The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) on Thursday extended the last date for filing various audit reports for the financial year 2024-25 (FY25) from September 30 to October 31.
“The board has received representations from various professional associations, including Chartered Accountant bodies, highlighting difficulties faced by taxpayers and practitioners in the timely completion of audit reports. The reasons cited in these representations include disruptions caused by floods and natural calamities in certain parts of the country, which have impeded normal business and professional activity. This matter has also come up before the High Courts,” the CBDT said.
The development comes a day after the Rajasthan High Court’s Jodhpur bench passed an interim order directing the CBDT to extend the last date for filing tax audit reports to October 31.
A division bench of Justice Pushpendra Singh Bhati and Justice Bipin Gupta observed that the CBDT has allowed similar relaxations in past years.
Considering the difficulties faced by auditors and taxpayers, the extension is crucial.
Significant delays were caused due to issues related to the Income Tax e-filing portal, including login failures, slow performance, and problems accessing key documents like the Annual Information Statement (AIS).
The delayed release of utilities for filing ITR-5, ITR-6, and ITR-7, along with expanded reporting requirements in the new Form 3CD, has increased the workload for auditors and accounting professionals.