The Income Tax Department has definitely given relief to the taxpayers. The department has announced that the last date for filing audit reports and income tax returns (ITR) has been extended till December 10, 2025.
Earlier, this last date was October 31, 2025. The Income Tax Department announced on the social media platform Twitter that the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has taken this decision. Taxpayers under the valuation year 2025-26 can now file their ITR till December 10 without any penalty.
Earlier, the deadline for submitting tax audit reports was September 30, 2025, which was extended to October 31. Following the recommendations of the Institute of Chartered Accountants and tax professionals, it has now been extended again to December.
Who needs a tax audit?
If a business has a turnover of ₹1 crore or ₹10 crore, and cash transactions are less than 5%, then a tax audit is mandatory. Doctors, lawyers or other professionals with an annual income of more than ₹50 lakh are also required to get an audit done. If a taxpayer or company fails to submit the audit report on time, a penalty can be imposed under Section 271B of the Income Tax Act – up to 0.5% of the gross sales or a maximum of ₹1.5 lakh. However, if a valid reason for the delay is established (such as a technical issue or emergency), relief can be granted.
Why was the deadline extended?
The CBDT took this decision keeping in mind the difficulties faced by taxpayers and the directions of the High Courts (Gujarat, Punjab-Haryana and Himachal Pradesh). The courts had said that there should be a gap of at least one month between the tax audit report and the filing of ITR. For this reason, the new deadline has now been fixed as December 10.
