[PLUG] ITR e-filing on Linux

[Mayuresh]

Income tax department provides MS Excel based software (Excel sheets) for
preparing income tax returns on this page:

https://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/portal/individual_huf.do

They state MS Excel as a system requirement for using this.

If anyone has tried/succeeded in e-filing returns using this software on
Linux (using Openoffice / otherwise) please do post your experience.

I could see that the file seems to open fine in oocalc and I could also
enable Macros which were disabled by default. Worry is more about
following aspects:

- Functioning of all macros properly (non-working of some of which may
  cause data integrity issues. Worse if such issues are hard to notice.)
- Generation of a "valid" xml file that will be loadable correctly on
  e-filing website.

Mayuresh.

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Re: [PLUG] ITR e-filing on Linux

[Arun Khan]

On Thu, May 27, 2010 at 6:49 PM, Mayuresh  wrote:
> Income tax department provides MS Excel based software (Excel sheets) for
> preparing income tax returns on this page:
>
> https://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/portal/individual_huf.do
>
> They state MS Excel as a system requirement for using this.
>
> If anyone has tried/succeeded in e-filing returns using this software on
> Linux (using Openoffice / otherwise) please do post your experience.
>
> I could see that the file seems to open fine in oocalc and I could also
> enable Macros which were disabled by default. Worry is more about
> following aspects:
>
> - Functioning of all macros properly (non-working of some of which may
>  cause data integrity issues. Worse if such issues are hard to notice.)
> - Generation of a "valid" xml file that will be loadable correctly on
>  e-filing website.

With the Indian e-Governance scene, typically the "aam janta" has no
choice in this matter.   S/he is caught in a catch-22 situation -
heads they win, tails you loose.

You can protest with the authorities, it they at all get back to you -
the response will be "Everyone is using Windows and MS Office, aapke
paas Windows nahi hai?"

There is some discussion going on about using open standards which
includes document format but let's see how it progresses.   This is
the kind of thing that encourages software piracy in my opinion.  In
this case the Govt. is mandating it's citizens to use MS Windows
desktop and the MS Office suite; kind of an endorsement of MS
products)

I end up using my accountants Windows desktop to do such activities - YMMV.

-- Arun Khan

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Re: [PLUG] ITR e-filing on Linux

[Mayuresh]

On Thu, May 27, 2010 at 07:36:57PM +0530, Arun Khan wrote:
> I end up using my accountants Windows desktop to do such activities - YMMV.
> 
> -- Arun Khan

One of the countless things around where some way or the other middlemen
stay in business... Firstly, for complexity of returns and if you manage
to overcome that, you have to run around looking for a Windows machine to
the job :-(

Mayuresh.

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Re: [PLUG] ITR e-filing on Linux

[Shridhar Daithankar]

On Thursday 27 May 2010 18:49:20 Mayuresh wrote:
> Income tax department provides MS Excel based software (Excel sheets) for
> preparing income tax returns on this page:
> 
> https://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/portal/individual_huf.do
> 
> They state MS Excel as a system requirement for using this.
> 
> If anyone has tried/succeeded in e-filing returns using this software on
> Linux (using Openoffice / otherwise) please do post your experience.
> 
> I could see that the file seems to open fine in oocalc and I could also
> enable Macros which were disabled by default. Worry is more about
> following aspects:
> 
> - Functioning of all macros properly (non-working of some of which may
>   cause data integrity issues. Worse if such issues are hard to notice.)
> - Generation of a "valid" xml file that will be loadable correctly on
>   e-filing website.

Not entirely orthogonal and OT but this may be of some interest of FOSS lovers

http://www.taxguru.in/government-policy/draft-policy-on-open-standards-for-e-
governance-available-for-public-feedback-public-review-closes-on-3rd-
june-2010.html
-- 
Regards 
 Shridhar

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Re: [PLUG] ITR e-filing on Linux

[Easwar Hariharan]

On Thu, May 27, 2010 at 11:15 PM, Shridhar Daithankar <
ghodech...@ghodechhap.net> wrote:

> On Thursday 27 May 2010 18:49:20 Mayuresh wrote:
> > Income tax department provides MS Excel based software (Excel sheets) for
> > preparing income tax returns on this page:
> >
> > https://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/portal/individual_huf.do
> >
> > They state MS Excel as a system requirement for using this.
> >
> > If anyone has tried/succeeded in e-filing returns using this software on
> > Linux (using Openoffice / otherwise) please do post your experience.
> >
> > I could see that the file seems to open fine in oocalc and I could also
> > enable Macros which were disabled by default. Worry is more about
> > following aspects:
> >
> > - Functioning of all macros properly (non-working of some of which may
> >   cause data integrity issues. Worse if such issues are hard to notice.)
> > - Generation of a "valid" xml file that will be loadable correctly on
> >   e-filing website.
>

I thought the discussion was whether anyone had succeeded filing their IT
returns without using MS Windows and MSO, not whether the government is
implicitly endorsing MS products, or what's the draft policy for formats of
public documents. Please stay On Topic.

Regards,
Easwar
Registered Linux user #442065
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Re: [PLUG] ITR e-filing on Linux

[sankarshan]

On Fri, May 28, 2010 at 9:17 AM, Easwar Hariharan  wrote:

> I thought the discussion was whether anyone had succeeded filing their IT
> returns without using MS Windows and MSO, not whether the government is
> implicitly endorsing MS products, or what's the draft policy for formats of
> public documents. Please stay On Topic.

I recall reading through a "Hall of Fame" list off the fosscomm
archives which indicated that someone had indeed done that
successfully. Perhaps you can look it up.


-- 
sankarshan mukhopadhyay


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