How to Respond to Tax Notices via e-Proceedings

• The e-proceedings platform allows taxpayers to handle income tax notices online, eliminating the need for physical visits to tax offices

• The platform ensures secure interactions between taxpayers and tax authorities, reducing the risk of lost files and enabling easy tracking of notices, queries, and responses

• Taxpayers can log in, view notices, submit responses, and upload supporting documents directly on the portal with the option to provide partial or full responses.

The Income Tax Department introduced e-proceedings, which is a paperless way to handle income tax notices. This platform ensures more transparency in the tax filing process. It serves as a communication channel between you as a taxpayer and the authorities. Through the e-filing portal, you can now check and respond to income tax notices. 

You can upload all required documents, so you do not need to carry your documents everywhere. Also, your responses are checked by the officer through the Income Tax Business Application (ITBA). This portal eliminates the need for you to physically visit the income tax office, saving time, money, paper and resources. 

Provided by the Income Tax Department of India, the electronic platform facilitates end-to-end tax assessments. Simply put, it streamlines communication between taxpayers and authorities. 

On this portal, you can access all notices, letters, or intimations from the IT department. Responding online saves time and minimises the risk of lost files. If you make an invalid ITR claim, have dues, evade taxes, or miss the filing deadline, notices will appear on the portal.

e-Proceedings by the Income Tax department has some specific sections where you can carry out relevant tasks. Here is a list of things you can find on this portal:

• After logging in, you can see all letters, notices, intimations, questions, and answers in your dashboard.

• You can submit documents and required information on the same portal in order to respond to a notice.

• During proceedings, this portal allows you to submit responses to departmental queries (this service is available 24 hours for all 7 days).

• You can also check your previously filed ITR and recently filed forms and provide feedback on AIS for high-value transactions reported by IT.

To access income tax e-proceedings for notices or intimations, you just have to log in to the official website of the Income Tax Department.

1. Visit the official website of the Income Tax Department-

2. You must provide your User ID and password. 

3. After logging in, click on the pending actions tab on your dashboard.

4. Select e-proceedings, and you will be redirected to the respective page. 

To submit a response to the tax-related notice you received on the income tax e-proceedings portal, you just need to click on continue after following the steps mentioned above. Before that, you need to keep the relevant documents ready to upload to complete the procedure quickly. 

Let’s have a quick look at what steps you must take next to reply e-filing tax notice. 

1. Go to the official income tax website and log in using your username and password. 

2. After you log in, click on ‘e-Proceedings’ under the ‘Pending Actions’ tab.

3. You can see a list of notices you receive from the IT department.

4. Click on ‘submit a response’ to the notice you would like to respond to. 

5. You can either choose to provide a full response or a partial response.

6. Write a brief description and upload copies of the required documents.

7. Click on the checkbox to confirm all the information you added is correct.

8. Using the digital signature option, verify your identity and click on yes.

One of the main benefits of this e-filing portal and e-proceedings is that important tax-related files and documents do not get lost. Another benefit is convenience and effortless service. 

Some benefits of income tax notice reply online are:

• The risk of files being lost or damaged is eliminated completely.

• As this portal provides resolution for tax-related compliance issues, making corrections becomes easy.

• This portal is environment-friendly as it eliminates the need for paper.

• In terms of convenience, it helps you save time, money and resources and avoid travelling hassles.

• You can find complete information related to your previously filed IT returns and check all notices; everything in just a few clicks.

Here are some tips to keep in mind while responding to notices to ensure seamless procedure:

• If you wish to make responses partially, choose ‘partial response’ on the e-fling portal. However, if you are making the final response, choose the full response option.

• You can only write remarks with a maximum of 1000 characters, so decide wisely about what to mention. 

• If you cannot find an option to attach a relevant document, choose the ‘other’ option and mention the name of the document. 

• In a single response, you cannot submit more than 10 PDF attachments. 

• While scanning supporting documents, ensure to choose 300 DPI to eliminate poor quality. 

Some common issues you may face when responding to tax notices may include:

• In case your details do not match the one mentioned in the documents, you may face an error. Cross-check all details to avoid such errors. 

• Sometimes your income reports can mismatch. Check all information and calculations for factual accuracy. 

• You can receive a notice if any previous ITR filings are unresolved. Always check and complete the processes before leaving the portal. 

1. What are e-proceedings in income tax?

It is an electronic portal where you can check and respond to all IT notices and intimations. 

2. How do I respond to an income tax notice online?

You can respond to an income tax notice online by logging in to the IT official website. Further, go to e-proceedings and check all unresolved notices. Select the one you want to respond to. 

3. Are e-proceedings secure for handling tax notices?

Yes. E-proceedings is a safe and secure platform to carry out tax notices as this is officially provided by the Income Tax Department of India. 

4. Can I use e-filing to reply to an income tax notice?

E-filing portal or the e-proceedings feature is all a part of the Income-tax portal. You can choose to reply to all notices online through this electronic medium. 

5. What documents do I need to respond to a tax notice online?

Documents required to respond to a tax notice inline can include bank statements, income proof, TDS and previous returns. 

6. How can I track my e-Proceedings response status?

After logging in, click on the e-proceedings link. A new page will appear showing all information, such as proceeding name, date, status, closure date and action.

7. Are there any penalties for not replying to a tax notice on time?

Yes. As per the rules, you can be charged a fine of ₹10,000 under Section 271(1) (b).

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