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Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →You can check an income-tax refund from e-File > Income Tax Returns > View Filed Returns, and check tax demands from Pending Actions > Response to Outstanding Demand. A failed refund is handled separately through Services > Refund Reissue, after your bank account is validated. Sign in with the registered e-Filing credentials, complete any requested second-factor verification, and select the correct assessment year before acting.
The instructions below cover the current self-service paths, what each figure means, how to agree or disagree with a demand, and what to check when a refund or demand does not appear. Menu names and eligibility rules can change as the portal is updated.
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What you need before checking a refund or demand
Have the following ready before opening either service:
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- Your registered income-tax e-Filing user ID and password.
- Access to the second factor the portal requests. Depending on the login method, this can be an OTP, net-banking authentication, bank or demat EVC, or a digital signature certificate (DSC).
- A PAN linked with Aadhaar when you are using the refund-tracking workflow.
- The assessment year (AY) for the return or demand you want to inspect.
- For a refund query, an income-tax return (ITR) that was filed with a refund claim.
- For a reissue, a bank account that has passed the portal’s validation checks.
Keep the return acknowledgement, any processing or intimation message, and the bank details used in the return nearby. They are especially useful if the portal asks you to confirm a rectification or revised-return acknowledgement while disputing a demand.
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Sign in securely to the e-Filing portal
- Open the income-tax e-Filing portal and choose the sign-in option.
- Enter the registered e-Filing user ID and password.
- Complete the additional verification method shown for your account, such as an OTP, net-banking authentication, bank or demat EVC, or DSC.
- After the dashboard loads, verify that you are using the taxpayer account and PAN associated with the return you intend to check.
Do not begin by choosing a financial year from a browser bookmark or an old notification link. The portal’s services are tied to the signed-in account and the assessment year selected inside the relevant page. Selecting the wrong account or year is a common reason for an apparently empty result.
Track an income-tax refund
Open the filed-return details
- From the signed-in portal, open e-File.
- Choose Income Tax Returns, then View Filed Returns.
- Find the return for the relevant assessment year.
- Select View Details.
The details view shows the return and its refund lifecycle. Use the assessment year printed on your ITR acknowledgement or processing communication, not merely the calendar year in which you received an email. A return filed in one calendar year is associated with the assessment year displayed in the portal.
What the refund information tells you
The refund view is the place to establish whether the return was filed with a refund claim and how far it has progressed through the portal’s return and refund process. A refund cannot begin processing until the return has been e-verified. The department’s current operational guidance says that credit commonly takes four to five weeks after processing, but this is guidance rather than a guaranteed deadline.
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1Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsIf the return has not been e-verified, complete that requirement first. If it has been e-verified and the usual period has passed, compare the information in the details view with the processing or intimation message sent for that ITR and with the registered email account. Those messages can explain whether the return was processed, whether a refund was determined, or whether an action is still required.
Refund prerequisites and limits
The refund-tracking service expects a valid user ID and password, a PAN linked with Aadhaar, and an ITR filed with a refund claim. These conditions allow you to view the relevant return; they do not promise that a refund will be issued. The amount and outcome depend on the return’s processing and accounting.
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Track an outstanding tax demand
Open the demand list
- Sign in to the e-Filing portal.
- Open Pending Actions.
- Select Response to Outstanding Demand.
- Review the assessment year and the demand entries shown for the account.
This service covers demands raised by the Centralized Processing Centre (CPC) or by an Assessing Officer. The list can include past and current demands and identifies whether an item is awaiting payment or awaiting your response. Select the entry that matches the assessment year and communication you received before choosing an action.
Why the assessment year matters
A demand is tied to a particular assessment year. If you answer a different year’s entry, you may leave the actual demand unresolved. Match the year, demand amount, and notice or intimation details with your records. If the list appears empty, use the troubleshooting steps later in this guide before assuming that no demand exists.
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Choose what to do with a demand
The response page presents two fundamentally different paths: accept the demand and pay it, or tell the department that it is wrong in full or in part. Decide only after comparing the portal entry with the relevant return, intimation, rectification outcome, and payments already made.
If the demand is correct: Pay Now
- Open the matching demand under Response to Outstanding Demand.
- Review the displayed assessment year and amount.
- Choose Pay Now when the amount is due and the demand is correct.
- Complete the payment flow presented by the portal and retain the confirmation for your records.
Paying is appropriate when the demand reflects the final position and no correction is pending. Check the demand details before submitting because payment does not replace the need to correct a wrong return or an accounting mismatch.
If the demand is wrong in full: Disagree with demand
- Open the demand and choose Disagree with demand.
- Select the option for disagreement in full.
- Choose the reason supplied by the portal.
- Enter the requested explanation and supporting details.
- Submit the response and save the acknowledgement or confirmation shown.
Use the reason that accurately describes the problem, such as a mismatch with a revised or rectified return when that is what your records establish. Do not select a convenient reason that does not match the underlying issue; an inaccurate response can delay resolution.
If only part of the demand is wrong
- Choose Disagree with demand and select the partial-disagreement option.
- Enter the portion you dispute and provide the requested reason and details.
- Pay the undisputed portion through the payment option available for the demand.
- Submit the response and retain both the payment record and the disagreement confirmation.
Partial disagreement is not a substitute for paying the amount you accept. Keep a calculation showing how you separated the disputed and undisputed portions so that your response, payment and supporting records agree.
What happens if you do nothing
The Income Tax Department’s outstanding-demand guidance warns: “If you do not respond to it, the demand will be confirmed and will be adjusted against your refund (if any) or show as demand payable against your PAN (in case, no refund is due).” In practical terms, ignoring a demand can reduce a refund that would otherwise be issued or leave an amount payable against your PAN.
Understand the figures on the filing dashboard
The Filing Status area uses two labels that are easy to confuse:
| Dashboard label | What it represents | Where to verify the details |
|---|---|---|
| Refund Awaited | After processing and accounting, the refund expected to be issued for that assessment year. | e-File > Income Tax Returns > View Filed Returns > View Details |
| Demand Estimated | After processing and accounting, the outstanding demand associated with that assessment year. | Pending Actions > Response to Outstanding Demand |
These dashboard figures are starting points, not replacements for the return detail or demand-response page. Open the underlying service to see the assessment year and the available action. A dashboard number can change after processing, accounting, payment, rectification, or a submitted response.
Fix a failed or delayed refund
Check why the bank credit failed
A refund can fail when the bank account information cannot be validated for the refund. Check each of the following against the account you expect to receive the credit:
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- Whether the account-holder name matches the name associated with the PAN.
- Whether the IFSC is correct.
- Whether the account is still open.
Correct the bank information and validation status before requesting a reissue. A refund cannot be reissued successfully to an account that remains invalid, closed, or mismatched.
Submit a Refund Reissue request
- Sign in to the e-Filing portal.
- Open Services.
- Select Refund Reissue.
- Choose a bank account that the portal shows as validated.
- Complete the required e-Verification.
- Submit the request.
- Use View Refund Reissue Request to monitor the request’s status.
Refund Reissue is for a refund that the portal has marked as failed; it is not the normal tracking screen for a refund that is still within ordinary processing. The reissue workflow also requires a validated bank account and e-Verification. If the portal has not recorded a failure, first inspect the return’s details and processing messages rather than filing a reissue request prematurely.
When a refund remains unresolved
Review the ITR processing or intimation messages and the registered email for an explanation of the outcome. Confirm that the bank details in the portal now pass validation and that the account is open and correctly linked. If the portal marks the refund as failed, submit the reissue request and monitor it from View Refund Reissue Request. Keep the original return acknowledgement, failure information, corrected bank details and reissue confirmation together.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Troubleshoot a missing demand or a blocked response
No demand appears in the list
- Confirm that you signed in to the account associated with the relevant PAN.
- Recheck the assessment year selected or displayed.
- Return to Pending Actions > Response to Outstanding Demand and try again.
- Compare the result with the notice, intimation, or other communication that alerted you to the demand.
The demand service can contain entries raised by either the CPC or an Assessing Officer. An empty result after checking the account and year does not by itself prove that a paper or electronic communication is invalid; it may indicate a selection or portal-display issue that needs to be retried.
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The disagreement page says there is no revised or rectified return record
The official guidance for this message is to retry the action. If the message persists, validate the acknowledgement number from the revised-return or rectification request and enter the verified number where the portal asks for it. Use the number from the relevant request, not an unrelated original-return acknowledgement.
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The amount does not match your records
First confirm the assessment year and whether you are looking at the current or a past demand. Then compare the portal entry with your ITR, processing or intimation message, payments, and any revised or rectified return. If only part of the amount is supported by your records, use partial disagreement and pay the undisputed portion. If the portal identifies a demand as payable but your records show that the issue was corrected, retain the acknowledgement and supporting details for the full disagreement response.
You received a demand but expected a refund
Check both services: open the return under View Filed Returns > View Details and open the entry under Response to Outstanding Demand. A demand can affect a refund because an unaddressed demand may be adjusted against a refund. Resolve the demand by paying it or submitting the appropriate full or partial disagreement instead of relying only on the dashboard’s refund figure.
Refund tracking and demand tracking compared
| Question | Refund workflow | Demand workflow |
|---|---|---|
| Starting menu | e-File > Income Tax Returns > View Filed Returns | Pending Actions > Response to Outstanding Demand |
| What you select | The return and assessment year | The demand entry and assessment year |
| Primary action | View Details to see the return and refund lifecycle | Pay Now or Disagree with demand |
| Special failure path | Services > Refund Reissue after the portal marks the refund failed | No separate reissue path; respond to the listed demand |
| Verification requirement | Return must be e-verified before refund processing starts | Responses and reissue-related actions may require the portal’s requested verification |
A practical record-keeping checklist
Save the following each time you view or change an item:
- Assessment year and return or demand reference.
- Date you viewed the portal and the amount displayed.
- Screenshot or downloaded confirmation of a submitted response, payment or reissue request.
- ITR acknowledgement and processing or intimation message.
- Bank-account validation result, account name, IFSC and account status when dealing with a failed refund.
- Acknowledgement number for any revised-return or rectification request used in a disagreement.
These records let you distinguish a new portal update from an older communication and give you the exact reference needed if the portal asks you to retry or verify a prior request.
When to seek additional help
The portal’s self-service workflows are suitable for checking a status, paying a confirmed demand, submitting a full or partial disagreement, and requesting a refund reissue after a failed credit. Consider help from a tax professional when the disagreement involves several assessment years, complex adjustments, disputed tax credits, or records that do not reconcile after you have checked the return, intimation, payments and acknowledgement numbers. Keep using the portal’s official response and payment paths so that any professional advice results in a recorded action against the correct assessment year.
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