Nudge Campaign Sees Over 15 Lakh Revised ITRs Filed in Assessment Year 2025-26

In a major data-driven compliance initiative, the Income Tax Department’s Nudge campaign has prompted more than 15 lakh taxpayers to revise their Income Tax Returns (ITRs) in the financial year 2025-26.  

This initiative uses non-intrusive analytics to identify possible discrepancies and encourage voluntary compliance before deadlines. 

Over 15 Lakh Revised Returns Filed after Data-Driven Nudge 

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) disclosed that more than 15 lakh taxpayers have revised their ITRs for the ongoing assessment year 2025-26.  

Additionally, over 21 lakh updated ITRs were submitted for past assessment years — 2021-22 to 2024-25. These voluntary submissions led to additional tax collections exceeding ₹2,500 crore. 

This was facilitated through the use of advanced data analytics that flagged suspicious claims, such as bogus donations and misreported deductions or exemptions.  

Taxpayers received digital nudges in the form of SMS and email communications, urging them to rectify declarations before the filing deadline of December 31, 2025. 

Misreporting and Tax Discrepancies Trigger Voluntary Revisions 

The Department highlighted several types of discrepancies that led to the revision of returns. These included inflated donation claims made to unrecognised political parties or with invalid Permanent Account Numbers (PANs), and incorrect claims of exemptions.  

The campaign focused on helping taxpayers undertake error correction before departmental scrutiny. 

Read More: Can the Income Tax Department Read Your Emails From 2026? Here’s the Truth! 

Non-Intrusive and Digital Campaign Approach 

Characterised as a non-intrusive compliance effort, the Nudge campaign relied solely on digital alerts, without initiating direct investigations. This approach aimed to foster voluntary compliance while reducing the need for enforcement actions. 

This also signals a shift in the tax administration strategy toward using predictive analytics and proactive engagement, ensuring better accuracy in tax declarations and enhancing trust in the compliance ecosystem. 

Conclusion 

The Nudge campaign has resulted in over 15 lakh revised ITRs and 21 lakh updated previous-year returns, contributing ₹2,500 crore in added tax collections. Its data-driven and non-intrusive approach appears to have effectively promoted taxpayer compliance for the current and earlier assessment years. 

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