ITR Refund Delay: Know How To Check Refund Status And What To Do In Cases Of Delay

For taxpayers, receiving their income tax returns (ITR) means a great deal. Filing an ITR comes with the promise of getting some money refunded to the taxpayer in case of excess tax deduction at source (TDS). However, at present, many taxpayers are in a limbo as they haven’t received their refunds yet. Usually, these returns are disbursed within 4-5 weeks of filing of ITR.

Understanding the cause of this delay is important as it can ease a taxpayer’s concern regarding refund and the reason for a delayed refund.

Causes Of Refund Delay

Most of the time, the Income Tax Department releases refunds in a timely manner, within 4-5 weeks of filing the ITR. This year though, there has been a significant delay in some cases due to a number of factors.

Enhanced Verification

The tax department has intensified the data verification processes this year. Returns that claimed unusually high refunds, or instances of data mismatch between ITR and Form 26AS or inconsistent deduction claims are being flagged for a manual review. These checks are aimed to reduce incorrect refund claims.

Bank Account Discrepancies

Refunds cannot be credited to the taxpayer’s bank account if it is not pre-validated on the e-filing portal. Incorrect IFSC codes, closed bank accounts or mismatch in details filled by the taxpayer also lead to delays.

Previous Notices

Any pending dues from the previous years can also be claimed against the present one. Similarly, if the previous ones are flagged for scrutiny or assessment, the present refund will also be delayed.

How To Check Refund Status

Taxpayers can check the refunds through the following steps.

Before filing any grievances, check the status of the refund on the Income Tax e-filing portal in the “View Filed Returns” section under the Income Tax Returns section. If the status shows “Processed with Refund Due”, the Centralised Processing Centre (CPC) has already approved the refund, but it hasn’t been transferred to the taxpayer’s account yet. If it reflects, “Refund Failed”, the transfer was attempted, but it failed. Similarly, if the status shows “Refund Paid”, it implies the Income Tax Department has already paid you.

Depending on your status, reach out to the following:

• General Processing Delays: If your status remains processed for a long time, you can contact the CPC on their toll-free helpline number.

• No Refund Credited: The State Bank of India (SBI) is the official refund banker for these duties. If the money hasn’t been credited but shows processed on the RBI portal, connect with the SBI Refund Enquiry Toll-free number.

• For Legal Disputes: If your refund is withheld due to a scrutiny notice, the above mentioned helplines would not be able to help you. You must contact your income tax assessing officer.