How-to · Tax
Belated vs revised ITR: which one you can still file
The difference between a belated return under section 139(4) and a revised return under section 139(5), the 31 December window for AY 2026-27, late fee and interest, and what you lose if you file after the original due date.
In this guide
A belated return under section 139(4) is the first return you file after the section 139(1) due date. A revised return under section 139(5) corrects an original or belated return you already filed. For AY 2026-27 both close three months before the end of the assessment year, which is 31 December 2026, or earlier if the assessment is completed. After that window the next voluntary path is an updated return. Confirm the date on the e-Filing portal before you file.
Which return you need
The two labels get swapped in WhatsApp advice. They are not interchangeable. Section 139(4) is for a person who has not yet filed for the year after the original due date. Section 139(5) is for a person who already filed, original or belated, and needs to correct it.
| Belated return | Revised return | |
|---|---|---|
| Legal hook | Section 139(4) | Section 139(5) |
| When it applies | No return has been filed after the 139(1) due date | An original or belated return is already on the portal and something in it is wrong |
| Usual last date for AY 2026-27 | 31 December 2026, or earlier if assessment is completed | The same window |
| What it cannot do | Restore every loss carry-forward that needed a timely original return | Create a first filing out of nothing |
If the portal has no return for the year, you are not revising. You are late. File belated, then revise that filing if you still need to correct a figure.
The shared 31 December window
The last date for both is no longer the last day of the assessment year. The Act now stops the window three months earlier, or at the completion of assessment if that comes first. For AY 2026-27 that date is 31 December 2026.
Assessment completed earlier than 31 December cuts the window short. Do not treat December as guaranteed once a scrutiny or best-judgement order is already on the way. The official tax calendar and the e-Filing announcements are what you match against, not a forwarded chart.
What a belated return costs
A belated return is a valid return. It is not a free return. Late fee under section 234F and interest under section 234A attach to the delay. The fee is smaller when total income is within the lower slab the section names, and higher above it. Read the section and the computation the portal shows. Do not copy a rupee figure from last year's note.
The cost that people miss is the loss they can no longer carry forward. A business loss or a capital loss that needed a return by the original due date does not become carryable just because you later file under 139(4). A house-property loss is treated on a different footing. If the year's only point was to park a business loss, a belated filing may not save it.
Filing late and then forgetting to e-verify can still leave you as a non-filer. Verification is a separate clock. A belated upload that is never verified is not a completed return.
What a revised return can fix
Section 139(5) is for an omission or a wrong statement in a return already furnished. Typical cases: a missed AIS line you accepted after reading 26AS against AIS, a wrong ITR form that should have been stepped up, or a deduction you claimed without the document. You revise the whole return, not a single schedule in isolation.
You can revise a belated return. You can revise more than once, as long as you are still inside the window and the assessment is not complete. Each revision replaces the last one and needs its own verification. The form eligibility test still applies. Revising ITR-1 into ITR-1 does not help if you were never eligible for ITR-1.
A revised return is not a way to withdraw a return so you can pretend you never filed. If the original was valid, the revision is a correction of that valid return.
When neither return works any more
After 31 December 2026, or after the assessment is completed, sections 139(4) and 139(5) are closed for AY 2026-27. The remaining voluntary path is an updated return under section 139(8A). That is a different form, ITR-U, with additional tax and a narrower set of things it is allowed to do. It is not a cheaper belated return.
If a notice under section 148 or a search or survey has already started, do not assume either a revision or an updated return is still open. Those bars live in the provisos to 139(8A). Read the updated-return guide before you try to use ITR-U as a substitute.
How to confirm the window on official pages
- Open the e-Filing portal and check whether a return for the year is already recorded. That answers belated versus revised before you pick a menu item.
- Confirm the last date on the official tax calendar and on latest news. A CBDT order can move a date. A WhatsApp screenshot cannot.
- Read sections 139(4) and 139(5) on India Code if the portal label and the Act wording disagree. The Act wins.
The original due date is a different question. Settle that on the ITR filing last date page first. This page is only what happens after that date has passed.
Where Complied AI fits
The two sections do not move often. What moves is a CBDT order that extends 31 December, or a portal note that changes how a revision is uploaded. CBDT updates on Complied AI keep those notices in one feed so you can open the source document rather than a forwarded date.
Practical checks
Common questions
What is the difference between a belated and a revised return?
A belated return is the first return filed after the original due date under section 139(1). A revised return is a later return that corrects an original or belated return already on the portal. If you have not filed at all, you cannot revise. You file belated first.
What is the last date to file a belated or revised ITR for AY 2026-27?
Both can be filed up to three months before the end of the relevant assessment year, or before the assessment is completed, whichever is earlier. For AY 2026-27 that date is 31 December 2026, unless the assessment finishes sooner. Confirm on the e-Filing portal before you rely on it.
Can I carry forward a business loss on a belated return?
Generally no. A business loss or a capital loss that needs to be carried forward usually requires a return filed by the original due date. A house-property loss is treated differently. Do not assume a belated filing preserves every loss you hoped to carry.
Does a revised return also need e-verification?
Yes. A revised return is a fresh filing. It has its own verification clock. If you revise and do not verify, the revision does not stand. See the verification last-date guide for the paths.
Publication method
How this guide was prepared
This guide is published by the Complied AI research desk. Its source list and stated position were checked against the official records shown below on 14 August 2026.
Automation, including AI, may assist research, drafting and structure. It does not replace the official record or amount to an independent professional review. Read our editorial standards and corrections policy.
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