Income-Tax Refund Delayed? File RTI to CPC Bangalore

Income-tax refund delayed for months? File RTI to CPC Bangalore or your jurisdictional AO to extract processing status, adjustment notes, and release date — in 30.

Part of the Pillar 4 — Money & Schemes pillar.

Part of Pillar 1 — RTI for Daily Life Problems. See GST refund RTI for the indirect-tax companion.

Refunds get stuck on:

• Section 143(1) intimation not yet generated.
• Adjustment under Section 245 against an existing demand — notice not served.
• Refund re-issue needed because of bank account mismatch.
• TDS mismatch between Form 26AS and return.
• PAN / Aadhaar seeding not linked.
• Scrutiny selection under Section 143(2) — refund held pending.

• ITR filed >90 days ago; no refund and no intimation.
• Intimation received but refund shows “under process” >45 days.
• Adjustment-notice (Section 245) suspected but not served.
• Bank-account validation bounced.
• Refund amount is less than claimed — reason not communicated.

• Return status in the CPC system.
• Intimation under Section 143(1) — date and copy.
• Section 245 set-off record (if any).
• Refund-reissue status.
• TDS / Form 26AS reconciliation memo.
• Bank-account validation log.
• Scrutiny notice (Section 143(2)) — if issued.
• Expected refund-release date.
• Interest calculation under Section 244A.
• Appellate authority contact.

• Central refund processing → CPIO, Income Tax Department, CPC, Bangalore via rtionline.gov.in.
• Scrutiny / assessment matters → Jurisdictional Assessing Officer (local).

Rs. 10; BPL free.

To,
The Central Public Information Officer,
Income Tax Department,
Centralised Processing Centre, Bengaluru / Office of the Assessing Officer, [Ward / Circle, City]

Subject: Information under Section 6(1) of the RTI Act, 2005, regarding my income-tax refund.

Sir/Madam,

I, [Name], PAN [masked — last 4 digits XXXX], submit:

Assessment Year: ________
Return filing date: ________
Acknowledgement number: ________
Refund amount claimed: Rs. ________
Last bank account registered: ________

Please provide:

1. Current processing status of my return under Section 143(1) in the CPC system.
2. Certified copy of the Intimation under Section 143(1), if generated.
3. Any set-off under Section 245 — certified copy of notice and adjustment memo.
4. If refund has been reissued / is pending re-issue, the current cycle status.
5. TDS / Form 26AS reconciliation memo, if a mismatch has been flagged.
6. Bank-account validation log (EVC or prevalidation).
7. Any notice under Section 143(2) scrutiny selection — date and copy.
8. Expected date of refund release.
9. Interest calculation under Section 244A of the Income-tax Act, 1961.
10. First Appellate Authority contact.

I enclose Indian Postal Order No. __________ for Rs. 10.
I declare I am an Indian citizen.

Yours faithfully,
[Signature, Date, Place]

1. CPC status.
2. Section 143(1) intimation copy.
3. Section 245 adjustment record.
4. Re-issue cycle status.
5. TDS reconciliation.
6. Bank validation log.
7. Section 143(2) scrutiny notice.
8. Refund-release ETA.
9. Section 244A interest.
10. FAA contact.

• Day 0–10 RTI routed.
• Day 10–25 CPC pulls the record; often processes within this window.
• Day 30 Reply mandatory.
• Day 30+ First Appeal.

• Writing the full 10-digit PAN — only last 4 are safe.
• Not citing the acknowledgement number.
• Filing to CBDT HQ instead of CPC Bangalore.
• Asking “why is refund not issued” — ask for the record.

• Check Form 26AS / AIS first — many “refund-stuck” cases are TDS mismatches.
• Validate your bank account on the e-filing portal before filing RTI.
• Section 244A interest — legitimate claim; ask for worksheet.
• Pair with e-filing grievance at incometax.gov.in → Grievance.

Q1. Can CPC refuse on “voluminous data” grounds?
A single return's processing is specific; Section 7(9) rarely applies.

Q2. What's the timeline if scrutiny is triggered?
6 months to 2 years. Refund generally held till assessment is complete.

Q3. Can I get refund interest separately?
Yes under Section 244A. Ask in Question 9.

Q4. What if there's an adjustment under Section 245?
Request the notice; if not served, the adjustment itself is void.

Income-tax refund is a statutory claim. CPC has the system; RTI surfaces the state of the record. Most genuine refunds flow once the file is formally “looked at” again.

• RTI for GST refund
• Pillar 1 — Daily Life
• File RTI online
• PIO framework — banking/financial

• Income-tax Act, 1961, Sections 143, 244A, 245
• CPC Bengaluru SOPs

Last reviewed: 24 April 2026.