Under section 263(4) of the Income-tax Act, 2025, a person who has not furnished a return within the…

Section 263(4) of the Income-tax Act, 2025 allows a person who has not furnished a return within the time allowed under section 263(1) to furnish it within nine months from the end of the relevant tax year, or before the completion of the assessment, whichever is earlier; for the tax year 2026-27 this means by 31 December 2027, unless the assessment is completed earlier. Forty-eight months from the end of the financial year succeeding the tax year is the time limit for an updated return under section 263(6), not for a belated return, and the Act does not limit a belated return to the end of the tax year or extend it to twelve months. (Under s.139(4) of the 1961 Act the limit was three months before the end of the relevant assessment year, which falls on the same date.)