Wednesday, December 30, 2015

Mandatory e filing of Appeal before CIT (appeals) in Income Tax

Mandatory e filing of Appeal before CIT (appeals) in Income Tax

Wednesday, November 4, 2015


Thursday, October 15, 2015

Saturday, August 1, 2015

Taxability of Interest on Income Tax Refund

Whether the Interest on Income Tax Refund is chargeable to tax? if yes under which head ?

Carry forward of loss due to Assessment

Carry forward of loss due to Assessment
When the Assessee filed the income tax return after the Prescribed period u.s 139 (1) and declared the income but in the Assessment proceedings loss has been determined by the Assessing Officer

RTI income tax return Can not be Disclosed

Whether details disclosed by a person in his income-tax returns are personal information which can not be disclosed under Right to Information Act ?

condonation of delay

condonation of delay

Whether the length of delay is relevant for considering the application for condonation of delay ?

Penalty for Not filing TDS Return

Question : Can the Assessee claim that he was not aware of the provision of filing of the TDS returns and hence Penalty for not Filing TDS Return Should not be Imposed ? 

No tds on sale of agricultural land

No tds on sale of agricultural land

income tax e filing utility for ITR 3, 4 and 7

income tax e filing utility for ITR 3, 4 and 7

Sunday, July 19, 2015

Income Tax Deductions Available to NRIs


Non-resident Indians have to pay tax and file a return in India if there income from sources in India exceeds Rs 2,50,000 in financial year 2014-15. Similar to resident Indians some deductions are available to non-resident Indians in their tax return. 



Once of the most popular means of claiming a deduction from gross total income is via Section 80C. For financial year 2014-15 and financial year 2015-16, a maximum deduction of Rs. 1,50,000 is allowed under section 80C.

Of the deductions under Section 80C, those allowed to NRIs are:

Life insurance premium payment: This deduction can be claimed where the policy has been purchased in the NRI's name or in the name of their spouse or any child's name (the child may be dependent/independent, minor/major, or married/unmarried). To claim deduction under section 80C, the premium must be less than 10 per cent of sum assured.

Tuition fee payment: NRIs can claim tuition fees paid to any school, college, university or other educational institution situated within India for the purpose of full time education of their children (maximum 2). This includes payments for play school, pre-nursery and nursery.

Principal repayments on loan for purchase of house property: NRIs can claim deduction for repayment of loan taken for buying or constructing residential house property. Also allowed for stamp duty, registration fees and other expenses for purpose of transfer of such property to the NRI.

ULIPS or unit linked insurance plan: Investment in ULIPS is also allowed as a deduction under Section 80C. This includes contribution to Unit Linked Insurance Plan of LIC Mutual Fund e.g. Dhanraksha 1989 and contribution to Other Unit Linked Insurance Plan of UTI.

Other allowable deductions

Deduction from house property income for NRIs: Similar to Residents, NRIs can claim a deduction of maximum Rs 2,00,000 for interest paid on a home loan for a house property which is lying vacant. For a property which is rented out, the entire interest out go is allowed as a deduction. While calculating rental income of the house property, deduction towards property tax paid as well as 30 per cent standard deduction is allowed to be claimed.

Deduction under Section 80D: NRIs can claim a deduction for premium for health insurance of themselves and family or parents in India. This deduction is available up to Rs. 15,000 for insurance of self, spouse and dependent children and is Rs.20,000, where an NRI or spouse is a senior citizen. NRI can claim a deduction for insurance of parents (father or mother or both) up to 20,000 if their parents are senior citizen and Rs. 15,000 if the parents are not senior citizens. Therefore, an NRI will be able to claim a maximum deduction of Rs. 40,000 under this section for FY 2014-15. Since FY 2012-13, within the existing limit a deduction of up to Rs. 5,000 for preventive health check-ups is also available.

Deduction under Section 80E: Section 80E allows NRIs to claim a deduction of interest paid on an education loan. This loan may have been taken for higher education for the NRI, or NRI's spouse or children or for a student for whom the NRI is a legal guardian. There is no limit on the amount which can be claimed as a deduction under this section. The deduction is available for a maximum of 8 years or till the interest is paid, whichever is earlier. No deduction is allowed on the principal repayment of the loan.

Deduction under Section 80G: If eligible donations have been made as per section 80G of the income tax act, deduction is allowed to NRIs.

Deduction under Section 80TTA: Non-resident Indians are also allowed to claim a deduction on income from interest on savings bank account up to a maximum of Rs. 10,000 like resident Indians. This is allowed on deposits in savings account (not time deposits) with a bank, co-operative society or post office and is available starting FY 2012-13.

Let's take a look at some of the deductions which are not allowed to NRIs.

Some investments mentioned under Section 80C may not be allowed to non-residents:

1. Investment in PPF are not allowed - NRIs may not be allowed to open new PPF accounts, however PPF accounts which are opened while they are were a Resident may be allowed to be maintained.

2. Investments made in NSCs

3. Post Office 5 Year Deposit Scheme

4. Senior Citizen Savings Scheme.

5. Investment under RGESS under section 80CCG: Deduction under section 80CCG or Rajiv Gandhi Equity Savings Scheme was introduced effective assessment year 2013-14. This deduction was allowed to increase participation of retail investor participation in equity markets. When the specified conditions are met deduction allowed is lower of 50 per cent of amount invested in equity shares or Rs 25,000. This deduction is not available to NRIs.

6. Deduction for the differently-abled under section 80DD: Deduction under this section is allowed for maintenance, including medical treatment of a handicapped dependent (a person with a disability as defined for this section) is not available to NRIs.

7. Deduction for the differently-abled under section 80DDB

8. Deduction under this section towards medical treatment for a dependant who is disabled (as certified by a prescribed specialist) is available only to Residents.

9. Deduction for the differently-abled under section 80U

10. Deduction for disability where the tax payer himself suffers from disability as defined in the section is allowed only to Resident Indians.

11. Exemption on sale of property for an NRI

12. Long-term capital gains (when property is held for more than 3 years) is taxed at 20 per cent. Do note that long-term capital gains earned by NRIs are subject to deduction of TDS.

13. NRIs are allowed to claim exemptions under section 54, Section 54EC and Section 54F on long-term capital gains. Therefore, an NRI can take benefit of the exemptions from capital gains at the time of filing a return and claim a refund of TDS deducted on Capital Gains.

14. Exemption under Section 54 is available on long-term capital gains on sale of a house property. Exemption under Section 54F is available on sale of any asset other than a house property. Whereas, exemption is available under Section 54 EC when capital gains from sale of a property is reinvested into specific bonds.

Disclaimer: All information in this article has been provided with due care however we are not responsible for the accuracy and completeness of the same.

Filing of Income Tax Return : Questions and Answers





As the income tax return or ITR forms are released by the Income Tax Department, and with the start of e-filing of returns, it's common for the salaried or those earning an income to have some basic questions about tax returns.

Some of these questions are answered below:


Am I required to file an ITR?

Whether or not individuals have earned an income, they are often unsure whether they are supposed to file an income tax return in India. Some believe that a tax return may not be required in case there is no income. There is also a common misconception that if no taxes are payable, return of income is not required to be submitted.

An income tax return is required to be filed if the gross total income earned by you from April 1, 2014 to March 31, 2015 exceeds Rs 2.5 lakh. Gross total income is the total income before allowing any deductions under Section 80C-80U of the Income Tax Act. If you are more than 60 years but less than 80 years old in age, this limit is Rs 3 lakh. For those who are more than 80 years old, it is Rs 5 lakh. Therefore, even where no tax has been paid but gross income exceeds the above mentioned limits, a return of income must be filed. This income limit applies to NRIs as well. If they have income in excess of Rs 2.5 lakh from sources in India, they must file a return in India.

What if your total income is less than Rs 2.5 lakh but some TDS (tax deducted at source) was deducted for which you need to ask for a refund? The only way to get a refund is by filing an income tax return. Only the Income Tax Department can issue a refund for TDS deposited to it. So those earning below the income threshold can also file an ITR where they need to seek a refund.

Losses under certain heads of income are allowed to be carried forward only when an income tax return has been filed. Similarly, all companies and firms must file an income tax return irrespective of a loss or income during the financial year. Those who seek jobs outside India or need to travel for some reason may be required by visa authorities to show proof of return. Usually, copies of returns are also sought when a home loan is being sought.

An income tax return must also be mandatorily filed by a resident individual who owns an asset or has financial interest in an entity located outside India, where he/she has a signing authority in a bank account outside India. This is applicable irrespective of whether such resident has a taxable income or not. These requirements are not applicable to NRI or those who are resident but not ordinarily resident.

Am I required to e-file my ITR?


Gone are the days of taking the hassle of filing your returns on paper. A paper return is both cumbersome and prone to error.

However, there are some cases where it is mandatory to e-file your income tax return. Let's take a look at those. If your gross total income exceeds Rs 5 lakh, it is mandatory to e-file your return. Those who are seeking a refund must mandatorily e-file their return. There is a small exception for those who are more than 80 years old and are filing returns using the ITR-1 and ITR-2 forms. They can still file a return on paper and claim a refund. Forms ITR-3, ITR-4, ITR-5, ITR-6 and ITR-7 have to be mandatorily e-filed.

Do I need to submit documents along with my ITR?

The Income Tax Department does not accept any documents with the return form. What is filed now is called an 'annexure-less' return. So you don't need to submit any documents related to deductions, home loans, rent receipts etc. along with your return. This is applicable for both paper and e-filed returns. However, it is important that these documents are kept safely by you should the taxman ask for them. Do maintain a record of all your related receipts and proofs.

Disclaimer: All information in this article has been provided for information purposes andwe are not responsible for the accuracy and completeness of the same.

Saturday, July 18, 2015

Time-limit for submitting ITR-V for A.Y 2013-14 Extended

SECTION 139D OF THE INCOME-TAX ACT, 1961 - RETURN OF INCOME - ERETURNS - EXTENSION OF TIME LIMIT FOR SUBMITTING ITR-V FOR ELECTRONICALLY FILED RETURNS FOR A.Y. 2013-14 AND A.Y. 2014-15

NOTIFICATION NO.1/2015-CPC SCHEME 2011 [F.NO.2/3/CIT(OSD)(s)/2014-15/CPC-ITRV Issues]DATED 10-7-2015
In exercise of the powers under clause (ii) of Para 14 read with clause (7) of Para 4 of the Centralized Processing of Returns Scheme, 2011 issued as per CBDT Notification No. SO.16(E) dated 4-1-2012 [2/2012], the Director General of Income Tax (System) hereby extends the time limit for submitting ITR-V forms relating to Income Tax Returns filed electronically (without digital signature certificate) for A.Y. 2013-14 (filed on or after 1st April, 2014 till 31st March 2015) and for A.Y. 2014-15 (filed on or after 1st April, 2014 till 30th June 2015). These ITR-V forms can now be submitted upto 31st October 2015 or within a period of 120 days from the date of uploading of the electronic return data whichever is later.
2. This notification is issued to mitigate the hardship and grievance of the taxpayers who have been prevented by reasonable causes to file the ITR-V in time.
3. Taxpayers can also verify their status of receipt of ITR-V at e-filing website https://incometaxindiatefiling.gov.in. They can also download the ITR-V from the same website from sub-menu e-filed Returns/forms under main-menu of My account after login to above-mentioned website and clicking on the relevant Ack No hyperlink.
4. The ITR-V forms should be sent by ordinary post or speed post addressed to CPC, Post Bag No. 1 Electronic City Post Office, Bengaluru- 560 100.

Taxability of rent Received from Spouse


Rent receipt from spouse is taxable as income from

 house property and not as income from other sources


IN THE ITAT MUMBAI BENCH 'E'
Swapna Murarka
v.
Assistant Commissioner of Income-tax, 12 (1), Mumbai
D. KARUNAKARA RAO, ACCOUNTANT MEMBER
AND AMIT SHUKLA, JUDICIAL MEMBER
IT APPEAL NO. 3218 (MUM.) OF 2012
[ASSESSMENT YEAR 2008-09]
MARCH  27, 2015 
I. Section 22, read with section 56, of the Income-tax Act, 1961 - Income from house property - Chargeable as (Income from other sources v. Income from house property) - Assessment year 2008-09 - Assessee was owner of property wherein she was residing with her husband - She let out said property to her husband and declared rental income as income from house property - Assessing Officer as well as Commissioner held that such an income was to be taxed under head 'income from other sources' - Whether when money received by assessee had been shown by letting out of property, then it had to be taxed 'as income from house property' unless some material was brought on record to controvert said transaction - Held, yes - Whether even otherwise, since department itself in subsequent year had accepted rent received from husband as chargeable to tax under head 'income from house property', amount in question was to be taxed under head 'Income from house property' during relevant year as well - Held, yes [Para 7] [In favour of assessee]

How to e-file return using EVC without sending signed copy of ITR-V?





How to e-file return using EVC without sending signed copy of ITR-V?

Taxpayers filing return of income electronically (without digital signatures) are required to send the signed copy of ITR-V acknowledgement to the CPC, Bengaluru within 120 days of uploading the return. From the Assessment Year 2015-16, an option is given to the taxpayer to file return of income via 'Electronic Verification Code' ('EVC'). In that case, taxpayers shall not be required to send the signed copy of ITR-V to CPC, Bengaluru.
The procedures and modes of filing of return through EVC has been notified by the CBDT. Thus, taxpayers can now file their return without worrying about sending copy of ITR-V acknowledgment to the CPC, Bengaluru. The new procedure is as under:
I. Verification of person via EVC
EVC means a code generated for the purpose of electronic verification of the person furnishing the return of income. EVC will be a unique number linked to assessee's PAN. It cannot be used for filing return of income of any other PAN. One EVC can be used to validate one return, irrespective, of assessment year or type of return.
EVC generated via Adhaar Card will be valid only for 10 minutes and in any other case, it will be valid for 72 hours.
II. Who cannot file return via EVC?
(a) Persons, whose accounts are required to be audited under Section 44AB;
(b) Political parties filing their return of income in ITR-7; and
(c) Companies.
III. Modes of generating EVC
Taxpayers can generate EVC by any of the four modes specified hereunder:
(1) Through Net-Banking: Banks registered with Income-tax Dept. are providing direct access to the e-filing website to their account holders. By clicking on e-filing option account holder will be redirected to the e-filing website where he can generate the EVC using "e-File" menu.
EVC generated will be sent to the registered e-mail id and mobile number of taxpayer, which can be used to verify income-tax return.
(2) Through AadhaarNumber: Taxpayers can link their Aadhaar Number with their PAN on e-filing website to generate the EVC. Aadhaar Number can only be linked if the PAN database (i.e., name, DOB and gender) are similar to data available with UIDAI for his Aadhaar number.
Once the Aadhaar Number is linked to PAN, 'one time password' ('OTP') will be generated by UIDAI and sent to the taxpayer's mobile number registered with UIDAI. This Aadhaar based OTP will be the EVC and can be used to verify the income-tax return.
(3) Through ATM:All taxpayers can generate EVC through ATM only if ATM card of taxpayer is linked to PAN validated bank account and bank is also registered with the Income-tax department. Taxpayer can access ATM of registered bank using his Debit/Credit card and thereafter he/she needs to select option of "Generate EVC for Income Tax Return Filing" on ATM screen. The bank will communicate this request to e-filing website which will generate EVC and send the EVC to assessee on his registered mobile number.
(4) Through E-filing Website of Income-tax Dept.: Assessee can also generate EVC by using e-filing website of Income-tax Dept. (i.e., www.incomeindiaefiling.gov.in). However, this facility is available only to the assessee's having total income of Rs. 5 Lakhs or below and who are not claiming Income-tax refund. To use this facility, assessee can visit the e-filing website and select the option 'Generate EVC' from e-File menu. EVC generated will be sent to the registered email ID and mobile number.

Taxability in case of Slump Sale price is equivalent to net worth of firm

No capital gain arose on slump sale as consideration for transfer was equivalent to net worth to transferor-firms


Income-tax Officer-20 (2) (1), Mumbai
v.
P.V. Leela Amma
SANJAY ARORA, ACCOUNTANT MEMBER
AND AMIT SHUKLA, JUDICIAL MEMBER
IT APPEAL NO. 1277 (MUM.) OF 2010
[ASSESSMENT YEAR 2006-07]
NOVEMBER  21, 2014 
Section 50B, read with section 45, of the Income-tax Act, 1961 - Capital gains - Slump sale, cost of acquisition in case of (Capital gains) - Assessment year 2006-07 - Assessee sold three proprietary concerns BF, DC and AI on a going concern basis - Agreements read that 'consideration for purchase of business would amount to Rs. 10,000 subject to adjustment that (a) if final net assets would exceed consideration, consideration would be increased to an amount equal to final net assets and (b) if it is less than consideration, consideration would be reduced to an amount equal to final net assets - Net worth of three firms was an aggregate of Rs. 73 lacs being (+) Rs. 205.29 lakh for BF, (-) Rs. 99.78 lakh for DC and (-) Rs. 32.51 lakh for AI - Whether in instant case assessee had transferred its business carried on through three undertakings in slump sale and provisions of section 50B would apply, there being no finding of any asset or liability of said business as having not been transferred - Held, yes - Whether sale consideration was a single sum of Rs. 78.45 lakh, i.e., combined net worth of all three firms received by assessee in cash being Rs. 73 lakhs along with aggregate cash and bank balance/s of Rs. 5.45 lakh which was not subject to transfer - Held, yes - Whether as this net worth was also deemed as cost of acquisition and/or improvement under section 50B(2), no capital gain would stand to arise - Held, yes [Para 5] [In favour of assessee/Matter remanded]

Friday, July 17, 2015

Tax on Sale of Property by NRI in India

Long-term capital gain from sale of house property by NRI isn't tax free and is liable to TDS under Sec. 195



IT/ILT : Resident-firm which buys house property from NRI cannot escape consequences of non-deduction of TDS u/s 195 from payments to NRI-vendor by claiming that long-term capital gains from sale of house property by NRI are tax-exempt under Chapter-XIIA contrary to the provisions of section 115E especially when NRI himself offered the amount as taxable in his income-tax return and paid tax thereon

■■■


IN THE ITAT HYDERABAD BENCH 'A'

New Vistas Constructions, Hyderabad

v.

Income Tax Officer-II (International Taxation), Hyderabad
P.M. JAGTAP, ACCOUNTANT MEMBER 
AND SAKTIJIT DEY, JUDICIAL MEMBER

IT APPEAL NO. 522 (HYD) OF 2013
[ASSESSMENT YEAR 2009-10]

JULY 15, 2015 

Thursday, July 16, 2015

Services at Income Tax E filing Website


 Central Processing Centre, Bengaluru
The following online services are available at the e-filing website of the Income Tax Department for returns filed electronically (Logon to www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in with your user id and password)
History of e-filed returns
You can view all your e-filed returns by Acknowledgement number, along with all status details like receipt of ITRV, processing status, etc. To view E-Filing history, log on to e-filing –> My Account –> My Returns ⁄ Form.

View Status of Demand ⁄ Refund
The status ⁄ outcome of the processing of your return as refund ⁄ demand along with reasons of refund failure, if any can be viewed at My Account–> Refund ⁄ Demand Status. The refund issued can also be tracked at https://tin.tin.nsdl.com/oltas/refundstatuslogin.html

Details of Outstanding Tax Demand
Details of outstanding tax demand is available at 'E-file' tab –> Response to outstanding demand. A response can be submitted for Agreeing ⁄ Disagreeing to each of the demands along with details at 'E-file' tab –> Response to outstanding demand.

View Form 26 AS Statement
The annual consolidated credit statement, which is provided to the assessee having details of Tax Deducted at Source (TDS), Tax Collected at Source (TCS), Advance Tax ⁄ Self-Assessment Tax ⁄ Refund paid during that year. You can also view your tax payment details in Form 26AS at My Account –> View Form 26AS ( Tax Credit)

Request for Re-issue of Order u/s 143(1) and 154
If the Income Tax Return has been processed at CPC, then an online Request for resend of the Orders u/s 143(1) and 154, can be raised on the e-filing website at My Account –> Request for intimation u/s 143(1) and 154.

Refund Re-issue request
If the Income Tax Return has been processed and refund determined has failed to reach the taxpayer, then an online Request for refund re-issue along with the required information can be raised at My Account –> Refund Reissue request.

File Rectification
You can file a rectification application u/s 154 for e-filed Income Tax Return processed at CPC. To file a rectification go to My account –> Rectification request.

Submit Grievances and Know Status of Grievance
You can register your grievances related to CPC at Helpdesk –> Submit Grievance with respect to ITRV, Processing, Rectification, Refund or Communication, and check the status and view the resolution online.

FAQ
The FAQ document related to services is available for easy reference . Go to Help tab –> FAQs.

Contact Us
For queries and further information on e-filing and CPC, please contact: 
E-filing Call Centre : 1800-4250-0025 (Toll Free)
CPC Call Centre: 1800-425-2229 / 1800-103-4455 (Toll free) or 080-22546500

For more services, Please logon to:
www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in