Tax Audit Due Date Extended to 21 October 2026: CBDT Circular 07/2026 Moves the ITR Date to 21 November for Audited Assessees
Quick Summary
- CBDT Circular No. 07/2026 (F. No. 225/128/2026/ITA-II), dated 28 September 2026, extends the due date for filing the Return of Income for Assessment Year 2026-27 (Previous Year 2025-26) from 31 October 2026 to 21 November 2026 for the persons at Sl. No. 2 of the Table below Explanation 2 to Section 139(1) of the Income-tax Act 1961.
- As a consequence, the tax audit due date is extended to 21 October 2026: the “specified date” for furnishing the report of audit moves from 30 September 2026 to 21 October 2026, under clause (ii) of the Explanation to Section 44AB.
- Sl. No. 2 covers companies, non-company assessees whose accounts must be audited under the Income-tax Act or any other law, and partners of such firms (and a spouse to whom Section 5A applies), where Section 92E does not apply.
- Transfer-pricing cases at Sl. No. 1 (Section 92E applies) are not covered by the circular. Their return due date remains 30 November 2026 under the Table, and their audit report and Section 92E accountant’s report date remains 31 October 2026.
- The circular is issued under Section 119 of the Income-tax Act 1961 read with Section 536 of the Income-tax Act 2025. The 1961 Act governs FY 2025-26, which is the year these returns and audit reports relate to.
The tax audit due date for AY 2026-27 has been extended to 21 October 2026, and the income tax return due date for audited assessees to 21 November 2026. The Central Board of Direct Taxes issued Circular No. 07/2026 on 28 September 2026, two days before the original 30 September 2026 audit deadline. The circular is short, and its reach is narrower than a general “audit extension” headline suggests: it applies only to one row of the due-date Table in Section 139(1). This note sets out who gets the extra three weeks, who does not, and which other audit reports move with it.
What does CBDT Circular 07/2026 extend?
The operative text does two things.
- Return due date. In exercise of its powers under Section 119 of the Income-tax Act 1961 read with Section 536 of the Income-tax Act 2025, the CBDT extends the due date for furnishing the Return of Income for AY 2026-27 (Previous Year 2025-26) “for the persons referred in sl.no.2 of the table below Explanation 2 to sub-section (1) of section 139 of the Act, from 31.10.2026 to 21.11.2026”.
- Audit report date. “Consequently, the specified date for furnishing of report of audit for the Assessment Year 2026-27 (Previous Year 2025-26) shall stand extended to 21.10.2026 in terms of clause (ii) of the Explanation to section 44AB”.
The second change follows from the statute. Clause (ii) of the Explanation to Section 44AB defines the “specified date” as the date one month prior to the due date for furnishing the return under Section 139(1). Once the return date for Sl. No. 2 moves to 21 November 2026, the audit report date moves to 21 October 2026. The CBDT press release of the same date describes the audit date as extended “from 30th September, 2026 to 21st October, 2026”.
Who gets the tax audit due date extension to 21 October 2026?
Explanation 2 to Section 139(1), as substituted by the Finance Act 2026 with effect from 1 March 2026, sets out due dates in a Table. Sl. No. 2 of that Table covers the following persons, “where the provisions of section 92E do not apply”:
- (i) a company;
- (ii) an assessee (other than a company) whose accounts are required to be audited under the Income-tax Act or under any other law for the time being in force; and
- (iii) a partner of a firm whose accounts are required to be audited under the Income-tax Act or any other law, or the spouse of such partner if Section 5A applies to that spouse.
| Table row (Explanation 2 to s.139(1)) | Tax audit report (s.44AB) | Return of income, AY 2026-27 |
|---|---|---|
| Sl. No. 2: companies, audited non-company assessees and their partners, where Section 92E does not apply | 21 October 2026 (was 30 September 2026) | 21 November 2026 (was 31 October 2026) |
| Sl. No. 1: assessees (including partners and Section 5A spouses) where Section 92E applies | 31 October 2026 (not changed by the circular) | 30 November 2026 (not changed by the circular) |
Is the transfer pricing (Section 92E) date extended?
No. The circular names only Sl. No. 2. For an assessee who has entered into an international transaction or a specified domestic transaction, Sl. No. 1 of the Table applies and the return due date stays at 30 November 2026. Section 92E requires the accountant’s report by the “specified date”, which Section 92F(iv) defines as one month prior to the Section 139(1) return due date. That remains 31 October 2026, and so does the Section 44AB audit report date for these assessees.
A group with some entities inside Section 92E and some outside it will therefore run on two calendars this year. Map each entity to its Table row before re-planning the audit schedule.
Which other audit reports move to 21 October 2026?
The circular’s subject line refers to “various reports of audit”. Several provisions of the 1961 Act fix their audit or accountant’s report by reference to “the specified date referred to in section 44AB”. For a person at Sl. No. 2, that date is now 21 October 2026. The provisions include:
- Section 115JB(4): the accountant’s report certifying book profit (MAT) for a company;
- Section 12A(1)(b)(ii): the audit report of a trust or institution;
- Section 10(23C): the audit report of a fund, institution, university or hospital approved under that clause;
- Section 80-IA(7): the audit report of an undertaking claiming the deduction under that section;
- Section 80JJAA: the accountant’s report for the additional employee cost deduction;
- Section 50B(3): the accountant’s report on a slump sale; and
- Sections 32AB, 33AB, 33ABA and 44DA, which use the same reference.
Each of these depends on the person’s own return due date. A trust or company that falls under Sl. No. 1 because Section 92E applies stays on the 31 October 2026 date.
Does the extension change the late filing penalty?
For FY 2025-26, the late audit report consequence is Section 271B of the Income-tax Act 1961: a penalty of 0.5 per cent of turnover or gross receipts, capped at Rs 1,50,000, where a person fails to get the accounts audited or to furnish the report “as required under section 44AB”. Section 44AB requires the report by the specified date, which for Sl. No. 2 persons is now 21 October 2026. For those persons, the report is due by 21 October 2026. Our earlier note on the late tax audit report penalty and the Section 273B reasonable-cause defence explains how the penalty works once a report is late; read its 30 September references as 21 October for Sl. No. 2 persons.
Why does the 1961 Act still apply after 1 April 2026?
The Income-tax Act 2025 came into force on 1 April 2026, but FY 2025-26 (AY 2026-27) remains under the Income-tax Act 1961. That is why the circular extends dates under Sections 139(1) and 44AB of the 1961 Act and cites Section 536 of the 2025 Act, the repeal and savings provision. The first tax audits under Section 63 of the Income-tax Act 2025 relate to tax year 2026-27 and fall due in 2027. Who must be audited for FY 2025-26 is covered in our note on tax audit applicability for FY 2025-26; the turnover limits there are unchanged, and only the date has moved for Sl. No. 2 persons.
What should CAs and finance teams do now?
- Classify each client or entity by Table row. Sl. No. 2 (no Section 92E) moves to 21 October 2026 for the audit report and 21 November 2026 for the return. Sl. No. 1 (Section 92E applies) stays at 31 October 2026 and 30 November 2026.
- Re-date the dependent reports. The Section 115JB(4) book-profit report, trust audit reports and deduction audit reports for Sl. No. 2 persons follow the 21 October 2026 date.
- Keep the Section 92E accountant’s report on 31 October 2026 wherever Section 92E applies.
- Use the time for the audit itself. The Form 3CD clauses founders and CAs most often get wrong are a useful review list before signing.
Sources
- Source: Central Board of Direct Taxes, Circular No. 07/2026, F. No. 225/128/2026/ITA-II, dated 28 September 2026, incometaxindia.gov.in.
- Source: Central Board of Direct Taxes, Press Release “CBDT extends due date for furnishing Return of Income for AY 2026-27 in respect of persons subject to audit under the Income-tax Act, 1961”, dated 28 September 2026, incometaxindia.gov.in.
- Source: Income-tax Act 1961 as amended by the Finance Act 2026, Sections 10(23C), 12A, 44AB, 50B, 80-IA, 80JJAA, 92E, 92F, 115JB, 139 and 271B, incometaxindia.gov.in.
Need help re-planning your audit calendar?
If your entities sit on both sides of the Section 92E line, or you are unsure which date applies to a trust or a partner, talk to an expert at Tax Update India. Book a quick call and get the dates mapped for each entity.
Disclaimer: This article is for general information only and reflects CBDT Circular No. 07/2026 and the Income-tax Act 1961 as on 29 September 2026. It is not legal or tax advice. Please consult a qualified professional before acting on it.
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