Just because somebody has passed away, it doesn’t mean their income tax issues have been automatically resolved. If the deceased had any income exceeding the basic exemption limit and did not file any income tax return (ITR), or has pending tax proceedings or outstanding tax dues, their legal heir(s) may have to take care of it. Sometimes, figuring out who the legal heirs are can be tricky due to family disputes or other reasons.
In such cases, the jurisdictional income tax assessing officer (AO) should be informed of this. If there are no legal heirs, then the person who inherits the properties and other assets of the deceased is responsible for handling the deceased’s income tax dues.
