Be Ready For The Penalty If You Don’t Perform These Tasks Before March 31

A financial year (FY) is the annual year that extends from April 1 to March 31. And, as the same time period is getting close to hitting its end, its necessary that you determine some of the financial responsibilities that need to be finished before the deadline. If you do not complete your tasks by the deadline, you may face penalties. Lets look at the fines you may face if you dont complete these activities by March 31. In order to keep the account active every financial year, you must make a minimum investment of Rs500 in your PPF (Public Provident Fund) account. Your account will become dormant if you fail to make the minimum contribution. After you incur the penalty and deposit the minimum deposit amount, the account will become active.Minimum contribution towards NPSIn the NPS (National Pension System) Tier 1 account, a minimum contribution of Rs 500 is required and towards NPS Tier 2 account the minimum contribution limit is capped at Rs 250. If the minimum contribution is not made, the account becomes dormant. And to reactivate your account you must contribute the minimum required amount. To reactivate an account, the subscriber must visit a point of presence (POP) and deposit the required amount, or contribute via the eNPS portal.Advertisement For accounts opened between the first and the fifteenth day of the month, the monthly contribution must be deposited by the fifteenth day of the month, while accounts opened on the sixteenth day and later must deposit the amount only before the end of the month. It becomes default if the amount is not credited in any month. In the event of default, Rs100 must be deposited for each month of default, with a maximum of four defaults permitted. So, if you havent yet deposited your RD monthly contribution for the month of March, you have only 9 days left in your hand.Belated IT ReturnIf you havent already done so, the deadline for filing your income tax return for FY20 is March 31. If you wait until March 31, 2021 to submit your ITR, you will have to pay a penalty of Rs 10,000. The tax department would impose a minimum penalty equal to 50% of the tax that would have been prevented if you had filed your ITR, as well as the responsibility to pay interest until you finally file your ITR after getting warnings from the tax authority. The deadline for filing a declaration under the scheme is March 31. In relation to the subjects covered in the declaration, the taxpayer is given exemption from interest, penalty, and the institution of any proceeding for indictment under the Income Tax Act. If you dont take advantage of the option you may get a warning from the tax department and pay penalties too for the same.PAN and Aadhaar LinkingIf you dont link your Permanent Account Number (PAN card) to your Aadhaar card by April 1, it will become obsolete. The central government had previously extended the link between PAN and Aadhaar. Unless the government extends the deadline again, the deadline to link the documents is March 31, 2021. Upon the timeline, all PAN cards that are not linked to Aadhaar will be considered inoperative. If your PAN is not linked to your Aadhaar, you will be unable to conduct any financial tasks. If you fail to link the two documents by the timeframe, your PAN becomes inactive, and it is deemed that you have not provided your PAN as legally required, you may be subject to a penalty of Rs 10,000 under Section 272B of the Income Tax Act.Bill submission of LTC voucher schemeTo take advantage of the tax benefits offered by the scheme, government employees must submit their Leave Travel Concession Cash Voucher (LTC) by March 31, 2021. The bill must be submitted in the appropriate way by March 31.Submission of salary detailsIf a person worked for more than one employer during the current fiscal year, the former employers salary statement must be provided to the current employer. This would assist in verifying that the incumbent employer makes appropriate tax deductions. This, too, should be completed by March 31.Long-term capital gainsLong-term capital gains on listed equity stocks and equity schemes are wholly tax-free up to a limit of Rs. 1 lakh. The portion is then taxed at a rate of 10%. If you havent already done so, you should file your long-term capital gains until March 31.