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ITR deadline October 31: Does your business or profession qualify for the later deadline?

image Sangeeta Ojha
By Sangeeta Ojha

3 min read | Updated on September 02, 2026, 14:30 IST

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SUMMARY

For AY 2026-27, taxpayers whose accounts are required to be audited under Section 44AB generally have an ITR filing deadline of October 31, 2026.

ITR deadline October 31

The tax audit report is due earlier, generally one month before the ITR filing deadline.

The deadline to file an income tax return (ITR) is not the same for every taxpayer with business or professional income. While July 31 was the deadline for most of salaried taxpayers, August 31, 2026 was the due date for taxpayers whose accounts were not required to be audited, certain taxpayers subject to tax audit generally have until October 31, 2026 to file their ITR for assessment year (AY) 2026-27.

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ITR deadline October 31: Who qualifies?

For AY 2026-27, taxpayers whose accounts are required to be audited under Section 44AB generally have an ITR filing deadline of October 31, 2026.

The tax audit report is due earlier, generally one month before the ITR filing deadline. The income tax department describes the Section 44AB “specified date” as one month before the due date for filing the return.

5 types of taxpayers who may have an October 31 ITR deadline
1. Businesses requiring tax audit

Businesses whose accounts are required to be audited under Section 44AB generally fall under the October 31 deadline.

2. Professionals crossing the audit threshold

Professionals whose income or receipts meet the applicable conditions requiring a tax audit may also have October 31 as their ITR filing deadline.

3. Partners of audited firms

Partners of firms whose accounts are subject to audit may have the later filing deadline, subject to the applicable tax rules.

4. Certain taxpayers covered by other audit requirements

Some taxpayers may have an October 31 deadline because their accounts are required to be audited under the applicable provisions of the Income Tax Act.

5. Taxpayers who trigger audit requirements under presumptive taxation rules
Some taxpayers may assume they are outside the audit requirement because they use presumptive taxation. However, certain cases involving income below the prescribed level or losses can trigger tax-audit requirements.

August 31 deadline: Who was covered?

August 31, 2026 was the due date for taxpayers with business or professional income whose accounts were not required to be audited. Depending on their income and circumstances, such taxpayers may have been required to file ITR-3, ITR-4, ITR-5 or ITR-7.

Over 7.8 crore ITRs filed

A record over 7.8 crore ITRs were filed for AY 2026-27 as of August 31, the Income Tax Department said on Tuesday.

“A record 7.8 crore+ ITRs have been filed for AY 2026-27 as on August 31, 2026,” the department said in a post on X.

The filings include over 5.9 crore ITR-1 and ITR-2 returns, which were filed by the July 31 deadline.

For comparison, over 7.3 crore ITRs had been filed by September 16, 2025, which was the extended deadline for non-audit taxpayers for AY 2025-26.

Simply having business or professional income, therefore, does not mean that a taxpayer qualifies for the October 31 deadline. The applicable date depends on whether the taxpayer is required to get their accounts audited and the specific provisions applicable to them.
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About The Author

image Sangeeta Ojha
Sangeeta Ojha is a business and finance journalist with experience across leading media platforms like Mint and India Today. She has built a reputation for covering a wide range of personal finance topics, including income tax, mutual funds, insurance, savings and investing.

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