Tribunal rules late fee charges under Income Tax Act should apply prospectively

The Tribunal allowed the appeals against the CIT(A) orders regarding the levy of late fees under section 234E of the Income Tax Act for the Assessment Years 2013-14 to 2015-16. The appellant's belated filing of TDS statements led to the imposition of late fees by the Central Processing Centre. The Tribunal found that the late fee charges should be deleted as the amendment introducing late fees under section 234E from 01.06.2015 should only apply prospectively. As a result, the late fee charges were removed for the mentioned assessment years.

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Issues Involved:
The judgment involves the appeal against three orders of CIT(A) under section 250 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 for the Assessment Years 2013-14 to 2015-16, focusing on the levy of late fee under section 234E of the Act.

Issue 1 - Levy of Late Fee under Section 234E:
The appellant filed TDS statements belatedly for the fourth quarter for the mentioned assessment years, resulting in the Central Processing Centre levying late fees under section 234E of the Act. The appellant appealed the CIT(A)'s decision confirming the levy of late fees.

Issue 2 - Judicial Interpretation and Prospective Application:
The appellant argued against the levy of late fees, citing various judicial pronouncements that the amendment introducing late fees under section 234E of the Act from 01.06.2015 should only be prospective and not retrospective. The Tribunal considered these judicial decisions in favor of the appellant.

The judgment addressed the common issues raised in the appeals against the CIT(A) orders regarding the levy of late fees under section 234E of the Income Tax Act. The appellant had filed TDS statements belatedly for the mentioned assessment years, leading to the imposition of late fees by the Central Processing Centre. The CIT(A) dismissed the appeals, stating they were against a reminder issued by the ITO(TDS) and not the order under section 200A of the Act. The Tribunal found that there was no intimation served under section 200A to the appellant for the relevant assessment years. The CIT(A) was criticized for not deciding the cases on merits and dismissing them summarily.

Regarding the merits of the case, the Tribunal referred to judicial pronouncements establishing that the amendment introducing late fees under section 234E from 01.06.2015 should apply prospectively. Citing specific cases, the Tribunal concluded that the late fee charges under section 234E for the mentioned assessment years should be deleted in favor of the appellant. Consequently, the appeals filed by the assessee were allowed, and the late fee charges were removed for the mentioned assessment years.

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