New Delhi: As the income tax return (ITR) filing season kicks off, taxpayers need to be extra cautious. Filing errors can lead to genuine notices from the Income Tax Department but there’s also a growing risk of fake notices being used by scammers to trick people and extort money. While receiving any tax notice can be stressful, it’s important to stay calm, informed, and alert to potential fraud during this time.
The Income Tax Department will only send you a notice if there are issues with your tax return, such as errors, missing information, or if you haven’t filed your ITR by the deadline.
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The Income Tax Department follows strict guidelines when sending out tax notices, so it’s important to know what to look for before reacting. If you receive a notice by email or SMS, don’t rush to click any links—take a moment to verify its authenticity.
One of the easiest ways to check is by looking for a unique DIN number on the notice. This number is like a fingerprint for the notice—it’s mandatory and can be traced back to the Income Tax Department, helping you confirm whether the notice is genuine or not.
According to the Income Tax Department, every official communication sent on or after October 1, 2019, includes a unique Document Identification Number (DIN). This number helps you verify if a notice or letter is genuine. You can use the department’s service to authenticate any communication using the DIN.
If you receive an income tax notice—whether before or after filing your return—that doesn’t have a DIN, it’s not genuine. In such cases, the notice is considered invalid and legally treated as if it was never issued. You don’t need to take any action or respond to these fake notices.
You can easily verify if a notice from the Income Tax Department is genuine by using the “Authenticate Notice/Order Issued by ITD” service on the official e-Filing portal. Here’s a simple step-by-step guide:
– Visit the Income Tax e-Filing portal at https://www.incometax.gov.in/iec/foportal/
– On the homepage, find the Quick Links section and click on ‘Authenticate notice/order issued by ITD.’
– Enter your Document Identification Number (DIN) and a mobile number of your choice. Alternatively, you can authenticate using your PAN, document type, assessment year, issue date, and mobile number.
– You’ll receive a one-time password (OTP) on the mobile number you entered—use it to verify your details.
If the notice is genuine, you’ll see a success message. If not, the system will say “No record found for the given Document Number.”
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