Filed Income Tax Return? Know about ITR intimation types and how to deal with them

The intimation contains all the relevant information regarding your return, including your ITR acknowledgement number, details of your income break-up, etc. Let’s learn about this in detail. 

What is an Income Tax intimation under Section 143(1)?

The Income tax intimation under Section 143(1) is the processing of ITR by the Centralised Processing Centre (CPC) of the Income Tax Department in Bengaluru. Here, the CPC processes your ITR to verify and fix the arithmetical errors and other obvious mistakes. It undertakes tax and refund calculation, and issues tax demand (if any). 

Importantly, verification of income isn’t done at this stage. 

This intimation has to be sent within nine months from the end of the financial year in which the return is being filed. For example, if you file your return for FY25 in August 2025 (as the deadline is September 31 this year), the intimation must be issued before December 31, 2026. 

After filing ITR: Detailed process

Once you’ve filed your ITR, the IT department analyses it carefully. First, it carries out a preliminary assessment and informs the taxpayer of the result of the same. This assessment points out errors (if any) in calculation, verification, or any inconsistency. This is an automated process and is undertaken by the Central Processing Centre (CPC).

The preliminary assessment is done to rule out any obvious error or discrepancy, and an intimation under Section 143(1) is issued to the taxpayer. 

Types of intimation under Section 143(1)

If you fail to respond to the intimation under Section 143(1), the return is processed after making necessary adjustments without giving you any opportunity to explain or clarify your side.

Intimation under 143(1) password

The intimation received is password-protected. The password will be your PAN (in lowercase), followed by your date of birth in DDMMYYYY format (no space).

For example: If your pan is QWERT0987Y and your birth date is 02/02/2002, the password will be qwert0987y02022002. 

How to deal with Section 143(1) intimation

If you have received an income tax intimation under Section 143(1), you can follow these steps:

• Read the intimation carefully to ensure that it is for your return only and is for the same financial year as mentioned in the document. 
• Check and verify the name, PAN, address, the assessment year and e-filing acknowledgement number. 
• If you’re able to understand the mistakes you made, file a revised return on the e-filing portal. 
• If you didn’t make any mistakes and you don’t agree with the adjustments made by the CPC (computerised, automated system), file a rectification application under Section 154(1) online.
• Submit your response on the e-filing portal (where you will see if there is a tax demand), stating whether you agree with it or not. 
• You can also file a grievance or contact your assessing officer if necessary.