How to File ITR-1 Sahaj Online (FY 2025-26) — Who Qualifies, the Documents to Keep Open, Every Screen of the Portal's Online Form, Salary and HRA Under Both Regimes, Deductions, Bank Interest, Tax Paid, Refund, Verification and the Errors That Bring a ₹5,000 Late Fee or a Notice

ITR-1 Sahaj is for a resident individual (not an HUF, not an NRI, not 'resident but not ordinarily resident') whose total income for the year is up to ₹50 lakh and comes only from salary or pension, one house property (a loss brought forward is not allowed), other sources such as interest, dividend, family pension or commission, and agricultural income up to ₹5,000. From this year small long-term capital gains under section 112A up to the ₹1.25 lakh exemption can be reported in ITR-1. You cannot use it if you are a director, hold unlisted shares, have foreign assets or income, have income from business or profession, own more than one house, have capital gains beyond the 112A exemption, have TDS deducted under section 194N on cash withdrawals, or have deferred ESOP tax — those go to ITR-2 or ITR-3.

• •Form 16 (Parts A and B) from every employer of the year; salary slips if the structure changed mid-year; Form 12BA for perquisites.
• •AIS and TIS downloaded from the portal, and Form 26AS — the return must match them: interest from every bank, dividends, TDS, TCS, high-value transactions.
• •Interest certificates from banks and post office; PPF/NSC statements; dividend statements from the depository.
• •For the old regime: rent receipts and the landlord's PAN (rent above ₹1 lakh a year), home-loan interest certificate, 80C proofs (PF, PPF, ELSS, LIC, tuition fees, principal repayment), 80D health-insurance receipts, 80G donation receipts with the donee's registration and the ARN-based Form 10BE, NPS statements.
• •Bank account details for the refund — pre-validated on the portal — and the Aadhaar-linked mobile for OTP.
• •Last year's return (for carried-forward figures and the regime chosen), and any notice or intimation received.

1. 1Log in at incometax.gov.in with PAN (or Aadhaar) and password; check Dashboard → Pending Actions for e-proceedings or unverified returns first.
2. 2e-File → Income Tax Returns → File Income Tax Return → Assessment Year 2026-27 → Online → Individual → ITR-1 → 'Let's get started'. Pick the reason: taxable income above the basic exemption, or filing under the seventh proviso (deposits above ₹1 crore, foreign travel above ₹2 lakh, electricity above ₹1 lakh), or to claim a refund.
3. 3Personal information: confirm name, PAN, Aadhaar, address, mobile, e-mail, filing type (original / revised / belated), residential status (resident), and the regime — 'Do you want to opt out of the new tax regime?' Yes means the old regime; salaried filers choose here each year with no Form 10-IEA.
4. 4Gross total income → Salary: pre-filled from Form 16; check gross salary, exempt allowances (HRA under 10(13A), LTA, gratuity, leave encashment — allowed only in the old regime, except the exemptions that survive in the new), professional tax, standard deduction (₹75,000 new / ₹50,000 old). Add a second employer if you changed jobs — both Form 16s, salary added, TDS added.
5. 5House property: self-occupied → home-loan interest up to ₹2 lakh (old regime only); let-out → rent received, municipal taxes, 30% standard deduction, full interest. Only one property is allowed in ITR-1.
6. 6Other sources: savings interest (deduction 80TTA up to ₹10,000, old regime), FD/RD interest, dividends, family pension (deduction up to ₹25,000 in the new regime), any other income; match each line to AIS.
7. 7Deductions (old regime): 80C group up to ₹1.5 lakh, 80CCD(1B) ₹50,000, 80CCD(2) employer NPS (also allowed in the new regime, up to 14% of salary), 80D, 80E, 80G, 80TTA/80TTB, 80U/80DD; the portal validates limits.
8. 8Tax paid: TDS from Form 16/16A and 26AS (auto), advance tax and self-assessment tax challans — add any challan not pre-filled with BSR code, date and serial.
9. 9Total tax liability: the computation shows tax, rebate 87A (₹60,000 new regime up to ₹12 lakh income; ₹12,500 old regime up to ₹5 lakh), cess, interest under 234A/B/C, and the refund or tax payable. Pay any balance through e-Pay Tax (challan 280, 'self-assessment tax (300)') and add the challan.
10. 10Preview the return, tick the verification declaration, submit, and e-verify at once — Aadhaar OTP, net banking, bank EVC or DSC — within 30 days. Download the ITR-V and the filed return PDF.

• •Interest and dividends left out because they were not in Form 16 — the AIS has them; CPC adds them under 143(1) and the refund shrinks or a demand appears.
• •HRA claimed without rent actually paid, or with rent paid in cash to a relative and no PAN — the department now matches rent receipts with the landlord's return.
• •80C, 80D or 80G claimed without proof; donations to unregistered trusts; fake 80GG (rent without HRA) claims — the 200% misreporting penalty attaches to these.
• •Wrong regime by default: leaving the new regime ticked while paying home-loan interest and rent, or opting out when the deductions are small.
• •Filing ITR-1 when ITR-2 was due — a second house, capital gains above the exemption, directorship, foreign assets — makes the return defective under 139(9).
• •Filing after 31 August: late fee ₹5,000 (₹1,000 if income is up to ₹5 lakh) under 234F, interest under 234A, and no old-regime option in a belated return.
• •Submitting and forgetting to e-verify — the return is treated as never filed after 30 days.