| With the due date of July 31 fast approaching, it is that | | | | rush-hour filing may mean that you could inadvertently |
| time of the year again when the nation's tax payers | | | | miss out on certain details and disclosures, and |
| scramble to file I-T returns. Afterall, filing of tax return is | | | | therefore be on the bad books of the taxman. If not |
| compulsory for everyone whose gross total income | | | | that, you might just forget to make the most of the |
| exceeds the basic exemption limit. | | | | tax breaks available to you, thus paying more tax in |
| For financial year 2007-08, for instance, the basic | | | | the process and claiming no or less return. |
| exemption limit was Rs 1.45 lakh for women below 65 | | | | Here are 10 important things to do before filing your I-T |
| years of age, Rs 1.95 lakh for senior citizens and Rs | | | | return: |
| 1.10 lakh for any other individual. However, for financial | | | | |
| year 2008-09, the limit has been increased to Rs 1.80 | | | | 1. Identify Sources of Income |
| lakh for women below 65 years of age, Rs 2.25 for | | | | Firstly, you need to identify your sources of income |
| senior citizens and Rs 1.50 lakh for males below 65 | | | | under different heads. Under the I-T Act, all incomes |
| years. | | | | earned by persons are classified into five different |
| Thus, if your income for the year exceeded the | | | | heads, such as income from salary, income from |
| exemption limit, you will be required to file the return by | | | | house property, income from business or profession, |
| the due date. "You need to file the tax return even if | | | | income from capital gains, and income from other |
| you are not paying any tax or even if your employer | | | | sources. Thus, you should identify all your incomes |
| has deducted tax at source," says Ashish Kapur, CEO, | | | | from different sources, just to ensure that you haven't |
| Invest Shoppe India Ltd. | | | | missed out something while filing your return. |
| However, despite all the precautions taken by you, | | | | 2. |