Personal salary income under Portuguese matrimonial law remains individual and must be taxed in the earner's hands only.

Salary earned by a spouse married under the Portuguese Civil Code does not constitute communion property for income tax purposes; applying prior authoritative jurisprudence, salary retains the character of personal income and must be assessed in the individual earner's hands rather than being divided between spouses. The operative effect is that salary cannot be apportioned between husband and wife for assessment under the Income tax Act, and appeals or assessments seeking equal division of such salary should be rejected.

---

---

Issues: Whether the salary income earned by an individual married under the Portuguese Civil Code (Goa) is to be divided in equal parts between the spouses for the purpose of assessment under the Income-tax Act.

Analysis: Prior jurisprudence of the jurisdictional Bombay High Court and the Tribunal established that income from property, business and profession arising from communion of property under the Portuguese Civil Code is to be treated as divisible between spouses and assessed in their respective hands. The question of salary income was considered separately and, in a recent decision of the Bombay High Court, it was held that salary is an individual income which does not assume the character of communion property under the Portuguese Civil Code and therefore is not divisible between spouses for income-tax assessment. Applying that authoritative ruling to the present facts, the salary earned by the assessee cannot be treated as part of the communion and split between husband and wife for assessment purposes.

Conclusion: Salary income is taxable in the individual hands of the earner and not to be divided equally between spouses; the appeal is dismissed (against the assessee).

Ratio Decidendi: Salary earned by an individual married under the Portuguese Civil Code remains personal income and does not become communion property for the purpose of income-tax assessment, and therefore must be assessed in the hands of the individual earner only.

---