The Income-tax Act, 2025 has applied since 1 April 2026. The 1961 Act continues for earlier years. Source: Income Tax Department FAQs on returns and on Form No. 26. Dates and forms can change by notification; see the regulatory updates.
Which Act, which year
| Income of FY 2025-26 | Income of FY 2026-27 | |
|---|---|---|
| Year label | Assessment year 2026-27 | Tax year 2026-27 |
| Governing Act | Income-tax Act, 1961 | Income-tax Act, 2025 |
| Return forms | ITR forms of the 1961 Act, with the assessment year selected on the portal | Forms notified under the Income-tax Rules, 2026 |
| Tax audit | Section 44AB; Forms 3CA/3CB with 3CD | Section 63; Form No. 26 (Rule 47) |
| Return provision | Section 139 | Section 263 |
| Revised, belated, and updated returns | Under the 1961 Act, even if filed after 1 April 2026 | Section 263: belated within nine months of the end of the tax year; updated within 48 months from the end of the following financial year |
| Notices, scrutiny, rectification | Under the 1961 Act | Under the 2025 Act |
Tax audit under section 63
- Business: sales, turnover, or gross receipts above Rs 1 crore (Rs 10 crore where cash receipts and cash payments are each 5 per cent or less of the totals)
- Profession: gross receipts above Rs 50 lakh
- Certain presumptive-taxation cases
- Due one month before the return due date under section 263(1)
- UDIN generated by the signing accountant; firm registration number quoted for a firm
- Penalty for failure under section 446: the lesser of 0.5 per cent of turnover or gross receipts and Rs 1,50,000
Keep separate in the records
- A dividing line in the books at 31 March 2026
- Challans marked with the right year: assessment year 2026-27 or tax year 2026-27
- TDS and TCS statements and Form 26AS reconciled separately for each year
- Loss schedules from the last return under the 1961 Act, with the year of each loss; losses carry forward under the conditions of the 2025 Act
- A mapping from old section numbers to new ones for each provision used
Reviewed against the sources on 3 October 2026.