Filing ITR-2 for AY 2026-27? Here are 15 key sections explained
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Filing ITR-2 for AY 2026-27? Here are 15 key sections explained Photograph: (Pexels)
ITR-2 is the correct return for salaried individuals with capital gains, multiple house properties, or foreign income — but it contains up to 26 schedules that can overwhelm even experienced filers. Here is a quick guide to the 15 most important sections, what changed for AY 2026-27, and which schedules you can skip entirely.
If your income comes from salary but you also sold shares, own more than one property, hold foreign assets, or received income from virtual digital assets in FY 2025-26, ITR-1 is not the right form for you. ITR-2 is — and while it can look intimidating at first glance, with up to 26 schedules inside the form, the rule is simple: you only fill what applies to your situation. Here is a section-by-section breakdown of the 15 most important schedules for AY 2026-27, what is new this year, and what you can safely ignore.
Who Should File ITR-2
ITR-2 applies to individuals and Hindu Undivided Families who do not have income from business or profession. If you have salary income alongside capital gains, income from more than one house property, dividend income, foreign income or assets, or income from virtual digital assets — ITR-2 is your form. Non-residents and non-ordinarily resident Indians also use ITR-2 for Indian-source income. The filing deadline for ITR-2 is July 31, 2026.
What Is New For AY 2026-27
Two auto-selections have been introduced this year: the filing status field is pre-filled as ‘Filed u/s 139(1)’ — the standard on-time filing section — and the tax regime selector defaults to the new regime. If you intend to file under the old regime, you will need to manually override this. The other important change: the split capital gains reporting requirement introduced after Budget 2024 — where gains before and after July 23, 2024 had to be disclosed separately — has been removed. Capital gains reporting is now consolidated, simplifying the schedule considerably.
The 15 Key Schedules
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Part A General: Start by verifying the pre-filled profile data covering contact details, residential status, bank accounts, and filing status. Bank Details: All bank accounts must be listed; at least one must be pre-validated for tax refunds to be credited. Schedule House Property: Report income or loss from self-occupied, let-out, or deemed let-out properties individually. Each property gets its own block with gross rent, municipal tax deduction, 30 percent standard deduction, and home loan interest under Section 24. Land and building transfers must be reported per property — consolidated reporting is not permitted here. Schedule Capital Gains: Segregates capital gains by asset type. Post-Budget 2024 rates: short-term capital gains under Section 111A are taxed at 20 percent; long-term capital gains under Section 112A are taxed at 12.5 percent. For multiple assets of the same type, consolidated calculation is allowed — except for land and building, which require individual computations. Schedule VDA: A dedicated schedule for virtual digital asset income including cryptocurrency and NFTs. This auto-populates into Schedule CG.
Loss Schedules You Cannot Ignore
Schedule CYLA shows income after adjusting current-year losses across heads. Schedule BFLA applies brought-forward losses from prior assessment years to reduce current income. Schedule CFL identifies losses that are eligible to be carried forward to future years. If you have capital loss carry-forwards from earlier years, these three schedules work together and must be filled in sequence.
Deductions, Clubbing, And Foreign Disclosures
Schedule VI-A covers all deductions — Section 80C investments, Section 80D health insurance premiums, and others. This schedule is primarily relevant for taxpayers staying in the old regime. Schedule SPI applies when income from a spouse or minor child must be clubbed with the taxpayer's own income. Schedule FSI is mandatory for residents reporting income from foreign sources — whether from employment abroad, interest in a foreign bank, or dividends from overseas holdings. Schedule TR summarises the tax relief claimed for foreign taxes already paid, country by country. Schedule FA requires residents to disclose all foreign assets — bank accounts, equity, immovable property, trusts — held at any point during the year. Non-residents and non-ordinarily resident Indians are exempt from Schedule FA.
High-Income Filers And Special Cases
Schedule AL is mandatory for all taxpayers whose total income exceeds Rs 1 crore. It requires a full disclosure of movable and immovable assets and the liabilities attached to them. Schedule 5A applies only to taxpayers governed by the Portuguese Civil Code community property rules — relevant for residents of Goa and certain Union Territories. If neither applies to you, both can be skipped. With roughly half of ITR-2's 26 schedules applicable only to specific situations, the key to filing correctly is not completing every section — it is knowing which ones your financial profile actually requires.
