Income Tax Rules 2026
The Income Tax Department has released the Draft Income Tax Rules, 2026. These new rules are proposed to come into effect from April 1, 2026. In these draft rules, the form for filing Income Tax Return (ITR) has been simplified, so that taxpayers face less hassle. Many other things have also been clarified in these draft rules, like for how long the capital asset will be considered to be held in some cases, rules related to zero coupon bonds, application process of infrastructure companies etc.
When will suggestions be sought from common people?
The draft rules and forms have been placed in the public domain for 15 days, i.e. till 22 February 2026. CBDT has said that all stakeholders and common people should read these carefully and give suggestions, so that the process of making rules can be more participatory and effective. According to Sandeep Jhunjhunwala, partner, Nangia Global, the income tax forms have now been simplified and going forward they will be identified by serial numbers from 1 to 190 and not by the old alphanumeric names. The language of the form has also been made more clear and easy to understand, so that there is no legal or administrative confusion. However, changes may be required in Draft Form 26 in future.
Will the new ITR forms make tax filing easier?
CBDT says that the new forms have been prepared keeping in mind the convenience of the taxpayers. The same information has been standardized in all forms, which will reduce the burden of compliance. These forms will come with features like automatic reconciliation and pre-fill, which will reduce the chances of mistakes and make filing returns easier.
There will be less rules and forms
At present there are 511 rules and 399 forms in the Income Tax Rules, 1962. In the new draft rules, these have been reduced to 333 rules and 190 forms.
New navigator also launched
The government has launched two new navigators. One to show the comparison of old and new rules and the other to show the mapping of old and new forms. Suggestions can be given as per rules and form.