and has extended the deadline for filing Income Tax Returns from 31 July 2025 to 15 September 2025. This extension, as per Circular No. 6 of 2025 dated 27th May 2025, allows taxpayers additional time to gather necessary financial documents and ensure accurate data entry for their returns. This strategic extension aims to accommodate the delayed system readiness and document availability, providing taxpayers with much-needed breathing room. 

In conclusion, while the availability of offline utilities marks progress, taxpayers remain in limbo due to the incomplete release of online filing tools and the pending issuance of critical documents. The extended filing deadline to September 15, 2025, offers some relief, yet taxpayers must remain vigilant to updates from the Income Tax Department to ensure compliance and accurate filing.