The Cheapest Correction Route, and the Only One That Can Reduce Tax
If you have filed a return and found a mistake, a revised return under Section 139(5) is almost always the right answer. It costs nothing beyond any interest already running, it can be filed more than once, and critically it can reduce your tax or produce a refund, which an updated return can never do. The window is the one constraint: sources report it as 31 December of the assessment year, which for AY 2026-27 is 31 December 2026.
When you can revise
Where you have already filed a return, original or belated, and need to correct it.
Typical reasons:
Income omitted, such as interest, dividend or a capital gain
A deduction or exemption missed
The wrong regime selected
Wrong bank details, delaying a refund
TDS not claimed, or claimed incorrectly
The wrong form used
A computational error
The deadline
Sources report the revised return window as 31 December of the relevant assessment year, the same date as the belated return window.
One source notes that under the Income-tax Act 2025 the window is expressed as 12 months from the end of the tax year. Both descriptions land on the same practical date for current years, but the drafting differs. Verify the position for the year you are revising.
What a revised return can do that ITR-U cannot
This is the single most important thing on the page, and it is the most common misunderstanding in this area.
Basis | Revised return | Updated return, ITR-U |
Can reduce tax | Yes | No |
Can produce a refund | Yes | No |
Can be filed more than once | Yes | No, once per year |
Additional tax | None | 25 to 70 per cent |
Window | Up to 31 December of the AY | Up to 48 months from the end of the AY |
An updated return is a route for paying more, never for paying less. If you have overstated income or missed a deduction, the revised return is the only route that helps, and it closes on 31 December.
That makes the deadline commercially important. A taxpayer who discovers an overpayment on 2 January has lost the ability to recover it through this route.
How to file
Log in to the income tax portal
Start a new return for the same assessment year, selecting the revised return option under Section 139(5)
Enter the acknowledgement number and date of the original return
Correct the figures, with the complete return refiled rather than only the changed parts
Submit and e-verify within the prescribed period
A revised return replaces the original entirely. It is not an amendment to it.
Points to watch
Revise once, properly. You can file more than once, but each revision restarts scrutiny of the figures and repeated revisions attract attention.
Reconcile to the AIS first, so the revision is complete rather than the first of several.
E-verify. An unverified revised return leaves the original standing.
Check whether a revision is actually needed. Minor arithmetic errors are sometimes corrected by the department’s own processing, and a mismatch flagged in processing has its own response route.
If the window has closed
Then ITR-U, within 48 months, with the additional tax, and only if the change increases your income. See our article on updated returns.
How Northrop LLP helps
Northrop LLP reviews the original return against the AIS, establishes whether revision is the right route, and files a complete revised return within the window.