e-Verify Your ITR 2026: 6 Ways

Reviewed on 2026-06-20 by Dr. Shrawan Kumar Pathak.

You have 30 days from the date you filed to verify. This 30 day limit applies to returns filed on or after 1 August 2022. If you filed on or before 31 July 2022, the older 120 day limit still applies to that return.

Miss the window and your return is treated as not filed, with all the consequences of not filing under the Income Tax Act, 1961. That can mean losing a refund, losing the right to carry forward certain losses, and facing a late-filing fee if you then file belated. You can later ask for condonation of delay with a reason, but the return becomes valid only after the tax authority approves. So do not sit on it. The moment you finish filing your ITR online, verify it the same day.

Aadhaar OTP is the fastest path for most people, and it needs nothing more than your phone. Pick any one of the six methods below; they all carry equal legal weight, so choose whichever you can complete fastest right now.

Fastest if your mobile is linked with Aadhaar. On the e-Verify page choose “OTP on mobile number registered with Aadhaar”, tick the consent box, enter the 6 digit OTP and submit. Done in under a minute. The OTP is valid for a short window, so keep your phone in hand.

Fastest if you do not have Aadhaar-linked mobile. Choose “Through Net Banking”, pick your bank, log in to your bank account and click the income tax e-Filing link. You land back on the portal already logged in. Then confirm e-Verify. The bank must be on the portal's list and your PAN must match the account.

Use if your bank account is pre-validated and EVC-enabled on the portal. The portal sends an Electronic Verification Code (EVC) to the mobile and email registered with that bank account. Enter the EVC to verify. Pre-validate the account first under My Bank Account if you have not.

Use if you hold shares. Pre-validate and EVC-enable your demat account on the portal. The EVC reaches your registered mobile and email. Enter it to verify. Handy for investors who do not bank online.

Use if you prefer offline. At select banks, swipe your card at the ATM and choose “Generate EVC for Income Tax”. The EVC comes by SMS. Enter it on the e-Verify page within its validity. Only some banks offer this, so check your bank.

Use if you have a valid DSC, or you are an audit case, a company or anyone for whom DSC is mandatory. Install the emsigner utility, choose “Verify using DSC”, select your certificate and sign. DSC works immediately after filing, so verify right away.

Any one method is enough. You do not need to repeat them.

An Authorised Signatory or a Representative Assessee may e-Verify your return using Aadhaar OTP, net banking, or a pre-validated bank or demat account EVC registered in their name.

Figure: step-by-step flow. If a step stalls, use the grievance or RTI route shown.

No Aadhaar OTP, no net banking, no DSC? Use the paper route. After filing, download the ITR-V (the one page acknowledgement) from the portal, print it, sign it in blue ink, and send it by ordinary post or speed post to:

• Centralised Processing Centre, Income Tax Department, Bengaluru - 560500, Karnataka.

Sign only inside the signature box, keep the bar code clean and unfolded, and send the ITR-V on its own. Use the ITR-V password (your PAN in lower case plus date of birth) only to open the file before printing. Key catch: the date the signed ITR-V is received at CPC is what counts for the 30 day limit, not the date you posted it. So post it within a day or two of filing, never on day 29, because the post can take a week. Keep the post receipt as proof of dispatch in case the copy is lost in transit.

After verifying by any route, check that it stuck. See your Form 26AS and AIS to confirm the return data, then watch your ITR refund status for movement.

Sometimes the OTP never arrives, the EVC is rejected, or the status still shows “pending for verification” after you verified. Steps:

1. Recheck that your mobile is linked to Aadhaar (for OTP) or that the bank or demat account is pre-validated and EVC-enabled.
2. Try a second method. If Aadhaar OTP fails, switch to net banking or bank-account EVC.
3. If it still does not reflect, raise an e-Nivaran grievance on the e-Filing portal under Grievances, quoting your acknowledgement number.
4. No proper reply from CPC? File an RTI with the Central Processing Centre or CBDT asking the status of your verification and grievance.

If you missed the 30 day window entirely, do not refile blindly. Read how to use the revised and belated ITR route, since a return treated as not filed may need the belated path and a condonation request.

No. Filing submits the return; e-Verify confirms it is genuinely yours. An unverified return is treated as not filed, so verification is the step that actually completes the process.

30 days from the date of filing, for returns filed on or after 1 August 2022. Returns filed on or before 31 July 2022 keep the older 120 day limit.

Aadhaar OTP, if your mobile is linked with Aadhaar. You tick a consent box, enter the OTP and you are verified in under a minute. Net banking is the next quickest.

Your return is treated as not filed and attracts the consequences of not filing under the Income Tax Act, 1961. You may apply for condonation of delay with a reason, but the return is valid only after the authority approves it.

Only if you cannot use any electronic method. Post the signed ITR-V by ordinary or speed post to CPC, Bengaluru 560500. The date it is received at CPC, not posted, counts for the 30 days.

Yes. An Authorised Signatory or Representative Assessee can e-Verify using their Aadhaar OTP, net banking, or a pre-validated bank or demat account EVC.

Wait a short while, then recheck. If it stays pending, raise an e-Nivaran grievance on the e-Filing portal with your acknowledgement number, and use RTI with CPC or CBDT if there is no proper response.

• https://www.incometax.gov.in/iec/foportal/help/e-filing-e-verify-your-return-faq
• https://www.incometax.gov.in/iec/foportal/help/how-to-e-verify-your-e-filing-return
• https://www.incometax.gov.in/iec/foportal/itr-v-faqs