What it means
The Companies Act (section 2(41)) fixes the financial year as April to March for almost every company. GST periods, invoice number series and annual returns follow the same year. For income tax, the Income-tax Act, 2025 took effect on 1 Apr 2026 and uses a single tax year that matches the financial year, in place of the old “previous year” and “assessment year” pair.
Example
| Label | Dates |
|---|---|
| FY 2026-27 | 1 Apr 2026 to 31 Mar 2027 |
| Tax year 2026-27 (Income-tax Act, 2025) | the same twelve months |
| FY 2025-26 under the old Act | previous year 2025-26, assessment year 2026-27 |
So Kaveri Agencies’ invoice KA/26-27/0412 belongs to FY 2026-27, and its first invoice on 1 Apr 2027 starts the KA/27-28 series.
Common mistakes
- Carrying the invoice series across 31 March; GST asks for a series unique within the year.
- Mixing up “assessment year” and “financial year” on old returns and notices.
- Closing the books without carrying forward balance sheet balances to the new year.
In MyRecords
MyRecords works in April–March years and shows dates as “1 Nov 2026” and amounts in lakh and crore. On Close books, “Create next year” opens the new financial year and “Close year” moves the year’s profit into equity once your CA signs off. GST returns are worked out by month inside the year.