The last date for filing income tax return for the financial year 2018-19 is July 31, 2019. This year to make the process of tax return filing easier, the tax department has introduced prefilled XML ITR forms. In this post, I will share the complete process of how to download pre-filled XML ITR.
Now pre-filled XML of ITR 1, 2, 3 and 4 for the financial year 2018-19 are available at income tax website. The pre-filled XML for other ITRs will be available shortly.
Table of Contents
How to download pre-filled XML ITR from income tax e-filing portal?
Follow the step by step procedure to download prefilled XML ITR from e-filing website.
1. Visit income tax e-filing portal – https://www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in
2. Login using your user ID (PAN card number) and password.
3. Go to “My Account” tab on the main menu.
4. Click on the “Download Pre-filled XML” option from the drop-down menu.
5. Here you need to select assessment year and ITR form. Select 2019-20 as assessment year. Choose the ITR form which applies to you for the financial year 2018-19. The prefilled XML of ITR 1, 2, 3 and 4 for the financial year 2018-19 is available at e-filing portal.
6. Click on the “Continue” button.
7. Next page, you can see all your bank account details. Select an account for refund credit. Click on “Download XML” button.
8. Here, the system will prompt you with a Prefill Consent. You need to give your consent to check all the prefilled data. If the data doesn’t match then you need to make necessary changes to report the correct details.
The prefilled XML ITR forms shall contain the following details
- PAN, Name, Date of birth shall be prefilled from PAN database.
- Address, Aadhaar number, mobile number, and e-mail ID will be prefilled from e-filing profile. Please update your e-filing profile before proceeding.
- Tax Payment, TDS and TCS details shall be pre-filled from Form 26AS.
- Details of Salary Income, allowances and deductions shall be prefilled from Annexure II of Form 24Q.
- Type of House Property shall be prefilled from last filed tax return.
- Details of Income from House Property shall be prefilled from Form 26AS.
- The details about interest from a term deposit shall be prefilled from Form 26AS.
- Details of Interest income details (u/s 244A) from Income Tax Refund.
- Tax relief u/s 89 shall be prefilled from Annexure II of Form 24Q.
- Bank account details shall be prefilled from last filed tax return and e-Filing Profile.
- Verification Details – Self/Representative PAN Details as applicable based on Logged in PAN.
9. Once checked and corrected all the prefilled data, please check in the box to give your consent and click on the “Continue” button.
10. Next download the Pre-filled in XML ITR Form. Logout from the e-filing portal once the download is complete.
11. Now you need to import the downloaded XML file in ITR offline utilities JAVA and Excel to prefill details.
12. Go to the “Download” section at e-filing portal and download “IT Return Preparation Software”.
13. Once downloaded, open ITR excel utility. Click on “Import Personal and Tax Details from Prefilled XML” tab on the right-hand side of the ITR excel utility. Note that this action will overwrite your existing data filled in ITR form.
14. Select the prefilled XML ITR form downloaded from Income tax e-filing portal to import the downloaded XML file.
15. Your ITR form is ready.
Filing ITR
Now you can file your tax return online at the Income-tax website. Remember before processing for ITR filing you need to cross-check and verify all the information carefully.
Final Thought
Pre-filled XML ITR form is a new facility started by the tax department. This will make the process of filing income tax return simple and quick for you. However, if you are using a prefilled ITR form, you should verify all information in the form before submitting it for assessment.
Recommended for further reading: e-filing tax return online | Prepare on file ITR online
Recommended for further reading: How to view and download Form 26AS?