Chandigarh: The Punjab and Haryana High Court has directed the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) to extend the deadline for filing Income Tax Returns (ITR) for assessees required to submit audit reports. The order was issued by a Bench comprising Justice Lisa Gill and Justice Meenakshi I. Mehta while disposing of four writ petitions filed by the Jalandhar Income Tax Bar Association, the Taxation Bar Association Pathankot, and several individual tax practitioners.
The petitioners had sought an extension of the due date for filing tax audit reports, originally set for September 30, 2025, and a corresponding extension of the ITR filing deadline. They argued that though modifications to the tax audit report format were notified on March 28, 2025, the updated e-filing utility was released only on August 14, 2025. This, they contended, left very little time for compliance.
It was also pointed out that since both audit reports and tax returns must be filed online, the late release of the e-filing utilities significantly reduced the effective filing window. The petitioners further noted that the CBDT had previously acknowledged similar delays and granted extensions to non-company assessees, making their current plea justified.
The court observed that the Union of India had repeatedly sought adjournments on the grounds that the proposal for an extension was under consideration. The Bench, however, found no merit in delaying the matter any further, especially since a similar order passed by the Gujarat High Court on October 13, 2025, had already attained finality. “We find no ground whatsoever to further adjourn these writ petitions as has been suggested,” the Bench remarked.
Following this, the court directed the CBDT to issue a circular under Section 119 of the Income Tax Act to extend the due date for filing returns by assessees required to file audit reports under clause (a) of Explanation 2 to sub-Section (1) of Section 139 of the Act or any other applicable provision. The new deadline for the financial year 2024–2025 (assessment year 2025–2026) has been set as November 30, 2025.
Senior advocate Dheeraj Jain, assisted by advocate Shreyanshi Verma, represented the Union of India in the case. The extension is expected to provide much-needed relief to accountants and taxpayers struggling to meet the previous deadline amid procedural delays
