Which ITR Form to File for AY 2026-27 in India

Pick your ITR form by your main income type. Salary with simple income uses ITR-1, capital gains usually need ITR-2, freelancers and business owners use ITR-3 or the presumptive ITR-4. This guide shows the exact form for AY 2026-27 so you file once and avoid a defective-return notice.

A salaried teacher in Pune who sold a few mutual fund units once filed ITR-2 out of fear, spent hours on schedules she did not need, and still made an error. For AY 2026-27 she could have stayed on ITR-1, because small listed-equity long-term gains are now allowed there. Picking the right form is not a formality. File the wrong one and the Income Tax Department can treat your return as defective, which restarts the clock and risks late fees. The good news is that the rules are clear once you match them to your income.

ITR-1 is for a resident individual (not “not ordinarily resident”) whose total income is up to Rs 50 lakh. Per the Income Tax Department, the allowed income sources are: “Salary / Pension, One House Property, Other sources (Interest, Family Pension, Dividend etc.), Agricultural Income up to Rs 5,000, Capital Gain income u/s 112 A up to Rs 1,25,000.”

The headline change for AY 2026-27 is that small long-term capital gains from listed shares and equity mutual funds, taxed under section 112A, can now be reported in ITR-1, as long as the gain does not cross Rs 1,25,000 and you have no losses to carry forward.

You cannot use ITR-1 if you are a company director, hold unlisted equity shares, have any short-term capital gain, have LTCG u/s 112A above Rs 1,25,000, own more than one house, have foreign assets or income from outside India, or have brought-forward losses to set off. Any one of these pushes you to ITR-2.

ITR-2 is for an individual or Hindu Undivided Family (HUF) with income under any head other than business or profession, and for everyone who is shut out of ITR-1. This is the usual form for “which ITR for capital gains” when your gains exceed the small ITR-1 limit.

Use ITR-2 if you sold property, sold shares for a short-term gain, had LTCG above Rs 1,25,000, own two or more houses, earn above Rs 50 lakh, hold foreign assets, or need to carry losses forward. You can still report salary, pension, interest and dividends inside ITR-2; what defines it is the absence of business or professional income.

Ask three questions. Is my total income up to Rs 50 lakh? Do I have at most one house and no foreign assets? Are my only capital gains listed-equity LTCG up to Rs 1,25,000 with no short-term gains and no carried-forward losses? If every answer is yes, file ITR-1. If any answer is no, file ITR-2.

ITR-4 is for a resident individual, HUF or firm (not LLP) with total income up to Rs 50 lakh whose business or professional income is computed on a presumptive basis under section 44AD, 44ADA or 44AE. Freelancers, consultants and small professionals commonly use section 44ADA, declaring a fixed percentage of receipts as income without maintaining full books.

ITR-4 also allows salary, one house property, other-source income, agricultural income up to Rs 5,000, and LTCG u/s 112A up to Rs 1,25,000. The same bars that block ITR-1 (director, unlisted shares, foreign assets, income above Rs 50 lakh) also block ITR-4. If you cross the presumptive limits or want to claim actual expenses, you move to ITR-3.

ITR-3 is for an individual or HUF earning income from profits and gains of business or profession when ITR-1, ITR-2 and ITR-4 do not fit. Use it if you keep regular books, claim actual expenses, run a business above the presumptive limits, or combine business income with capital gains. A trader with stock-in-trade, a freelancer not opting for presumptive tax, or a partner in a firm typically files ITR-3.

1. Add up your total income for FY 2025-26 (April 2025 to March 2026) across all heads.
2. Identify your main income type: salary, capital gains, freelance or business.
3. Match it to the decision table above and shortlist one form.
4. Run the ITR-1 vs ITR-2 quick test, or the ITR-4 vs ITR-3 presumptive test, to confirm.
5. Log in to the e-filing portal at incometax.gov.in and pick AY 2026-27.
6. Select the confirmed form, prefill from Form 26AS and AIS, check every figure, and submit.
7. E-verify within the allowed window so your return is treated as valid.

• PAN and Aadhaar, linked
• Form 16 from your employer (for salary)
• Form 26AS and the Annual Information Statement (AIS)
• Capital gains statements from your broker or mutual fund (for ITR-2)
• Bank interest certificates and dividend statements
• Profit and loss account and balance sheet (for ITR-3) or receipts summary (for ITR-4)

• Filing ITR-1 when you have short-term capital gains, which is not allowed.
• Forgetting that two or more houses force you off ITR-1 and ITR-4.
• Treating freelance income as “other sources” instead of business or profession.
• Using ITR-4 while claiming actual expenses; presumptive tax fixes your income percentage.
• Missing foreign assets, which bar both ITR-1 and ITR-4 entirely.

For individuals not requiring an audit, the statutory due date under section 139(1) is 31 July 2026. For taxpayers whose accounts require an audit, the statutory due date is 31 October 2026. A belated return for AY 2026-27 “may be furnished on or before 31st December 2026, or prior to the completion of the assessment, whichever occurs earlier,” per the Income Tax Department.

Yes, but only long-term capital gains from listed equity shares or equity mutual funds taxed under section 112A, and only up to Rs 1,25,000, with no short-term gains and no losses carried forward. Anything beyond that needs ITR-2.

ITR-1 is for simple resident income up to Rs 50 lakh with one house and tiny listed-equity LTCG. ITR-2 covers everyone with larger capital gains, more than one house, foreign assets, or income above Rs 50 lakh, as long as there is no business income.

A freelancer who opts for presumptive taxation under section 44ADA with total income up to Rs 50 lakh files ITR-4 (Sugam). A freelancer who keeps books and claims actual expenses, or who exceeds the presumptive limits, files ITR-3.

The Income Tax Department can mark your return defective. You then have to file a corrected return, which can lead to delays and possible late fees if the original due date has passed. Choosing the right form first avoids this.

No. ITR-1 allows only one house property. With two or more houses you must file ITR-2, even if all your other income is simple salary and interest.

• Income Tax Department, return-applicable help: https://www.incometax.gov.in/iec/foportal/help/individual/return-applicable-1
• Income Tax Department, income tax returns help (due dates and belated return): https://www.incometax.gov.in/iec/foportal/help/all-topics/e-filing-services/income-tax-returns

• The RTI Playbook
• RTI Wiki home

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• Belated and revised ITR under Section 139
• Standard deduction for salaried and pensioners
• Interest under Section 234A, 234B and 234C