Foreign Tax Credit cannot be denied solely for delayed Form 67 filing where treaty relief is otherwise admissible.

Delay in filing Form No. 67 did not, by itself, defeat entitlement to Foreign Tax Credit where the underlying treaty-based relief was otherwise admissible. The Tribunal held that rule 128(9) is directory, not mandatory, and does not prescribe disallowance of credit solely for late filing; the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement prevails to the extent beneficial and cannot be curtailed by a procedural rule. The denial of Foreign Tax Credit on the ground of delayed filing was therefore not justified, and the claim was allowed.

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Issues: Whether the denial of Foreign Tax Credit for delay in filing Form No. 67 beyond the due date under section 139(1) was justified.

Analysis: The claim for Foreign Tax Credit was rejected solely because Form No. 67 was not filed within the time prescribed under rule 128(9). The Tribunal followed its coordinate bench view that rule 128(9) does not prescribe disallowance of credit for delayed filing, that filing of Form No. 67 is a directory requirement and not a mandatory condition defeating the substantive entitlement to credit, and that the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement prevails to the extent beneficial and cannot be curtailed by a contrary procedural rule.

Conclusion: The denial of Foreign Tax Credit on the ground of delayed filing of Form No. 67 was not justified, and the claim was allowed in favour of the assessee.

Ratio Decidendi: Delay in furnishing Form No. 67 does not, by itself, extinguish the entitlement to Foreign Tax Credit where the underlying treaty-based relief is otherwise admissible and the rule prescribing the form is only directory.

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