How to file a revised ITR when you spot a mistake
A revised return replaces your original entirely. For AY 2026-27 the window runs to 31 March, though revising after 31 December carries a fee.
A revised return under Section 139(5) completely replaces your original return, not just the mistake in it, and you can file it any number of times before the assessment year ends or your assessment is completed, whichever comes first. For AY 2026-27, Budget 2026 pushed that deadline from 31 December to 31 March 2027, but revising after 31 December now attracts a fee. An AIS or TDS mismatch is the most common reason people end up here.
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A revised return under Section 139(5) replaces your original return entirely, not the one field you got wrong. For AY 2026-27, the window to file one now runs to 31 March 2027, extended from the earlier 31 December cutoff by Budget 2026, though filing after 31 December carries a fee. The most common reason people land here is an AIS mismatch or a TDS entry that does not agree with what they filed.
What a revised return actually does
Filing a revised return does not patch your original. It submits a brand new return for the same assessment year, and once accepted, that new return becomes the one the department assesses you on. The original stays visible in your filing history but stops being operative.
This is why you review the whole return when you revise, not just the number you noticed was wrong. A second revision to fix something you missed the first time is allowed, there is no statutory cap on how many times you can revise within the window, but each one restarts scrutiny on the whole return, not just the change.
When you can revise, and when you cannot anymore
You can file a revised return any time before the assessment year ends, or before your assessment is completed, whichever happens first. For FY 2025-26 income, filed under AY 2026-27, that means 31 March 2027 at the latest, unless the department completes your assessment before then, in which case the window closes earlier regardless of the date.
Budget 2026 extended this deadline from the earlier 31 December cutoff, but added a fee for revisions filed in the extra window. Revise on or before 31 December and there is no fee. Revise between 1 January and 31 March 2027 and a fee applies, reported consistently at 1,000 rupees if your total income is up to 5 lakh rupees and 5,000 rupees above that, the same slab structure as the standard late filing fee under Section 234F. This is a genuinely new provision from this year’s Budget, so treat the exact fee as likely correct but worth a glance at the portal’s own calculation before you submit, since the portal will show you the figure it actually charges.
A worked example
Farah filed her return in July, reporting her salary and a small amount of savings account interest. In October, checking her AIS after a friend mentioned it, she noticed a fixed deposit maturity that credited interest income she had genuinely forgotten to declare, about 34,000 rupees. She logs into the portal, starts a new return for the same assessment year under Section 139(5), adds the missed interest, and recalculates her tax. Because she is revising before 31 December, no fee applies. Her tax liability goes up slightly, she pays the difference through the portal, and the revised return becomes her operative filing once she e-verifies it.
Had she noticed this in February instead, the process would be identical except for one extra step: paying the revision fee the portal calculates before it lets her submit.
Revised return versus updated return, and why the difference matters
Once the revision window closes, entirely, whether because the year ended or your assessment finished, an updated return under Section 139(8A) is what remains. It exists for a genuinely different purpose: declaring additional income or paying additional tax you missed, not for correcting your figures generally. It carries additional tax on top of what is owed, and critically, it cannot be used to claim a larger refund or reduce your tax liability, only to increase what you owe. If what you actually need is a bigger refund because you missed a deduction, an updated return will not get it for you, only a timely revision will.
What people get wrong about this
Assuming every AIS mismatch means the ITR is wrong. Sometimes AIS is the one that is off, a transaction reported twice, or income attributed to the wrong person. Confirm what actually happened before assuming your filed return needs correcting.
Thinking a revision only touches the field they noticed. The whole return is refiled. Small unrelated errors that slipped through the first time are worth fixing in the same pass rather than triggering a third revision later.
Missing that a revised return can increase a refund and an updated return cannot. These are not interchangeable fallback options. If you are trying to claim money back, the revision window is what matters, and once it closes, that door is shut.
Not e-verifying afterward. A revised return that is not verified within 30 days is treated as though it was never filed, the same rule that applies to an original return, and reverts you to whatever return was operative before. If that window has already passed, the ITR verification delay checker covers what you can still do.
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Common questions
I got an AIS mismatch message. Do I need to revise my return?
Only if the mismatch means your filed return is actually wrong. If AIS shows income or a transaction you already reported correctly, an AIS mismatch alone does not require a revision. If it shows something your return genuinely left out, such as interest income you forgot, a revision is how you fix it.
Will my original return be cancelled once I file a revised one?
It stays on record but stops being the operative return. The revised return supersedes it completely and is what your assessment is based on going forward.
Can I revise a return I filed late, as a belated return?
Yes. A belated return filed under Section 139(4) can still be revised under Section 139(5), the same as an on-time return.
What if I miss the revision deadline entirely?
Your only remaining option is an updated return, ITR-U, under Section 139(8A). It comes with additional tax on top of what you owe, and unlike a revised return, it cannot be used to claim a bigger refund or reduce your tax liability, only to declare more income or pay more tax.
Is there a limit on how many times I can revise a return?
No statutory limit within the window, though filing several revisions in a row is more likely to draw the Assessing Officer's attention. Get it right on the second try if you can.
Checked against Income Tax Department, revised return provisions on 11 August 2026. Rules change, so confirm on the official portal before acting.
SimpleDoc is independent and not affiliated with any government body. This is general guidance, not financial or legal advice. Always confirm details on the official portal before acting.