Condonation of Delay in Filing ITR: When & How to Apply

Missing the income tax return deadline is stressful enough when a belated return is still an option. It is worse when even the belated return window has closed, and you are sitting on a refund, a carried-forward loss, or a deduction you never got to claim. Section 119(2)(b) of the Income Tax Act exists exactly for this situation: it empowers the tax authorities to condone the delay and accept the return in genuine cases, so the claim is not lost purely on account of a missed date.

What Condonation of Delay Actually Does

Condonation of delay under Section 119(2)(b) allows the tax department to permit a return to be filed, or a claim to be made, after the normal filing deadlines have passed, specifically for refund claims, carry-forward of losses, or claims to deductions and exemptions. It is not an automatic right; it is a discretionary relief granted by the tax authority when the applicant can demonstrate genuine hardship that prevented timely filing.

This is different from a belated return filed under Section 139(4), which any taxpayer can file (with applicable late fees and interest) within the statutory belated-return window without needing to show any special reason. Condonation is the route that opens up only after that window has also closed.

When Should You Apply

Condonation of delay is relevant when:

• You missed both the original due date and the belated return deadline, and you are entitled to a refund of tax already paid or deducted at source.
• You want to carry forward a business or capital loss that would otherwise lapse because the return reporting it was not filed on time.
• You are eligible for a deduction or exemption (for example, under Chapter VI-A) that requires a return to be filed to be claimed, and the filing window has passed.

It is not a mechanism to avoid late fees or interest on a return that could still be filed as a belated return; use the normal belated-return route in that case. Condonation is specifically for situations where the normal routes are no longer available.

What Counts as Genuine Hardship

The law does not define a rigid list, and each case is assessed on its own facts, but circumstances that are commonly accepted include serious illness or hospitalisation of the taxpayer or an immediate family member, death of a family member around the filing period, a natural calamity affecting the taxpayer's location, being stranded outside India for reasons genuinely beyond the taxpayer's control, or a demonstrable technical failure on the e-filing portal close to the deadline. A simple lack of awareness of the deadline, or forgetting to file, is generally not accepted as genuine hardship on its own; the stronger and better-documented the reason, the better the chance of approval.

Monetary Limits: Which Authority Decides

Per CBDT Circular No. 11/2024, the authority empowered to decide a condonation application depends on the value of the claim involved (refund amount or the tax effect of the loss/deduction being claimed):

These limits determine where the application is filed and considered; the application process itself (documentation, reasoning) is broadly similar across all three levels.

Time Limit to Apply

An application for condonation of delay must generally be filed within five years from the end of the relevant assessment year for which the claim relates. This is a firm outer limit; applying well within this window, and as soon as practicable after the hardship is resolved, materially improves the chances of a favourable outcome, since a very late application (even within the 5-year limit) can itself invite scrutiny of why it took so long.

Once filed, the tax authority is expected to dispose of the application within six months from the end of the month in which it was filed, though actual timelines can vary depending on the case and how complete the initial submission is.

How to Apply: Step by Step

1. Prepare the application addressed to the relevant authority (based on the monetary limits above), stating the assessment year, the nature of the claim (refund, loss carry-forward, or deduction), and the specific reason for the delay.
2. Attach supporting evidence for the hardship claimed: medical records, hospital bills, death certificates, travel records, or portal error screenshots and grievance tickets, whichever is relevant.
3. Submit through the prescribed channel, which for most cases today is via the income tax e-filing portal or, for CBDT-level applications, as directed by the Board's process.
4. Respond promptly to any query raised by the authority while the application is under consideration.
5. File the return promptly once condonation is granted, within the timeframe specified in the condonation order, so the approval does not lapse.

Because the outcome hinges on how well the hardship is documented and framed, it is worth having a CA review the application before submission, especially for claims above the Rs 10 lakh threshold where the file goes to a more senior authority. If your situation instead involves a scrutiny or reassessment notice rather than a missed deadline, see our guide on income tax notices under Sections 143(1), 143(2), and 148.