ITR filing due date for FY 2024-25 is September 15, 2025, but is it also deadline to pay self-assessment tax without penalty?

When the government extended the deadline to file income tax return (ITR) for the financial year 2024-25 (AY 25-26) to September 15, 2025, from July 31, 2025, it was a relief for a large number of taxpayers. The due date was extended for taxpayers whose accounts are not required to be audited. These would include salaried individuals, NRIs and pensioners.

But has the deadline to pay self-assessment tax without penalty also been extended for these taxpayers? Here’s what experts say.

Is penal interest applicable when self-assessment tax is paid after July 31, 2025?

Tarun Garg, Director, Deloitte India, told ET Online, that the interest under Section 234A of the Income Tax Act, 1961, is applicable when the ITR is filed after the due date as specified under Section 139(1), and the self-assessment tax remains unpaid as of that due date.

Garg said that with the ITR filing due date for FY 2024-25 (AY 2025-26) extended to September 15, 2025, the revised date will be considered as the 'due date' for the purposes of Section 234A.

"Accordingly, interest under Section 234A of the Act will not be levied provided the due amount of tax is paid on or before the extended timeline of 15 September 2025. This position is supported by the Supreme Court's ruling in CIT vs. Prannoy Roy [309 ITR 231 (2009)], and CBDT Circular No. 2/2015, which accepted the Court's decision," said Garg.

Tarun Kumar Madaan, a practising Chartered Accountant, told ET Online, "In the present case, since the due date under Section 139(1) has been extended to 15th September 2025, interest under Section 234A should not be applicable if the ITR is filed, and the entire self-assessment tax is paid, on or before this extended date. In several past instances where the due date for filing the return was extended, the CBDT had expressly clarified that such extension would not apply for the purposes of Section 234A, and interest would still be computed from the original due date. However, Circular No. 6/2025 contains no such caveat. Given that the extension has been granted due to reasons beyond the taxpayer's control (such as non-availability of return filing utilities), it is reasonable to interpret that no interest under Section 234A should be charged if the return is filed by 15th September 2025."

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Shubham Jain, Associate Director, Nangia Andersen India, said that the CBDT circular announcing the due date extension specifies that the due date itself, as provided under Section 139(1), has been extended from July 31, 2025, to September 15, 2025.

He said that thus, interest under Section 234A should technically not be levied in cases where the ITR is filed after July 31 but before September 15, 2025.

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What is self-assessment tax?

It is the amount of income tax that a taxpayer needs to pay after deducting Tax Deducted at Source (TDS), Tax Collected at Source (TCS) and advance tax payments from his/her total tax liability for the relevant financial year.

Under Section 234A, if a taxpayer files a belated ITR (i.e., ITR is filed after the due date) and the self-assessment tax is also paid after that, then the taxpayer has to pay penal interest on the self-assessment tax due.

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Will penal interest be applicable on advance tax?

Taxpayers will have to pay penal interest for the non-payment/shortfall of advance tax payments for FY 2024-25 (AY 2025-26). Under Section 234B, it is applicable if a taxpayer hasn't paid advance tax in full by the due date.

Under Section 234C, penal interest is levied if the taxpayer has paid less advance less than the amount prescribed.