How to check income tax return refund status

If you have paid more tax than your actual tax liability for a financial year, you can receive an income tax return refund by filing an income tax return (ITR) for that year. However, the refund will only be processed by the tax department after they have verified your ITR and sent an intimation notice to confirm the same under section 143 (1) of the Income-tax Act, 1961. For FY 2021-22 (AY 2022-23), the last date to file the returns is July 31, 2022.

The State Bank of India (SBI) processes the income tax refund and directly credits it to the bank account nominated by the taxpayer at the time of filing the ITR. Therefore, it is crucial to ensure that you have provided the correct bank account number and IFS code while filing the return. Additionally, the bank account must be pre-validated on the government’s new income tax e-filing portal, and your PAN must be linked to the bank account.

How to track the status of income tax return refund

You can track the income tax refund on:

1. The new income tax portal or
2. The NSDL website

On the new income tax portal

The income tax refund status can be tracked on the government’s new income tax portal by following the steps below:

You can track the status of your income tax refund on the new income tax e-filing portal in a few simple steps:

1. Visit the official website of the Income Tax Department of India (https://www.incometax.gov.in/).
2. Click on the ‘Login’ button on the homepage and enter your login credentials to access your account.
3. Once you have logged in, click on the ‘View Returns/Forms’ tab from the dashboard and select the ‘Income Tax Returns’ option from the drop-down menu.
4. Select the relevant assessment year for which you want to check the refund status.
5. Click on the acknowledgment number of the ITR for which you want to track the refund status.
6. On the next page, click on the ‘Refund/Demand Status’ option to check the status of your income tax refund.
7. If your refund has been processed, you can view the refund details, such as the amount and mode of payment.

If your refund has not been processed yet, the status will show as ‘Return Received’ or ‘Under Processing.’ In such cases, you will need to wait for the processing to be completed, and the refund will be credited to your bank account once it is processed.

On the TIN NSDL website

You can track the status of your income tax refund on the TIN NSDL website in the following steps:

1. Visit the TIN NSDL website (https://tin.tin.nsdl.com/oltas/refundstatuslogin.html)
2. Select the relevant assessment year for which you want to check the refund status.
3. Enter your Permanent Account Number (PAN).
4. Select the correct ‘Type of Return’ as ‘Income Tax’.
5. Enter the Captcha Code as shown on the screen.
6. Click on the ‘Submit’ button.
7. The next page will display the status of your refund, which can be any of the following: a. ‘Refund Paid’: This means that the refund has been processed, and the amount has been credited to your bank account. b. ‘Refund Unpaid’: This means that the refund has been processed, but the amount could not be credited to your bank account due to incorrect bank account details. You should check your bank account details and provide the correct information to the income tax department. c. ‘No Refund’: This means that there is no refund due for the selected assessment year.

If you have any further queries related to the refund status, you can contact the income tax department’s customer care number or email support for assistance.

What the status message means

The message you receive will vary based on the status of your income tax refund. The message shown can be any of the following:

If the income tax refund has been successfully credited to your bank account, then you will see the message “Refund is credited” displayed on the screen. The message will also provide information such as the last four digits of your bank account, reference numbers, and the date of the refund.

In case refund is not credited to your bank account, then you can:

• Write a letter and send it to: State Bank of India at Survey No.21 Opposite Hyderabad Central University, Main Gate, Gachibowli, Hyderabad -50001.
• Send an email to itro@sbi.co.in
• Call the SBI call centre at 18004259760

Refund Returned: This message will be displayed when your income tax refund is not credited into the bank account. Reasons for this can include wrong IFS code or bank account number, account becoming dormant/inactive due to lack of use.

Adjusted against outstanding demand of previous year: The income tax department can adjust your income tax refund for the current year against outstanding demand of the previous assessment year either in part or full. The tax department has full authority, under section 245, to do this. However, such an action can be done only after giving an intimation in writing to the taxpayer regarding the action proposed to be taken.

Refund re-issue request

In case your income tax refund is not credited to your bank account due to incorrect bank details, you can request a refund re-issue on the new income tax portal. This option is available only if the income tax refund credit has failed.

To request a refund re-issue, you need to select ‘Refund Reissue’ under the ‘Services’ section on the portal. Then, you will have to select the ITR for which the income tax refund has failed and verify your bank account details before submitting the request.