The ITR return needs to be filed for the income earned by during a financial year. Even if the person in question is deceased, someone needs to file the income tax return on his/her behalf. The death of the person is not certain; the income earned by person who has expired can still be subject to taxes.
According to the Income Tax Act, 1961- section 159; Where a person dies, his/her legal executor shall be responsible to pay any sum of amount which the deceased would have been liable to pay if he/she had not died, in the like manner and to the same extent as the deceased. This act clearly means that, Deceased person’s legal representative shall be responsible to pay of ITR for deceased person.
The ITR for a deceased person has to be filed, if he/she has taxable income. His/her legal heir needs to file the return on his/her behalf for the income earned till the date of death. Legal heir need to register himself at the income tax website for filing the ITR on behalf of deceased.
What is Legal Heir?
Legal heir is the person who represents the assets of deceased. Any of the following documents are accepted as legal heir certificates for registering himself/herself as a legal heir:
- The legal heir certificate issued- by the court of law/by the Local revenue authorities.
- The certificate of the surviving family members issued by -the local revenue authorities.
- The registered Will of the deceased person
- The family pension certificate issued- by the State or Central government.
The most common certificate available is the certificate of surviving family members issued by the local revenue authorities like Municipality, nagarpalika etc. This certificate is generally issued in regional language, so the legal heir is needed to translate it into English/Hindi and get it duly notarized.
What are the process of Register yourself to act on behalf of another person?
These are the process through which anyone can register you to act on behalf of another person.
Step 1- Login to e-Filing Portal- www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in
Step 2- Go to the ‘My Account’ menu and Click on to register to act on behalf of another person’
Step 3- Enter the required details in the appropriate fields & attach the essential supporting documents based on category.
Step 4- Click on ‘Submit’.
Note: Request for registering you to act on behalf of another person will be sent to the e-Filing Admin for approval. After checking the authenticity of the request details and May Approve or Reject the request and Upon Approval/Rejection, an e-mail & SMS will be sent to the user who raised the request.
Who can file ITR of deceased person?
ITR of deceased person can be filed by the legal heir or legal executor of the deceased person. To file the ITR the legal representative need to get register as Legal heir on e-filing on portal.
What are the Documents Required to be Submitted While Making Request?
- Copy of PAN card of the ‘Estate of deceased’
- Copy of PAN card of the ‘Executor’
- Court order appointing the executor/s or Will of the deceased in which the executor particulars have been furnished or written agreement of survivors appointing the Executor.
- Copy of Death Certificate of the deceased, if available (Non-Mandatory)
What are the Details Required To Be Provided In The Portal?
- PAN of the Estate of Deceased
- Name of the Estate of Deceased
- Date of Incorporation of the Estate of Deceased
- PAN of the Deceased
- Date of Death of the Deceased
- Surname of the Deceased
How to View the Status of the Request?
Step 1 Login to ‘e-Filing’ Portal www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in
Step 2 Go to the ‘My Account’
Step 3 Select the ‘Request Type’ as ‘View Request’
Step 4 Click on the ‘Transaction ID’ hyperlink to view the details of the request.
Step 5 Under ‘Status’ column, the status will be displayed as: Pending Or Approved