Income Tax Portal Enables AY 2026-27 ITR-5, ITR-6 and ITR-7 Utilities

AY 2026-27 return-filing utilities expanded

The Income Tax Department has expanded the return-filing facilities available on its e-filing portal for assessment year 2026-27. Its News & e-Campaigns page confirms that the online utility for ITR-7 has been enabled and that both online and offline utilities for ITR-5 are available for filing.

The Department has also made the Excel utility for ITR-6 available on the portal. Separate updates confirm the availability of Excel utilities for ITR-5 and ITR-7 for the same assessment year.

Together, these announcements are relevant to entities and professionals preparing returns outside the individual taxpayer forms. The availability of a form is only one part of return readiness: taxpayers and advisers must also identify the correct form, ensure that the entity’s records have been finalised and check that the filing method selected is appropriate for the return concerned.

What the form-related updates cover

ITR-5 is generally associated with non-company taxpayers falling within its prescribed scope, while ITR-6 and ITR-7 address different categories of entities. The Department’s portal separately organises guidance for firms and limited liability partnerships, associations of persons, bodies of individuals, trusts and artificial juridical persons, as well as domestic and foreign companies.

The portal also provides taxpayer-specific navigation for local authorities, Hindu undivided families, businesses and professionals, non-residents, salaried employees and senior or super senior citizens. These categories are supported through links dealing with applicable returns and forms, tax slabs, deductions, assisted filing and downloads, depending on the taxpayer type.

The announcement of a utility should not be treated as a conclusion that every taxpayer within a broad organisational category must use that return. Form selection depends on the taxpayer’s legal status and the applicable filing framework. Chartered accountants and return preparers should therefore verify the prescribed form before beginning data preparation or uploading a return.

For firms, LLPs, companies, trusts and other entities, the practical next step is to align the utility with the final accounts, tax computation and information already reflected on the portal. Where an offline or Excel utility is used, teams should also work with the version currently made available through the e-filing portal.

New ITR-BN framework for search and requisition cases

The Department’s update also records that the Central Board of Direct Taxes has notified the Income-tax (Third Amendment) Rules, 2026 through Notification No. 97/2026 [F. No. 370142/11/2026-TPL].

According to the official update, the notification introduces Form ITR-BN and amends Rule 332 by inserting Appendix IV. The new framework governs returns relating to search and requisition cases and takes effect from 1 April 2026.

This is a distinct development from the ordinary annual rollout of return utilities. Returns connected with search or requisition proceedings involve a specialised compliance setting, and the introduction of a dedicated form means that affected taxpayers and their advisers will need to map the governing requirement to Form ITR-BN and the amended rule.

The effective date is particularly important when determining the applicability of the amended framework. Professionals handling such matters should distinguish the new form from the regular ITR utilities released for assessment year 2026-27 and examine the requirements of Rule 332 and Appendix IV when preparing an affected return.

Foreign-asset information made visible through AIS

Another update concerns the Annual Information Statement. The CBDT has enabled taxpayers to view their foreign-asset information through AIS on the income-tax e-filing portal. The Department has also hosted a note concerning the availability of information received under the Common Reporting Standard and the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act in AIS.

The development gives taxpayers and authorised professionals an additional portal-based information source when reviewing foreign assets. It can assist in identifying data that may need to be considered while preparing a return, particularly where the applicable form calls for foreign-asset disclosures.

AIS information should form part of the return-preparation review rather than being considered only after filing. Taxpayers should compare the information displayed with their own records and the disclosures proposed in the return. Any difference should be examined on its facts before the return is finalised; the appearance of information in AIS does not remove the need to determine the taxpayer’s own reporting position.

For professional firms, the update supports an additional control in the return-preparation process. Engagement checklists for taxpayers with overseas accounts, investments or other foreign interests can include an AIS review alongside information collected directly from the client.

Specified TDS relief for eligible IFSC units

The official page further reports that the CBDT has issued Notification No. 80/2026 [F. No. 275/19/2026-IT(B)]. As described by the Department, specified payments received by eligible International Financial Services Centre units are exempt from tax deduction at source under the Income-tax Act, 2025.

The listed payment categories include interest, dividends, professional fees, commission, brokerage and other income connected with financial services. The update identifies both the nature of the receipts and the requirement that the recipient be an eligible IFSC unit.

The relief therefore calls for a transaction-level review by both payers and recipients. It should not be applied merely because an entity operates in or is associated with an IFSC. Before changing a withholding position, the parties should establish that the recipient and the particular payment fall within the notification’s specified scope and preserve the supporting documentation.

Professionals advising eligible units should also consider how the exemption affects payment instructions and reconciliation processes. Payers need sufficiently clear information to apply the correct TDS treatment, while recipients should reconcile gross receipts and any deductions actually made against their records.

Portal resources for professionals and other users

Beyond taxpayer filing utilities, the portal maintains dedicated resources for tax professionals and other participating agencies. These include registration services for chartered accountants, API specifications and lists for e-return intermediaries, and facilities for tax deductors and collectors.

The portal also identifies services for external agencies, including Central and state government departments or approved undertakings and Reserve Bank of India-approved banks. These categories underline the range of participants involved in return filing, tax deduction and collection, and exchange of tax-related information.

For CAs and finance teams, the current set of announcements merits a focused operational review. Return teams should confirm which AY 2026-27 utilities are now available, search and requisition matters should be screened for the ITR-BN framework, foreign-asset cases should include an AIS review, and IFSC transactions should be tested against the specified TDS conditions before withholding treatment is changed.

Key takeaway

The Department’s updates combine three immediate compliance themes: wider availability of AY 2026-27 return utilities, a dedicated ITR-BN framework effective from 1 April 2026 for search and requisition cases, and new portal or withholding developments affecting foreign-asset reporting and eligible IFSC units. Taxpayers and advisers should apply each update to the relevant taxpayer or transaction rather than treating the announcements as a single general relaxation.