CBDT introduces mandatory e-filing of first appeal

CBDT introduces mandatory e-filing of first appeal i.e. before CIT(A) for persons who are required to file e-returns; E-filing also expected to facilitate fixation of hearing of appeals electronically; E-filing of CIT(A) appeals (alongwith the documents relied upon) expected to “remove human interface, reduce paperwork and decrease the transaction cost for the taxpayer”; CBDT anticipates that this step shall result in fewer deficient appeals as validations will be inbuilt which would ensure consistent and error free service; Current form for filing of CIT(A) appeal i.e. Form No. 35 to be replaced by a new form; CBDT press release states that “The new format for filing of appeals is more structured, objective, systematic, and aligned with the current provisions of the Income-tax Act”; CBDT recognizes this as another significant step in Income tax Department’s endeavour to digitise various functions of the Department for providing efficient taxpayer services and will reduce taxpayers’ compliance burden in appellate proceedings : CBDT

CBDT issued clarifications on several issues in order to facilitate the conduct of scrutiny

Update: CBDT has issued Instruction No. 20/2015 dated 29.12.2015 in which it has issued clarifications on several issues in order to facilitate the conduct of scrutiny assessments in cases selected through Computer Aided Scrutiny Selection (‘CASS’).

The CBDT has also stated that as far as the returns selected for scrutiny through CASS-2015 are concerned, two type of cases have been selected for scrutiny in the current Financial Year – one is ‘Limited Scrutiny’ and other is Complete Scrutiny’.

The assessees concerned have duly been intimated about their cases falling either in ‘Limited Scrutiny’ or ‘Complete Scrutiny’ through notices issued under section 143(2) of the Income-tax Act, 1961 (‘Act’). The procedure for handling ‘Limited Scrutiny’ cases has been explained in detail by the CBDT.

Key points:

1.States that the said Instruction is applicable only to cases selected for scrutiny under CASS and only on the parameter(s) of AIR/CIB/26AS data;

2.Indicates that scope of enquiry to be “Specific issue based” and directs AO to confine the questionnaire only to the specific issues pertaining to AIR/CIB/26AS data after giving reason for selection of the case for scrutiny to the assessee;

3.Also outlines the procedure for handling 'Limited Scrutiny' and 'Complete Scrutiny' cases in relation to cases selected through CASS-2015;

4.Highlights that during the course of assessment proceedings in ‘Limited Scrutiny' cases, if ‘potential escapement of income’ found exceeding Rs 5 lakhs (Rs 10 lakhs for metro charges) requiring substantial verification of other issues, the case may be taken up for ‘Complete Scrutiny’, subject to written approval of Pr. CIT/CIT ;

5.In all cases where AO proposes to make additions or disallowances, directs AO to (i) give fair opportunity of hearing to the assessee, (ii) issue show-cause notice duly indicating reasons for proposed additions/disallowances along with necessary evidences/reasons forming its basis and (iii) consider assessee’s submissions in response to the show-cause notice before passing the final order

Pre Budget Memorandum-Indirect Taxes-2016

ICAI Pre-Budget Memoranda 2016 for Indirect Taxes–Key Points Raised on Service Tax, Cenvat, Central Excise, Customs & CST

 

The  Key Points Raised are  as under:-

 

 

Service Tax

 

1.  Introduction of Tax Audit Report under Service Tax

 

2.  Introduction Reconciliation Certification under Service Tax

 

3.  Exempting Employer to Employee Services

 

4.  Works Contract Definition to be Brought in Parity with CST Act

 

5.  Trading of Goods to be removed from Negative List as it is not even a Service

 

6.  Seeking Clarification for Non Taxability of charges/ recoveries for supply of electricity by developers

7.  No Serice tax on Take Away or Home Deliveries to be incorporated in the Act Itself

 

8.  Seeking Clarification on Non Taxability of Penalties, Liquidated Damages etc

 

9.  Valuation Clarification on Sharing of Expenses between Sister Concerns / Groups Companies

 

10.  Deemed Valuation for Transactions whose Consideration is non monetary

 

11.  Small Scale Exemption to be Raised from 10 Lacs to 25 Lacs

13.  Date of Service Tax Liability to be mentioned in Registration Certificate Itself

 

14.   Efiling all the documents to the Department – CA's to Certify the Form

 

15.   GAR-7 Challan to mention the Period Pertaining to which Tax Paid

 

16.   Due Date of Payments to be Made 10th of Following Month in line with GST

 

17.   Provision for Bad Debts to be covered under Rule 6(3) of Service Tax Rules, 1994

 

18.   Challan Correction System to be Implemented

 

19.   Introduction of Annual Return under Service Tax

 

20.  Instant Acknoledgment in Filing of Service Tax ST-3\

 

21.  Time Limit to Revise to be Increased to 180 Days

 

22.  To Curb Vexatious Searches, the reasons for conducting the search may be recorded in writing. This will also be in line with income-tax provisions

23.  Recorded Statement to be provided to the assessee immediately. Use of Printed Statement to be permissible

 

24.   Prosecution only in exceptional cases and must include mens rea

 

25.   Power to Arrest must not be delegated below the officer of Rank of JC / AC

 

26.   Online Filing of CESTAT Appeals

 

27.  Online Filing of A-1 & A-3

 

28.   Conflict between Section 67A and Rule 4 / 5 of POT to be removed

 

 

Cenvat Credit

 

 

1.  Avoid the exclusion clause of Cenvat on Input Services

 

2.  Allow Credit of Outward Freight

 

3.  Input Ambit should cover Capital Structures

 

4.  Discreet Drafting of Rule 2(e) – Definition of "Exempted Services"

 

5.  Rule 2( d) i.e. Definition of Exempted Goods to be brought in accordance with Bharat Fritz Werner Limited Judgement of Karnataka High Court on Job Work

6.  Utilisation of Old Education and Secondary Education Cess

 

7.  Swachh Bharat Cess to be Integrated in Cenvat Scheme

 

8.  100% Cenvat Credit on Capital Goods in the First Year Itself

 

9.  Refund to be Allowed to be certified by a Practicing Chartered Accountant and not neccesarily the Auditor only

 

10.  Refund Process Streamling

11.          Reinstatement of Transfer of Credit from LTU one unit to another

12.  No Interest shall be Payable under Rule 14 of CCR, 2004 where assessee is able to substantiate non utilisation of Impugned Credit

13.  Rule 15 Penalty – 'Taken or Utilised' to be replaced with 'Taken and Utilised'.

 

 

Central Excise

 

1.  Procedure for Section 14 to be envisaged in Rules

 

2.  Advance Ruling on Admissibility of Cenvat Credit on Capital Goods in Factory or Service Provider

 

3.  Memorandum of Cross Objection before Commissioner (Appeals) – Forms to be Prescribed

 

4.  Mandatory Pre-deposit to be 1% / 2% instead of Current 7.5% / 10 %. Bank Guarantee to substitute. Tribunal Must be given right to waive predeposit on merit

5.   Excise Returns should be Quarterly and not Monthly

 

6.  Revision of Excise Returns should be Permissible

 

7.  Audit Report under EA-2000 must be furnished in all  cases.

 

 

Customs

 

1.  Dispensing 1% EDD

 

2.  SAD Refund to be Smoothened based on CA Certification

 

3.  SAD Refund not to be subject to Time Limit under Section 27

 

4.  Increase in Limit of Duty Free Allowance to Rs 75,000/-

 

 

Central Sales Tax

 

1.  Reduction of CST Rate to 1%

 

2.  Streamlining Form Process related to C, F, H, E1 and EII

Final list of elected candidates from WIRC

So finally, it's final. Here is the list of our new regional council members:

Congratulations!!

Position	NAME OF CANDIDATE	Votes
1	SAVLA PRITI PARAS- MUMBAI	1681
2	CHITALE SUSHRUT MUKUND- MUMBAI	1681
3	KHANDELWAL PURUSHOTTAM LAL- AHMEDABAD	1681
4	DESAI DRUSHTI RAHUL- MUMBAI	1681
5	ALSHI RAKESH GANPAT- MUMBAI	1681
6	KELKAR ABHIJIT JAYANT- NAGPUR	1681
7	GADIA MANISH R- MUMBAI	1681
8	TALATI ANIKET SUNIL- AHMEDABAD	1681
9	SABOO KAMLESH- THANE	1681
10	SHARMA UMESH RAMNARAYAN- AURANGABAD	1681
11	MUNDADA SATYANARAYAN GOVERDHANLAL- PUNE	1681
12	JAIN SANDEEP KAILASHCHAND- MUMBAI	1681
13	SHINAGARE SHILPA BABASAHEB- MUMBAI	1681
14	SHAH SHRUTI JAYESH - MUMBAI	1635
15	AGARWAL VISHNU KUMAR - MUMBAI	1624
16	SHAH PRIYAM RAMESHBHAI- AHMEDABAD	1623
17	SHAH HARDIK PRAVINKUMAR- SURAT	1568
18	AGRAWAL PRADEEP KANAIYALAL- VADODARA	1500
19	JOSHI SARVESH NANDLAL- PUNE	1484
20	BAJAJ LALIT LAXMINARAYAN- MUMBAI	1473
21	KULKARNI VIKRANT MURLIDHAR- NASHIK	1449
22	AGARWAL BALKISHAN - SURAT	1323

ITD to quote e mail and Phone Number

Govt directs taxman to quote email, phone number in e-notice

In an attempt to bring authenticity to e-mail based communication to taxpayers, the Finance Ministry has asked Income Tax department officials to mandatorily mention their email and official phone numbers in such letters and notices.

An official order, accessed by PTI, in this regard was issued by the Ministry sometime back on the directions of Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia.

"Henceforth any notice, letter, communication issued by any officer under Department of Revenue, including CBDT, its directorates and field formations to the taxpayers, members of public should invariably contain mention of email address and office phone numbers, of the officers signing such, communications, notice, letters for facilitating tax payers' electronic interface with the department.

"All are requested to kindly ensure that the above directions are strictly followed," the order said.

A senior official explained the step had been taken to lend the required "authenticity" to electronic communications which at times are fraught with the danger of being fake or a phishing attempt on the taxpayer.

"In case of doubt, the recipient or taxpayer could check the authenticity of the notice or letter sent by the Assessing Officer or the IT officer. The attempt is to make e-communication by IT department safe, secure and reliable," the official said.

The department has recently launched a first-ever pilot project to begin an email based scrutiny assessment of taxpayers in select cities.

The Central Board of Direct Taxes, the policy-making body of the IT department, had recently also notified use of emails as the new mode of communication between the taxman and taxpayers, as part of the government's e-initiative to reduce human interface and complaints of harassment and corruption in conducting tax-related jobs.

Henceforth, the taxman can now send official communication to "email address available in the income-tax return furnished by the addressee to which the communication relates or the email address available in the last income tax return furnished by the addressee or in the case of addressee being a company, email address of the company as available on the website of ministry of corporate affairs".

The department, in order to reduce the taxpayers' visit to the IT office, had launched the 'pilot' project and the first set of e-communications have been decided to be mailed to 100 chosen people each in Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad, and Chennai regions.

The CBDT had recently asked the department to "initiate the concept of using email for corresponding with taxpayers and sending through emails the questionnaire, notice etc. at the time of scrutiny proceedings and getting responses from them."

"This would eliminate the necessity of visiting the Income Tax offices by the taxpayers, particularly in smaller cases, involving limited issues and where taxpayer is able to provide details required by the Assessing Officer (AO) without necessitating his physical presence," the order had said.