TaxSpanner: Frequently Asked Questions

Using TaxSpanner

Ques: How do I use TaxSpanner to prepare my return?
Ans: Follow the process below to prepare your return:
1. Select either TaxSpanner Quick or TaxSpanner Advanced.
2. You can proceed even without registering.
3. Enter your information based on easy, interview-style questions. If you don't have any information handy (example PAN number) skip it.
4. Preview your income tax return (ITR1 or ITR2). TaxSpanner automatically selects the return form for you.
5. TaxSpanner will perform a review and will remind of all the missing pieces of information. Enter them.
6. Make payment.
7. Review your draft ITR generated by TaxSpanner.
8. E-file through Income Tax Department approved e-Return Intermediary by clicking "Efile My Return" button on the last page. Or, download and print your final ITR and submit it at the nearest income tax office.
Ques: What are the unique things about TaxSpanner?
Ans:
1. We do not ask you for payment until you are completely satisfied.
2. We let you explore the complete portal without seeking personal details upfront.
3. No pop-ups or advertisements or spam.
4. We e-file your return through approved e-return intermediary.
5. We use SSL encryption to keep your information highly secure.
Ques: Why does TaxSpanner not provide the service of physical filing of return?
Ans: We strive to provide flawless user experience at TaxSpanner. While we guarantee 100% accuracy and total satisfaction for TaxSpanner.com service, we have not found logistics of handling physical returns which can guarantee as flawless an experience as the TaxSpanner website. Therefore, we do not provide physical filing service.
Ques: When will I be able to efile my return?
Ans: E-filing is essentially another mode of filing your income tax return, in addition to the popular mode of printing and submitting your return at the income tax counters. Starting April 10, 2008, TaxSpanner has started providing e-filing of returns to the income tax department server through authorized e-return intermediary.

Why TS Signature

Ques: What are the benefits of efiling with digital signature certificate (DSC)?
Ans: If you efile your return without digital signatures, then you have to deposit one-page efiling acknowledgment (ITR-V) at the income tax department. If you efile your return along with your digital signature, then you do not need to deposit ITR-V.
Ques: Why should I buy MTNL DSC through TaxSpanner?
Ans: MTNL is one of the most trusted names in India. With trust, comes confidence and security. You can relax at your homes or offices while e-filing your ITR through TaxSpanner.Com. We have tied up with MTNL so that you get 2-yr DSC at the most attractive price, along with 3-yrs of return filing at TaxSpanner.Com.
Ques: DSC has a validity of 2 yrs. How can it be used to file return for 3 years?
Ans: Assuming you purchase the DSC on July 1, 2008, then your DSC is valid till June 30, 2010. You can efile your ITR for AY 2008-09, 2009-10, and 2010-11, if you file your third year's return by June 30, 2010.
Ques: What is the procedure for obtaining DSC?
Ans: Follow these steps to purchase TS Signature:
- Download DSC Application Form by Clicking Here. Print all 4 pages.
- Fill the DSC Application Form. Fields marked by * are compulsory.
- Follow the instructions on page 2. For any query, email at dsc.support@spanacross.com. Mention your TaxSpanner.Com login-id in the email.
- Do not forget to attach the 3 documents as mentioned in step 5 of instructions.
- Please ensure that you sign pages 1, 2, and 4.
- Courier the complete application form and documents to this collection address. You will receive the collection address in email.
- Once you have couriered the documents, send email to dsc.support@spanacross.com stating that you have sent the courier.
- On receiving all the documents, we will do registration on your behalf and issue DSC.
Ques: Can I pay Rs. 250 per year for TS Signature?
Ans: Since DSC cost is a significant component of TS Signature, you must pay Rs. 749 at the time of purchase. TaxSpanner.Com has intelligent system which ensure that you will be able to e-file using TaxSpanner.Com for 3 years.

E-Filing Without Digital Signature

Ques: What is the difference between efiling without digital signature certificate (DSC) and efiling with DSC?
Ans: When you e-file your return, you receive an acknowledgment from income tax department in your Email. This acknowledgment is a 1-page PDF file called ITR-V (ITR Verification). If you efile your return without digital signatures, then you have to deposit one-page efiling acknowledgment (ITR-V) at the nearest income tax department office. If you efile your return along with your digital signature, then you do not need to deposit ITR-V.
Ques: What is the time limit to deposit ITR-V?
Ans: a. The signed ITR-V form should be submitted to the income tax office within fifteen days of e-filing, so that the date of e-filing is deemed to be the date of furnishing the return.
b. In case Form ITR-V is furnished after fifteen days, the date of furnishing Form ITR-V shall be deemed to be the date of furnishing the return.
c. Further, in case, Form ITR-V is not furnished, it will be deemed that no return has been submitted.
Ques: Does TaxSpanner provide ITR-V deposit service?
Ans:Yes, we offer complimentary ITR-V deposit service to customers who purchase TaxSpanner Quick or TaxSpanner Advanced at MRP. All you need to do do is courier two signed copies of ITR-V, along-with a copy of your PAN card and Form 16 to below address. TaxSpanner will get one copy stamped by income tax office and courier it back to your address.

Address For NCR:
404, CA Chambers
18/12 WEA, Karol Bagh
New Delhi 110005

Address For Bangalore (service available till Aug 10, 2008):
R-204, Purva Fairmont
24th Main, Sec - 2, HSR Layout
Bangalore 560034
Ph: 98806-87391
Ques: Is the complimentary ITR-V deposit service available only in NCR and Bangalore?
Ans: Yes, this service is currently available in NCR and Bangalore only. We will shortly start this service in other cities also.

Promotions

Ques: Will TaxSpanner introduce the File Fast promotion again?
Ans: Traditionally, users prepare their returns in the last few days of the due date. We also tend to do that :-). To encourage early filing of returns, TaxSpanner ran a special File Fast promotion last year. We may run this promotion this year. This year, we are running promotional discount scheme for ICICI Net Banking customers.
Ques: When does TaxSpanner come up with promotions?
Ans: Pricing is an integral and confidential part of TaxSpanner business strategy. We do not disclose our price moves in advance.

Referral Program

Ques: How does TaxSpanner Referral Program work?
Ans: TaxSpanner pays a referral fee of Rs. 50 if you refer TaxSpanner service to your friend or colleague. You must be a registered user (i.e., with a valid login/email id) at www.taxspanner.com in order to be eligible for this program. Whenever an individual mentions your TaxSpanner login id while paying for TaxSpanner service, you become eligible to receive the referral fee if that individual's payment is successful. The complete details of the referral program are available in the License Agreement.
Ques: How many referrals can I give?
Ans: There is no limit on the number of referrals that you can give.
Ques: How and when does TaxSpanner pay the referral fee?
Ans: TaxSpanner will send an email to you asking for your details, such as name, and address. After receiving the valid information, TaxSpanner will issue an account payee cheque for the amount payable. Referral fee will be paid within ninety days of an eligible referral.
Ques: Is it possible that I do not receive the referral amount?
Ans: There are some basic conditions that should be fulfilled before we make the payment.
1. You must be above 18 years of age.
2. The person who has provided your email id must not have asked for a refund.
Ques: When does the referral program end?
Ans: The referral program was till July 31st, 2007. Any referrals after this date will not be eligible. We have not yet launched the referral program for 2008.

Saving Information

Ques: Why does TaxSpanner allow users to browse without registering?
Ans: If you can visit a shop and inspect its wares without any compulsion to buy, why not do the same on a website? TaxSpanner strives to provide a similar experience to the ones in real life. Hence, there is no compulsion to pay or to share your private data unless you are completely satisfied of the TaxSpanner service.
Ques:Why does TaxSpanner not flag an error for incomplete information?
Ans: One of the key features of TaxSpanner is that we do not stop you at every step asking for missing information. We understand that not all information is handy at times, plus if you are exploring the website you might not want to all information. We too find it a nuisance.
We will remind you of the missing information during the Return Review process. Note, you can revisit any page any number of times and fill or modify your information rather than wait for the review.
Ques: Does TaxSpanner save all my information?
Ans: TaxSpanner saves all your information at every click. If you have created a login id you can logon at any time and access all your data.
If you are using TaxSpanner as a guest user (i.e., without creating a login), then your data is saved as long as your session is alive. A session expires when you close the browser, or if your session is inactive for 20 minutes. To save all your data from a guest session, click 'Register Me' link at the top right hand corner to create your login.

Support

Ques: What can I contact TaxSpanner support for?
Ans: You should contact TaxSpanner support for:
- Questions regarding tax computation
- TaxSpanner features
- Payment related issues
- Any other feedback regarding TaxSpanner
Ques: How soon can I expect a reply from TaxSpanner Support?
Ans: We provide a 24 hour response time for all queries.

Return Preparation

Ques: I am an NRI. Can I use TaxSpanner?
Ans: If your income is only from salary and/or interest, then you can use TaxSpanner Quick to prepare and file your return as an NRI. For ITR2, TaxSpanner Advanced can be used by NRIs.
Ques: Which income tax return forms does TaxSpanner support?
Ans: TaxSpanner supports the new income tax return forms ITR1 and ITR2. Saral 2D, and Form 2F are not applicable for filing returns for Financial Year 2007-2008.
Ques: What features are not supported by TaxSpanner?
Ans: Please visit the page What is not included in TaxSpanner? for a list of features that are currently not supported by TaxSpanner.

Return Filing

Ques: How can I file my paper return?
Ans: TaxSpanner will provide your completed income tax return as a PDF file. You have to print your income tax return, sign it, and submit it at the nearest income tax office.
Ques: Does TaxSpanner support E-filing?
Ans: Yes.
Ques: I don't have time to file a paper return. How can I Efile?
Ans: You can e-file by clicking the "Efile My Return" on the last screen of TaxSpanner application.

Or, download the XML e-return generated by TaxSpanner. Now login to Income Tax Efiling portal (Register and create a user id/password if you don't have one.) Upload your XML return using the "Submit return" link on the left had side of this web page.
If your return has been uploaded successfully, you will receive an ITR-V on next page. This ITR-V is a one page form . You need to take a printout of this form and deposit it to the income tax office within 15 days. This step is needed if you have not attached your digital signatures while uploading the XML e-return.

Security

Ques: How does TaxSpanner protect your online security?
Ans: Keeping financial and personal information about you secure and confidential is one of our most important responsibilities. We take the following steps to protect our systems and their interaction with you:
1. All your data is located in secure servers, which can only be accessed by TaxSpanner staff.
2. Encrypting the transmission of data makes it difficult to intercept sensitive information as it travels between two parties. We encrypt the dedicated lines that connect our systems, and we use Secure Socket Layer (SSL) technology to encrypt the connection that we make with you over the Internet.
3. Time-out Feature. As an added precaution, sessions will timeout if they are inactive for 20 minutes or more.

Ques: What can I do to protect my online security?
Ans: While TaxSpanner seeks to protect your information on our systems, it is very important that you take precautions to protect yourself and the information you share over the Internet. Below are some recommendations that you can use to protect yourself online.

Your password:
1. Memorize your password and do not write it down in un-secure place.
2. Regularly change your password. This is the most effective way to increase your security.
3. Do not share or reveal your password to anyone. [Note: TaxSpanner will never ask you for your password.].
4. Select a password that cannot be easily guessed by someone else.
5. Do not associate your password with anything personal such as names, birth dates, phone numbers, or other familiar words.
6. You may set your password at least 6 characters in length (any characters). For security purposes, a password length of 6 or more characters is strongly recommended.
Other ways:
1. Remember to sign off of TaxSpanner once you have completed your session. TaxSpanner provides a Logout link in the upper right hand corner of your screen.
2. Only provide your login id and password when your browser indicates an encrypted connection. An encrypted connection is normally indicated by an "https://" in your browsers address bar in front of the address of the page you are visiting.

Capital Gains

Ques: My stock transactions are stored in a spreadsheet? How can I add them into TaxSpanner?
Ans: TaxSpanner does not support uploading of data from spreadsheets at the moment. However, you can enter as many transactions in the Capital Gains section.