Amid the Covid-19 outbreak FM extends deadline for filing returns
In a much needed respite to taxpayers, the Finance Ministry on Tuesday extend the March 31 deadline of filing income taxes till June 30, in wake of Covid-19 pandemic. Addressing a press conference, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that the last date for the income tax return for the Financial Year 18-19 has been extended to June 30, 2020. She said that the interest rate for delayed payment has been reduced from 12 per cent to 9 per cent. The development came after the central government was appealed by various entities to extend the ITR filing date amid a lockdown in the country due to the rapid spread of coronavirus. The FM also announced extension of deadline for PAN-Aadhaar linking from March 31 to June 30, 2020. The date for Vivad Se Vishwas Scheme has also been extended till June 30. The government has also extended deadline for filing March, April and May 2020 GST returns to June 30, 2020. It has also revised due date for any compliance and documentation by taxpayers, including for investment instruments, till June 30, 2020. For the companies with less than Rs 5 crore turnover, no interest or late fee or penalty will be charged for late filing of GST return. For bigger companies, penalty will be charged at a lower rate. Ashok Mohanani, Chairman , EKTA World and Vice President NAREDCO Maharashtra expressed, "There is a need for economic stimulus in the future to cope up with the current economic scenario. Sales at the moment have been dropping at a large scale but with the support of the government, the sector is expected to recover after the pandemic crisis. The Ministry should consider permitting the restructuring of loans to the Real Estate as it will give a breather to the Industry and help revive and restore." Anshuman Magazine, Chairman & CEO - India, South East Asia, Middle East & Africa said, " We are hopeful that reduction in bank charges for digital transactions and economic packages to those impacted by COVID- 19 should further provide the much needed relief to the sector and economy." Manoj K. Agarwal, Chief Executive Officer, Viviana Mall said, "In such a lockdown state, the government’s announcements today has come as a much-required relief to comply with the law and regulations for the companies of varied scale. Blanket extension of various compliance deadlines is a welcome relief that we and the corporate sector were looking forward to. " Shailesh Puranik, Managing Director, Puranik Builders added, "The government is successful in battling two wars simultaneously, while it is taking all possible steps to break Covid-19 contamination chain, on the other hand, it has ensured taxpayers and companies do not face hardships due to the challenges that have emerged. "
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