The last date to file your Income Tax Return (ITR) for the financial year 2024-25 (assessment year 2025-26) is September 15. If you don’t want to pay a penalty make sure you file your return before the deadline. To make this easier and cheaper Mukesh Ambani’s JioFinance is offering a new plan where you can file your ITR for just Rs. 24. The service launched in partnership with TaxBuddy is a self-filing plan meaning you’ll have to file the return yourself without any help from a Chartered Accountant (CA). At this price it’s currently the cheapest option available compared to Tax2Win’s Rs. 49 plan and MyITReturn’s Rs. 99 plan which also don’t include CA assistance. Who can file tax return under JioFinance ITR plan? The Rs 24 plan is only ideal for those who wish to file nil ITR or ITR-1 which have very simple tax transactions and a single Form-16 to report. This plan may not work sis for business owners taxpayers with capital gains or foreign investments. Nil ITR filers - those who don’t have any taxable income. ITR-1 filers - people earning from salary one house property or bank interest. Individuals with just a single Form-16 and no complex transactions. What happens to your financial data? According to JioFinance your ITR-related data will not be stored with them. All your information will be processed by TaxBuddy which is a government-registered e-Return Intermediary (ERI). They will only use your data with your consent. Under the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act 2023: Companies can only collect the data they actually need. They must explain why they’re collecting it. Once the data is no longer needed they have to delete it. However since this rule is not fully enforced yet it’s still unclear how long platforms might keep your data or whether they could use it to market other services like loans insurance or mutual funds. Charges for expert-assisted filing under JipFinance ITR plan If you want to file your ITR with expert help JioFinance charges Rs. 999. This service is for people with annual income below Rs. 50 lakh. Tax Manager charges about Rs. 1250 for the same. ClearTax costs around Rs. 2539. TaxBuddy also charges Rs. 999 for expert assistance. Track your refund status with JioFinance app With the JioFinance app you can: Track your refund status and know when it’s expected to be credited. Receive alerts and notifications related to your income tax. You can also check your refund status anytime on the Income Tax Department’s official website. HIGHLIGHTS The JioFinance app is currently offering a tax planning and filing facility which is available at a meagre charge of Rs 24. While this is a self-filing plan i.e. the individual will have to file ITR themselves without any CA assistance it is the cheapest plan to exist currently. The Rs 24 plan is only ideal for those who wish to file nil ITR or ITR-1 which have very simple tax transactions and a single Form-16 to report. This plan may not work sis for business owners taxpayers with capital gains or foreign investments.