Even if you have been cautious while paying taxes, you may end up making a mistake, i.e. you may choose the wrong assessment year at the time of making payment. The major cause for such a mistake to happen is not knowing the meaning of the term ‘assessment year’. Assessment year means the year in which your taxes are assessed. Precisely, it is the year following the year for which you are paying the taxes. If you are paying taxes for the year 2023-24, the assessment year to pay this tax will be 2024-25.If you have chosen the assessment year incorrectly, follow the below steps:Step 1: Include the payment details when filing your income tax returns for the year, even if the assessment year chosen during tax payment is incorrect.Step 2: Request your jurisdictional assessing officer to correct the challan regarding the assessment year error. You can find the details of your assessing officer on the e-filing website of the income tax department. If you have recently made the payment, you can ask the bank to rectify the challan within 7 days of the deposit date.Step 3: When the assessing officer (AO) processes your returns, he most probably issues a notice as the payment details do not match with the records.Step 4: Respond to the AO, providing details of the error made during tax payment.Step 5: Submit a rectification request under Section 154.Step 6: The AO has the power to make the required corrections in your return if he is convinced with your rectification request. Once approved, the AO will make the required changes in your return and close it.