Income Tax Portal Slowdown: How to Clear Cache, Check E-Verification Status, and Avoid Late Fine Under Sec 234F
With the income tax return (ITR) filing deadline drawing near, there will be cases of slow loading pages, login difficulties, transaction errors, and delays in acknowledging transactions at the Income Tax e-Filing website. The heavy traffic in the last days may cause problems in performing such common activities as upload of ITR or e-verification.
What to do when the income tax portal is slow? Don’t worry because in most cases it can be easily fixed through proper troubleshooting techniques. It is important that one can manage to successfully e-verify the return to avoid penalties under Section 234F of the Income-tax Act.
Why is the Income Tax Portal running slow?
There are many people trying to file their ITR in the last days and accessing the income tax portal. Such a massive traffic can lead to slow loading, session timeout, OTP delay, or incomplete page loading.
Sometimes the problem may be related to the browser being too old for the website to function well or there may be cache stored in the browser or some incompatible browser extensions and bad internet connection.
How to Clear Browser Cache Before Logging In
Clearing your browser cache can solve the problem if the portal is not loading properly or showing errors frequently.
Go to the browser setting page and find the “Clear Browsing Data” feature. From there, clear all the image and file cache data. You can even clear the cookie data if you don’t mind logging into your account again. Once done, restart your browser and then visit the Income Tax portal again.
If you are still facing the same problem, then you can try opening the portal in any other browser, like Chrome, Edge, Firefox, or Safari, or even in incognito/private mode.
How to Check Your E-Verification Status
Filing your Income Tax Return is only part of the process. Your return must also be successfully e-verified within the prescribed time.
To check your status, log in to the Income Tax e-filing portal and navigate to e-File > Income Tax Returns > View Filed Returns. Your return will display its current status, such as “Successfully e-Verified,” “Pending for e-Verification,” or “Processed.”
If your return is still awaiting verification, complete the process using Aadhaar OTP, net banking, a demat account, a bank account, or a Digital Signature Certificate (where applicable).
Why E-Verification Is Important
There is a common misconception among taxpayers that their filing gets completed as soon as they file the tax return.
But if the return fails to get verified within the stipulated period, it might become void according to the Income-tax Act. That would mean the taxpayer’s filing procedure is not yet complete.
So, checking your return’s verification status before the deadline would help you avoid future hassles.
Understanding Section 234F Late Filing Penalty
Section 234F levies a penalty in the form of a fee where the Income Tax Return is filed after the respective due date.
The late fee charged will be based on various things, including your gross total income and the date you finally file your return. Proper filing within the prescribed period ensures that you don’t incur this extra cost at all.
In addition to the late fee, there could be other consequences of filing the tax return after the prescribed deadline.
What If the Portal Is Still Not Working?
In case of the continued inaccessibility of the portal after troubleshooting, do not wait till the last few hours before the deadline.
Capture the error messages in screenshots, check your internet connection, and try again outside peak hours such as early morning and late night when there is less traffic on the portal.
You can even check the website of the Income Tax Department for any advisory or maintenance update.
Tips to Avoid Last-Minute Filing Stress
Avoiding any problem with the portal is best accomplished by ensuring that your tax return is completed prior to the deadline. It is important that you have all your required documentation including Form 16, AIS, TIS, bank statements, and investments ready before logging into the portal.
Ensure that your details are correct, check your bank accounts and taxes are correct. Once you have filed, check to see whether your return has been successful e-verified and make a record of the acknowledgement.
Conclusion
A slow-down at the Income Tax Portal can be annoying especially when near the filing date; however, there are simple troubleshooting solutions such as clearing your cache, switching browsers and checking your e-verification status.
It is best to file and e-verify your return within the required timeframe to avoid facing penalties according to Section 234F.
Do not just hit the “Submit” button and leave. Ensure your return is successful before the deadline.
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