The Income Tax Department on Wednesday started online filing of for the assessment year 2026-27 on its e-filing portal. The form essentially meant for individuals and HUFs who do not earn income from business or profession, but have income from capital gains and other specified sources.
The I-T Department said in a post on X, “Online filing and Excel utility for ITR-2 for AY 2026-27 are now enabled on the e-filing portal.”
Here’s a look at the eligibility criteria for ITR-2:
Who should file ITR-2?
ITR-2 is filed by individuals and HUFs who do not earn any income from business or profession, but have other types of income such as:
- Salary or pension income
- Income from more than one house property
- Capital gains from sale of assets
- Income from other sources (such as interest, dividends, etc.)
Who is not eligible to file ITR-2 ?
ITR-2 cannot be filed by individuals or s whose total income includes earnings from business or profession. It is also not applicable to taxpayers having income of the following nature:
- Interest
- Salary
- Bonus
- Remuneration received from a partnership firm.
- This also applies to taxpayers who have to club the income of their spouse, minor child, or others with their own income, if such income falls under any of the above categories.
All about ITR Form 1 (Sahaj) and ITR Form 4 (Sugam)?
The department had, on May 15, enabled online filing of ITR Form 1 (Sahaj) and ITR Form 4 (Sugam), which are filed by small and medium taxpayers, for the assessment year 2026-27. These forms for filing ITRs for income earned in the 2025-26 fiscal were notified on March 30.
ITR Form 1 (Sahaj) and ITR Form 4 (Sugam) are simpler forms that cater to a large number of small and medium taxpayers.
Sahaj can be filed by a resident individual having annual income up to ₹50 lakh, and who receives income from salary, one house property, other sources (interest) and agricultural income up to ₹5,000 a year. It also allows reporting of long-term capital gains (LTCG) of ₹1.25 lakh a year.
Sugam can be filed by individuals, Hindu Undivided Families (HUFs) and firms (other than Limited Liability Partnerships (LLPs)) having a total annual income up to ₹50 lakh and income from business and profession.
What’s new this year?
One of the key developments this year is the gradual activation of both online filing and Excel-based utilities form-wise, instead of all forms being enabled together.
The utilities for ITR-1, ITR-2 and ITR-4 are now available in the “Downloads” section of the income tax e-filing portal. With both online filing and Excel utilities enabled, taxpayers can now begin filing their income tax returns.
What is the last date for filing income tax returns?
The last date for filing by individual taxpayers in ITR-1 and ITR-2 is July 31, while for non-audit taxpayers filing ITR-4, the deadline is August 31.