ITR Filing for Company, LLP and HUF: Forms, Due Dates, Audit and Penalties

• Taxation
• ||
• August 17, 2026

Every year, the same question comes up for anyone running a private limited company, an LLP or an HUF: which ITR form applies to me, do my accounts need an audit, and by when must I file? 

The answers are different for each of the three and it is easy to get them mixed up — especially if you are running the business yourself and only deal with this once a year. The trouble is that people assume the rules are the same across all three. They are not. 

A company files a different return from an LLP, and an LLP from an HUF, and the audit triggers, due dates and penalties differ too. Filing the wrong form, missing an audit, or filing late leads to defective returns, interest and penalties.   

This guide puts it all in one place: the correct ITR form for a company, LLP and HUF who files it when it is due; with and without an audit; the audit rules; and what a delay costs — so you know what should be happening and can be sure nothing is missed. The figures reflect FY 2024-25 and FY 2025-26 (AY 2025-26 and AY 2026-27); always confirm the current year’s dates before filing, as they are sometimes revised or extended.  

Which ITR form to file for a company, LLP, and HUF?

The right income tax return form depends on the type of taxpayer: 

• Company: A company files ITR-6, unless it claims exemption under Section 11 (income from property held for charitable or religious purposes), in which case it files ITR-7. ITR-6 must be filed electronically using a Digital Signature Certificate (DSC) and cannot be filed on paper. 

• LLP: An LLP files ITR-5. Firms, AOPs and BOIs also use ITR-5. The LLP files as an entity, and each partner separately reports their share of profit, remuneration and interest in their own return, usually ITR-3. 

• HUF: The form depends on the HUF’s income. An HUF with no business or professional income files ITR-2. An HUF with business or professional income files ITR-3. An HUF that has opted for presumptive taxation under Section 44AD, 44ADA or 44AE, with total income up to Rs. 50 lakh, files ITR-4. An HUF cannot file ITR-1, which is only for resident individuals. 

Who can file the return for each?

A company return is filed by its directors using the company’s Digital Signature Certificate. An LLP return is filed by a designated partner, also using a DSC. An HUF return is filed by the karta (the head of the family) on behalf of the family, using the HUF’s own PAN. 

Because a company and an LLP almost always require accounts, and often an audit, most such returns are prepared with the help of a Chartered Accountant. Where a tax audit or statutory audit applies, a practising Chartered Accountant must conduct it — this is not optional and cannot be self-certified. 

When is an audit required for each?

This is where the three differ the most. 

A company must always have a statutory audit under the Companies Act, 2013, regardless of turnover. On top of that, a tax audit under Section 44AB of the Income-tax Act applies if turnover crosses the limit. Companies also file their accounts and annual return with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs in forms AOC-4 and MGT-7. 

An LLP must have an audit under the LLP Act, 2008, if its annual turnover exceeds Rs. 40 lakh or its capital contribution exceeds Rs. 25 lakh. Separately, a tax audit under Section 44AB applies if turnover crosses the income-tax limit. An LLP also files Form 8 (Statement of Account and Solvency) and Form 11 (Annual Return) with the Registrar every year and cannot use the presumptive scheme under Section 44AD. 

An HUF has no entity-level audit like a company or LLP. A tax audit applies only if the HUF carries on a business or profession and crosses the Section 44AB threshold. If there is no business, no audit arises. 

The Section 44AB tax-audit thresholds, which apply to a company, LLP or HUF carrying on business or profession, are: 

• Business: turnover above Rs. 1 crore, rising to Rs. 10 crore where both cash receipts and cash payments are within 5% of the total. 

• Profession: gross receipts above Rs. 50 lakh. 

• Presumptive cases: an audit can also arise where a taxpayer declares less than the deemed profit and total income exceeds the basic exemption limit. 

Due Dates: With Audit and Without Audit

The filing deadline depends on whether an audit applies. For AY 2026-27 (FY 2025-26), the position is: 

• Without audit: ITR-2 is due by 31 July 2026, and ITR-3 and ITR-4 (non-audit) by 31 August 2026. In practice, an HUF with no business files by these dates. 

• With audit: where a tax audit or statutory audit applies — which covers most companies and audited LLPs — the tax audit report is due by 30 September 2026 and the return by 31 October 2026. 

• Transfer pricing: where international or specified domestic transactions require a report under Section 92E, the return is due by 30 November 2026. 

A belated return can be filed up to 31 December 2026, and a revised return up to 31 March 2027. These dates are occasionally extended by the CBDT, so confirm the current year’s deadline before filing. 

Penalties For Late Or Missed filing

Filing late or not at all is expensive across all three taxpayer types: 

• Late filing fee (Section 234F): Rs. 5,000 if total income exceeds Rs. 5 lakh, and Rs. 1,000 if total income is up to Rs. 5 lakh. This applies from the day after your applicable due date. 

• Interest (Section 234A): 1% per month, or part of a month, on any unpaid tax from the due date until the return is filed. 

• Loss of carry-forward: filing a return late means certain losses, such as business and capital losses, cannot be carried forward to future years — often a higher cost than the fee itself. 

• Missed tax audit (Section 271B): if a tax audit was required but not done or not filed on time, the penalty is 0.5% of turnover or gross receipts, up to a maximum of Rs. 1,50,000. 

• LLP ROC default: an LLP that files Form 8 or Form 11 late faces a penalty of Rs. 100 per day, with no upper limit — so a small delay can become a large bill. 

• Company defaults: late MCA filings (AOC-4, MGT-7) carry their own daily additional fees under the Companies Act. 

Tax Rates For Company, LLP and HUF

While the focus here is filing, the applicable rate helps you plan. A domestic company is taxed at 30%, or 25% where turnover is within Rs. 400 crore, or a concessional 22% under Section 115BAA (15% for eligible new manufacturers under Section 115BAB), plus surcharge and cess. An LLP is taxed at a flat 30% plus surcharge and cess. An HUF is taxed at the individual slab rates under the old or new regime, with the benefit of the basic exemption limit. 

Quick Comparison: Company vs LLP vs HUF

How can Mercurius help?

Filing for a company, an LLP or an HUF is not a single process — the form, the audit, the due date and the penalties each work differently. We help you identify the correct ITR form, determine whether a statutory, LLP-Act or tax audit applies, carry out the audit through our Chartered Accountants, compute tax under the right regime, and file everything within the deadlines — along with the MCA, LLP and TDS compliance each structure carries. 

Contact us to get your company, LLP or HUF return and audit filed correctly and on time. 

Phone: +91 96677 79615 | Email: info@masllp.com | Website: masllp.com