Existing provisions of sub-section (1) of section 139 provide that every person referred to therein shall file a return of income on or before the due date. The sixth proviso to the said section provides that every person, being an individual or Hindu undivided family or an association of person or a body of individual, whether incorporated or not or any artificial juridical person, if his total income or of any other person in respect of which he is assessable under this Act during the previous year, without giving effect to provisions of section 10A or section 10B or section 10BA or Chapter VI-A, exceeds the maximum amount which is not chargeable to income tax shall be liable to furnish return on or before the due date.
Existing provision of sub-section (4) of section 139 provides that a person who has not furnished a return within the time allowed to him under sub-section (1), or within the time allowed under a notice issued under sub-section (1) of section 142, may furnish the return for any previous year at any time before the expiry of one year from the end of the relevant assessment year or before the completion of the assessment, whichever is earlier.
Sub-section (5) of the section 139 provides that if any person, having furnished the return under sub-section (1), or in pursuance of a notice issued under sub-section (1) of section 142 discovers any omission or any wrong statement therein, he may furnish a revised return at any time before one year from the end of the relevant assessment year or completion of assessment, whichever is earlier.
Clause (aa) of Explanation to sub-section (9) of the section 139 provides that a return of income shall be regarded as defective unless the self-assessment tax together with interest, if any, payable in accordance with the provisions of section 140A, has been paid on or before the date of furnishing of return.
In order to rationalise the time allowed for fi ling of returns, completion of proceedings, and realization of revenue without undue compliance burden on the taxpayer, and to promote the culture of compliance, it is proposed to amend the above provisions of the Act.
It is proposed to amend the sixth proviso to sub-section (1) of the section 139 to include that if a person during the previous year earns income which is exempt under clause (38) of section 10 and income of such person without giving effect to the said clause of section 10 exceeds the maximum amount which is not chargeable to tax, shall also be liable to fi le return of income for the previous year within the due date.
It is also proposed to substitute sub-section (4) of the aforesaid section to provide that any person who has not furnished a return within the time allowed to him under sub-section (1), may furnish the return for any previous year at any time before the end of the relevant assessment year or before the completion of the assessment, whichever is earlier.
It is also proposed to substitute sub-section (5) of the aforesaid section so as to provide that if any person, having furnished a return under sub-section (1) or under sub-section (4), or in a return furnished in response to notice issued under sub-section (1) of section 142, discovers any omission or any wrong statement therein, he may furnish a revised return at any time before the expiry of one year from the end of the relevant assessment year or before the completion of the assessment,
whichever is earlier.
It is also proposed to omit clause (aa) of the Explanation to sub-section (9) of aforesaid section to provide that a return which is otherwise valid would not be treated defective merely because self-assessment tax and interest payable in accordance with the provisions of section 140A has not been paid on or before the date of furnishing of the return.
These amendments will take effect from 1st day of April, 2017 and will, accordingly apply in relation to assessment year 2017-2018 and subsequent years.