Income Tax Notice Reply: 5 MB Attachment Limit and How to Fit
Replying to an income tax notice on e-Proceedings? Each file must be under 5 MB, up to 10 files, 50 MB in total. How to compress, split and order your documents.
By the PDFToast team · Updated 15 October 2026
When you reply to an income tax notice on the e-Filing portal, each attachment can be at most 5 MB, you can add up to 10 files, and the total can be at most 50 MB. Files should be PDF, XLS, XLSX or CSV. If a document is too big, Compress PDF to size gets it under 5 MB in your browser, and Split PDF breaks up anything that still won’t fit.
Checked on 15 October 2026 against the Income Tax Department’s e-Proceedings FAQ and Comply to Notice FAQ. Portal limits can change; the upload screen is the final word.
The limits in one table
| Rule | Limit | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Size of one attachment | 5 MB | e-Proceedings FAQ |
| Number of attachments | Up to 10 | e-Proceedings FAQ; Comply to Notice FAQ (“up to 10 files at a time”) |
| All attachments together | 50 MB | e-Proceedings FAQ |
| File types | PDF, XLS, XLSX, CSV | Comply to Notice FAQ |
Where to reply: log in to the e-Filing portal and go to Dashboard → Pending Actions → e-Proceedings → For Your Action, open the notice and choose to submit a response.
The e-Proceedings FAQ’s own advice for a file over the limit is to “optimize the document by reducing the file size”. Here’s how.
Step 1: get every PDF under 5 MB
- Open Compress PDF to size.
- Add the PDF and type 4800 KB as the limit. That leaves a small margin under 5 MB.
- Download and open the result. Check that figures, stamps and signatures are still readable.
Most typed documents, like ledgers, computation sheets and Form 16, are already well under 5 MB. The big files are usually scanned documents: rent receipts, property papers, bank passbooks, medical bills. For several scans, Batch compress does them all at once and gives you a ZIP.
If it still won’t go under 5 MB
A 60-page scanned bank passbook can stay over 5 MB even after compression. Split it instead:
- Open Split PDF and split it into ranges, for example pages 1–30 and 31–60.
- Compress each part if needed.
- Name the files so the officer can follow them:
Passbook FY2025-26 part 1 of 2.pdf,part 2 of 2.pdf.
Grayscale PDF also helps: a colour scan converted to black and white is usually much smaller and just as readable.
Step 2: fit everything into 10 files
You can attach up to 10 files. If you have more documents than that, combine related ones:
| Instead of… | Upload |
|---|---|
| 12 separate rent receipts | One PDF “Rent receipts FY2025-26” made with Merge PDF |
| Photos of bills from your phone | One PDF made with JPG to PDF |
| Paper documents | One clean PDF per document type with Scan to PDF |
| Pages in the wrong order | Fix with Organize pages before uploading |
After merging, check that each merged file is still under 5 MB.
Step 3: unlock password-protected PDFs
Bank statements, Form 16, 26AS and AIS often come as password-protected PDFs. The portal FAQs don’t say whether locked files are accepted, but the officer has to open your document, so upload an unlocked copy. Unlock PDF removes a password you know. The usual formats are in our e-PAN, Form 16, 26AS and AIS password guide and the bank statement password guide.
Spreadsheets are allowed too
The portal accepts XLS, XLSX and CSV. If you’re explaining a set of transactions, a spreadsheet can be clearer than a 40-page PDF. PDF to Excel turns a bank statement PDF into Date, Debit, Credit and Balance columns, so you can highlight the entries the notice asks about. See how to convert a bank statement to Excel.
Before you submit
- Every file under 5 MB, 10 files at most, 50 MB in total
- PDF, XLS, XLSX or CSV only
- No passwords on any file
- File names say what’s inside and which part it is
- Opened each file once to check it’s readable
Keep tax documents off other people’s servers
Your reply bundle holds your PAN, bank details, salary and property papers. Many free compressors upload files to their servers to process them. PDFToast compresses, splits, merges and unlocks inside your browser, so your documents stay on your device. Here’s how to check any PDF site in 30 seconds.
This guide is about getting files to fit the portal. It isn’t tax advice. For what to say in your reply, talk to a chartered accountant or tax practitioner.
Questions
What is the file size limit for replying to an income tax notice?
On the e-Filing portal's e-Proceedings, a single attachment can be at most 5 MB, you can attach up to 10 files, and all attachments together can be at most 50 MB. The Comply to Notice FAQ says files should be PDF, XLS, XLSX or CSV.
My PDF is bigger than 5 MB. What should I do?
Compress it to about 4.8 MB with a compress-to-size tool. If it's a long scan that still won't fit, split it into parts of under 5 MB each and number them, for example 'Bank statement part 1 of 2'.
Can I upload a password-protected PDF in reply to a notice?
The portal FAQs don't say. The officer has to be able to open your document, so it's safer to remove the password before uploading and to upload the unlocked copy.