ITR Filing 2026: No Second Return Needed For FY 2025-26 Income

The changeover to the Income-tax Act, 2025 has produced an unusual filing-season doubt: will a taxpayer have to file two returns because both AY 2026-27 and Tax Year 2026-27 now appear in the tax calendar?

The Income Tax Department has said no. For income earned in FY 2025-26, there is only one return to be filed. It will be filed as AY 2026-27, under the Income-tax Act, 1961.

That is the return taxpayers are preparing now. The new law may have taken effect on April 1, 2026, but it does not change the law governing income earned before that date. So salary, business income, interest, capital gains and other income received between April 1, 2025 and March 31, 2026 will continue to be reported under the old Act.

Same Numbers, Different Periods

The mix-up is understandable. Under the earlier system, taxpayers earned income in a financial year and filed it in the following assessment year. The new Act drops the expressions “previous year” and “assessment year” and uses a single term: Tax Year.

Tax Year 2026-27 starts on April 1, 2026. But AY 2026-27 relates to the income of FY 2025-26, which ended on March 31, 2026. The two labels look alike, yet they refer to different sets of income.

For instance, a salaried employee filing a return in the coming months will disclose salary received during FY 2025-26. That return belongs to AY 2026-27. Salary earned from April 1, 2026 will form part of Tax Year 2026-27, and that return is not due now.

The department has said that the obligation to file a return under the new Tax Year format will arise only after the relevant Tax Year closes. In this case, that means after March 31, 2027, subject to the due date applicable to the taxpayer, according to a recent report by Mint.

What Taxpayers Should Do This Season

The immediate compliance position remains unchanged. Taxpayers filing for FY 2025-26 should choose AY 2026-27 and use the ITR form that applies to them under the Income-tax Act, 1961.

The same approach will hold if a return for AY 2026-27 has to be revised later. Since the income relates to FY 2025-26, the revised return too will be dealt with under the 1961 Act. Taxes paid while completing that return will follow the same framework.

The change does matter for income being earned now. From April 1, 2026, the new law applies to the current Tax Year. Advance tax, tax deducted at source, and income records for this period will be governed by the Income-tax Act, 2025.

For the moment, taxpayers do not have an extra filing obligation. There is one return for income earned in FY 2025-26. The first return under the Tax Year regime will come only after Tax Year 2026-27 ends.

FAQs

Do I need to file two ITRs because AY 2026-27 and Tax Year 2026-27 have the same label?
No. For income earned in FY 2025-26, you need to file only one return, under AY 2026-27 and the Income-tax Act, 1961.

When will the first return under the new Tax Year system be filed?
Tax Year 2026-27 covers income earned from April 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027. Its return will be filed in 2027, after the Tax Year ends.

Will a revised return for AY 2026-27 follow the new Income-tax Act, 2025?
No. Since it relates to FY 2025-26 income, a revised return for AY 2026-27 will also be filed under the Income-tax Act, 1961.