Q.987 How may years of back

dated tax refund can be claimed

in India

Question: Dear Sir How Many Years of Back dated Tax Refund can be claimed from Indian Tax Authorities for Tax Deducted at Source (TDS) I am a PIO residing in UK and hold NRO accounts with an Indian bank. From these accounts TDS is deducted which can be reclaimed as long as long as you meet all tax liabilities with Indian Tax Authorities. I have already claimed tax refund by e-filing for Assessment Years (AY) 2015-16 and 2016-17. I have tried to claim Tax refund by e-filing for (AY) 2014-15 however I get a message saying e-filing is closed for (AY) 2014-15. So does this mean that only two years of back dated tax refund can be claimed or do I need to file tax return for the above year in a different way? What is the maximum number of years of back dated tax refund can be claimed from Indian tax authorities? For your information I do hold a PAN Card and also registered for e-filing on India Income Tax website. I look forward to your response Kind Regards Babu Answer: Claiming refunds for the past 2 years is standard and allowed without any conditions. Indian Income Tax department vide its CIRCULAR 9/2015 [F.NO.312/22/2015-OT], DATED 9-6-2015 has clarified the procedure by which Income Tax refunds can be claimed for the last 6 years in cases where an Income Tax return has not been filed. The first step to claiming refunds beyond the two years is to make a Condonation application to the relevant authority. If application is accepted then an opportunity to file tax return and claim refund is possible. Who the Condonation application has to be submitted to depends on the amount of the refund in question. For amounts below 10 Lakh - Principal Commissioner/Commissioner of Income Tax Rs. 10 Lakh and below Rs. 50 Lakh - Principal Chief Commissioner/Chief Commissioner of Income Tax Above Rs. 50 Lakh - Department of Revenue Central Board of Direct Taxes [CBDT] Copy of the circular can be viewed by Clicking HERE