Foreign Tax Credit cannot be denied merely for delayed Form 67 filing when treaty relief otherwise applies.

Belated filing of Form No. 67 did not disentitle an assessee from claiming Foreign Tax Credit under section 90 read with the applicable DTAA. The Tribunal held that Rule 128(9) prescribes the manner and timing of filing the form, but does not authorise denial of credit solely because the form was filed after the due date under section 139(1). It treated the requirement as procedural and directory, not mandatory, and ruled that treaty-based entitlement to credit cannot be defeated by that lapse. The DTAA was applied to the extent beneficial to the assessee, and the Foreign Tax Credit claim was accepted.

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Issues: Whether belated filing of Form No. 67 disentitles the assessee from claiming Foreign Tax Credit under section 90 of the Income-tax Act, 1961 read with the applicable DTAA.

Analysis: The Tribunal followed its coordinate bench view that Rule 128(9) of the Income-tax Rules, 1962 prescribes the manner and timing of filing Form No. 67 but does not provide for disallowance of Foreign Tax Credit merely because the form was filed after the due date under section 139(1) of the Income-tax Act, 1961. It held that the requirement is procedural and directory, not mandatory, and that the treaty-based entitlement to credit cannot be defeated by a procedural lapse. The Tribunal also held that the DTAA prevails to the extent it is beneficial to the assessee and that the claim could not be rejected on the sole ground of delayed filing of Form No. 67.

Conclusion: Belated filing of Form No. 67 did not justify denial of Foreign Tax Credit, and the assessee's claim was accepted.

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