ITR-6 Filing for Companies in India — Rates, Schedules and Audit
ITR-6 is the income tax return for companies. Every company registered in India files it — private limited, public limited, One Person Company, Nidhi, producer company, and foreign companies with Indian income — with one exception: a company claiming the charitable or religious exemption files ITR-7 instead. There is no turnover threshold and no dormancy relief. A company with no revenue at all still files ITR-6, still completes a statutory audit, and still verifies the return with a digital signature.
What separates ITR-6 from the other entity returns is the second tax computation running underneath the first. A company on the default rate track must compare its normal tax against minimum alternate tax on book profit and pay the higher, with an accountant's report certifying the book-profit computation. A company that has elected a concessional corporate rate escapes that comparison but gives up most deductions and forfeits accumulated credit permanently. Choosing between those tracks is the single most consequential decision in a corporate return.
This guide covers who files ITR-6, the corporate rate options and how they are elected, minimum alternate tax and its credit, the schedules that matter for unlisted companies, audit and transfer-pricing dependencies, due dates, loss carry-forward under the shareholding-continuity test, and the errors that most often turn a company return into a demand.
What is ITR-6 and who files it?
ITR-6 is the prescribed return for companies other than those claiming exemption for charitable or religious purposes. It reports the financial statements in statutory format, bridges accounting profit to taxable profit through a long chain of adjustments, computes minimum alternate tax in parallel, and — for unlisted companies — discloses shareholding and beneficial ownership in detail.
- Private limited companies, including dormant and loss-making ones
- Public limited companies, listed and unlisted
- One Person Companies
- Nidhi companies and producer companies
- Foreign companies with income taxable in India, whether or not they have a permanent establishment
- Bodies corporate incorporated outside India that are treated as companies
- Section 8 companies that do not claim the charitable exemption
- Companies in liquidation, until struck off, and companies whose registration is under process of removal
A Section 8 company that does claim the charitable exemption files ITR-7, not ITR-6. An LLP is not a company for this purpose and files ITR-5 — a distinction worth restating because "limited liability partnership" reads corporate but is taxed as a firm.
Which Act and which form apply to the company return you are filing?
The Income-tax Act, 2025 came into force on 1 April 2026 and governs company income from the tax year 2026-27 onwards. Profit of the financial year 2025-26 is still assessed for assessment year 2026-27 under the Income-tax Act, 1961, on the ITR-6 substituted for that year by amendment to the Income-tax Rules, 1962, and the tax audit report for that year is furnished in the older audit forms.
Under the new Act the corporate rate options and the minimum-tax provisions have been renumbered and reorganised — the concessional company rates and the minimum alternate tax now sit in different sections from the ones on your existing working papers, and minimum alternate tax and alternate minimum tax have been brought together under one provision. The substance has largely carried forward; the citations have not.
For the year most companies are filing now, note two changes to the form itself. The schedule for tax on distributed income from share buyback has been removed, because buyback proceeds are taxed in the shareholder's hands rather than the company's. And the capital-gains split that turned on a mid-year transfer date in an earlier year has been dropped, simplifying that schedule.
What tax rate does a company pay?
| Rate track | Base rate position | What you give up |
|---|---|---|
| Default — turnover-eligible domestic company | Lower statutory rate where turnover in the prescribed base year is within the threshold | Nothing; full deduction set retained |
| Default — any other domestic company | Standard corporate rate with graduated surcharge | Nothing; minimum alternate tax applies |
| Elected concessional rate for domestic companies | Reduced rate with a flat surcharge regardless of income level | Most Chapter VI-A and incentive deductions, additional depreciation, and accumulated minimum-tax credit |
| Elected rate for new manufacturing companies | Lowest available rate for eligible manufacturers, with non-business income at the concessional rate | The same deductions, plus strict eligibility and commencement conditions |
| Earlier concessional manufacturing option | Lower statutory rate for companies that elected it historically | Specified deductions; largely superseded for new elections |
| Foreign company | Higher statutory rate on Indian-source income, plus surcharge and cess | Treaty relief may reduce the effective rate on specific streams |
Rates, surcharge bands, and the base year for the turnover test are set by the annual Finance Act and move, so treat this as structure rather than as figures — we confirm the operative rate for your company and year before the computation is finalised. The one point that does not move is the character of the election: it is exercised by filing the prescribed form on or before the return due date, and it cannot be reversed later.
How is a concessional corporate rate elected, and should you elect it?
The election is made by filing the prescribed form electronically on or before the due date for the return of the first year in which it is to apply, quoting the acknowledgement in the return itself. Filing the form after the due date, or filing the return without quoting the election, is enough to lose the concession for that year — and it is one of the more common and least forgivable administrative failures in corporate tax.
- 1.Project taxable profit under both tracks for at least three years, not one
- 2.Value the deductions you would forgo — incentive claims, additional depreciation, area-based benefits
- 3.Check the accumulated minimum-tax credit on the books; electing forfeits it permanently
- 4.Confirm eligibility conditions for the manufacturing option, including the incorporation and commencement dates
- 5.Decide before the return due date, because the form has to be filed first
- 6.File the prescribed election form and record its acknowledgement number
- 7.Quote the election year, form, and acknowledgement in the return's general schedule
- 8.Carry the election forward consistently in every later year — it is irreversible
The election usually favours a profitable company with few incentive claims and no meaningful credit balance, and usually disfavours a company carrying a large minimum-tax credit or claiming substantial deductions. A loss-making company gains nothing immediately and loses the credit, so electing early is rarely the right move for an early-stage business.
What is minimum alternate tax and when does it bite?
Minimum alternate tax exists because accounting profit and taxable profit can diverge sharply. Where a company's normal tax falls below the prescribed percentage of its book profit, that percentage of book profit becomes the liability instead, with a lower rate for a unit in an International Financial Services Centre earning solely in convertible foreign exchange. Book profit is the profit-and-loss figure adjusted by a statutory list of add-backs and reductions, and it is certified in a separate accountant's report furnished before the return.
The excess paid over normal tax becomes a credit, carried forward for the prescribed number of years and set off in a later year when normal tax exceeds the minimum. That credit is a real balance-sheet asset, and the schedule tracking it is one of the most commonly neglected parts of ITR-6 — an unclaimed credit simply expires.
A company that has elected a concessional corporate rate is outside minimum alternate tax entirely, but forfeits any accumulated credit on election. That trade-off is why the credit balance belongs in the election decision rather than being discovered afterwards.
Which ITR-6 schedules cause the most trouble?
| Schedule | What it captures | Why it gets queried |
|---|---|---|
| Part A — General | Status, business codes, audit details, rate election and its acknowledgement | A missing election reference silently denies the concessional rate |
| Balance Sheet and Profit & Loss | Financial statements in statutory format | Must tie exactly to the audited accounts, line for line |
| Other Information and ICDS | Statutory disclosures and income-computation adjustments | Left blank on the assumption the audit report covers it |
| Business or profession | Bridge from book profit to taxable profit | Disallowances for TDS, cash payments, and unpaid statutory dues |
| Depreciation blocks | Block-wise additions and deletions at prescribed rates | Put-to-use dates, half-rate additions, and asset-wise reconciliation |
| Minimum alternate tax and its credit | Book-profit computation and credit carried forward | Credit not carried forward, or the accountant's report not filed |
| Shareholding of an unlisted company | Shareholders and their holdings through the year | Compulsory for every unlisted company, including small ones |
| Assets and liabilities of an unlisted company | Asset and liability disclosure beyond the balance sheet | Frequently skipped, and its absence is a defect |
| Beneficial and ultimate beneficial ownership | Persons holding not less than the prescribed voting percentage | Cross-checked against MCA records |
| Carry-forward and set-off of losses | Year-wise losses and unabsorbed depreciation | Continuity test not applied for closely held companies |
| Tax payments and credits | Advance tax, self-assessment tax, TDS and TCS claimed | Credits claimed before the deductor filed the statement |
The unlisted-company schedules deserve emphasis. Every unlisted company must complete both the shareholding schedule and the assets-and-liabilities schedule, and both are reconciled against MCA filings. If shareholding changed during the year through a share transfer or a fresh allotment, the schedule has to reflect the position through the year rather than only at its end.
What audits and reports must be completed before ITR-6?
- 1.Statutory audit under company law, every year, regardless of turnover or activity
- 2.Tax audit where turnover crosses the prescribed limit, furnished one month before the return
- 3.Accountant's report certifying the book-profit computation where minimum alternate tax applies
- 4.Transfer-pricing report where there are international or specified domestic transactions
- 5.Cost audit or secretarial audit where the company falls within those thresholds
- 6.Reports supporting any incentive deduction claimed, in the prescribed form
- 7.The rate-election form, where a concessional rate is being adopted for the first time
Each of these is a dependency, not a formality — a return filed before the report it depends on can be treated as defective. The first auditor has to be appointed within the prescribed window after incorporation and intimated to MCA, so a first-year company should have completed ADT-1 long before the return season.
What are the due dates for ITR-6?
| Situation | Return due date | Dependent deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Every company, being subject to audit | 31 October following the year | Tax audit report one month earlier |
| Company with international or specified domestic transactions | 30 November following the year | Transfer-pricing report one month earlier |
| Minimum alternate tax applicable | As above | Accountant's book-profit report before the return |
| Concessional rate elected for the first time | As above | Election form on or before the return due date |
| Belated ITR-6 | Nine months from the end of the year, or completion of assessment | Late fee; business loss carry-forward generally lost |
| Revised ITR-6 | Up to the end of the following year, or completion of assessment | A prescribed fee applies for revisions late in the window |
A company never gets the earlier non-audit dates, because a company is always under audit. Dates here are indicative and the Board extends the audit-case dates fairly often, so confirm the operative date before building a closing timetable around it.
What documents are required to file ITR-6?
- Audited financial statements with notes, and the statutory auditor's report
- Tax audit report and particulars annexure where applicable
- Accountant's report on book profit where minimum alternate tax applies
- Certificate of incorporation, PAN, TAN, and the current CIN
- Shareholding register and details of changes during the year
- Board resolutions for the rate election, borrowings, and related-party approvals
- Bank statements for the full year, including cash-credit and term-loan accounts
- GST returns and the annual reconciliation for the same period
- TDS and TCS statements filed by the company and certificates received by it
- Form 26AS and the Annual Information Statement for the company PAN
- Advance tax and self-assessment tax challans
- Fixed-asset additions with invoices and put-to-use dates
- Related-party schedule and transfer-pricing documentation
- Prior-year return with brought-forward loss, depreciation, and credit schedules
How do you file ITR-6 step by step?
- 1.Complete the statutory audit and adopt the financial statements
- 2.Reconcile turnover in the accounts to the GST returns for the year
- 3.Prepare the depreciation schedule on the income-tax block-of-assets basis
- 4.Identify disallowances — TDS defaults, cash payments above limits, unpaid statutory dues, provisions, and corporate social responsibility spending
- 5.Confirm payments to micro and small enterprise suppliers were made within the statutory window, and disclose the position
- 6.Compute normal tax, then compute book profit and run the minimum alternate tax comparison
- 7.File the rate-election form first where a concessional rate is being adopted
- 8.Complete and accept the tax audit report and the book-profit report on the portal
- 9.Reconcile TDS receivable to Form 26AS before claiming credits
- 10.Fill the unlisted-company shareholding and assets-and-liabilities schedules in full
- 11.Apply the shareholding-continuity test before carrying a loss forward
- 12.Pay the balance tax with interest and enter the challan details
- 13.Verify with the digital signature of the authorised director and file
Who signs ITR-6, and can it be verified without a digital signature?
A company return must be verified with a digital signature. Aadhaar OTP, electronic verification codes, and the posted paper acknowledgement are not available to companies, so there is no fallback if the token has expired or the signatory is unreachable on the due date.
The return is signed by the managing director, or by any director where the managing director is unable to sign or where there is no managing director. For a company being wound up it is the liquidator, and for a company whose management has been taken over it is the person so authorised. A non-resident company may authorise a person holding a valid power of attorney, which must be attached.
Practically, keep a current digital signature certificate for at least two directors and confirm both are registered against their PANs on the portal before the season. An expired certificate discovered on 31 October is the most avoidable cause of a late company return there is.
How do company losses carry forward?
A business loss can be set off against other income of the same year within the statutory rules and the unabsorbed balance carried forward for the prescribed number of years against future business profit. Unabsorbed depreciation carries forward without a time limit, which is why the split between the two in the loss schedule matters more than the total.
Closely held companies face an additional continuity test: a carried-forward loss is generally lost if beneficial ownership of shares carrying the prescribed proportion of voting power does not continue between the loss year and the set-off year. There is a relaxation for eligible startups where the original shareholders continue, and there are carve-outs for specified corporate events. A funding round can therefore extinguish an old loss without anyone intending it, so run the test before the round rather than at the next return.
Carry-forward of a business loss also generally requires the return to be filed by the original due date. For a loss-making company, filing on time is worth far more than the late fee suggests.
What are the common ITR-6 errors?
- Concessional rate claimed in the return without the election form having been filed in time
- Election form filed but its acknowledgement not quoted in the general schedule
- Minimum alternate tax comparison skipped, or the accountant's report not furnished
- Minimum-tax credit not carried forward, so it quietly expires
- Unlisted-company shareholding or assets-and-liabilities schedule left incomplete
- Beneficial ownership disclosure inconsistent with MCA records
- Corporate social responsibility spending claimed as a business deduction
- Loss carried forward without applying the shareholding-continuity test
- Financial statements summarised rather than matching the audited accounts
- Return verified by a director whose digital signature is not registered on the portal
A company return with a defect of this kind is often flagged at processing, and an unrectified defect means the return is treated as never furnished — see income tax notice handling. Where the error is in your own return rather than in processing, the fix is a revised return within the window.
What else falls due alongside the company return?
- 1.Advance tax instalments through the year, estimated with the minimum-tax position in mind
- 2.Quarterly TDS statements and certificates — see TDS return filing
- 3.Monthly and annual GST returns and the annual reconciliation
- 4.Company annual filings with the ROC after the annual general meeting
- 5.Annual DIR-3 KYC for every director
- 6.DPT-3 where the company has outstanding loans or money receipts
- 7.Where there is foreign shareholding, the FLA return and FDI reporting to RBI
- 8.Where the company holds an overseas investment, ODI filing
Corporate compliance is a calendar rather than a season. Late MCA filings attract a daily additional fee with no cap, so a company that misses the income tax return has usually missed something cheaper first.
Why choose Arjun Filings for ITR-6 filing?
Arjun Filings runs ITR-6 filing as a checklist-first engagement: a qualified CA or CS scopes the work, tells you exactly which documents are needed, and reviews every form before it is signed and submitted. You get a named specialist, a status update at each stage, and a compliance calendar for whatever comes next.
- CA-reviewed ITR-6 filing
- Checklist before computation
- E-verification guidance
- Notice awareness when relevant