Interest payable by the assessee under section 220

     The existing provision contained in sub-section (1) of section 220 provides that any amount specified as payable in a notice of demand under section 156 shall be paid within thirty days of the service of notice at the place and to the person mentioned in the notice. Sub-section (2) states that if the amount specified in the notice is not paid within the period, the assessee shall be liable to pay simple interest at one per cent for every month or part of a month comprised in the period commencing from the day immediately following the end of the period mentioned in sub-section (1) and ending with the day on which the amount is paid. The proviso to sub-section (2) states that where as a result of an order under sections 154, 155, 250, 254, 260, 262, 264 or sub-section (4) of section 245D, the amount on which interest payable under this section had been reduced, the interest shall be reduced accordingly and the excess interest paid, if any, shall be refunded.

     Liability of the assessee to pay interest is based on the theory of continuity of the proceedings and the doctrine of relation back. Accordingly, it is proposed to insert a new sub-section in section 220 so as to provide that where any notice of demand has been served upon an assessee and any appeal or other proceeding, as the case may be, is filed or initiated in respect of the amount specified in the said notice of demand, then such demand shall be deemed to be valid till the disposal of appeal by the last appellate authority or disposal of proceedings, as the case may be and such notice of demand shall have effect as provided in section 3 of the Taxation Laws (Continuation and Validation of Recovery Proceedings) Act, 1964.

     It is further proposed to provide that where as a result of an order under sections specified in the first proviso, the amount on which interest was payable under this section had been reduced and subsequently as a result of an order under said sections or section 263, the amount on which interest was payable under section 220 is increased, the assessee shall be liable to pay interest under sub-section (2) of the said section on the amount payable as a result of such order, from the day immediately following the end of the period mentioned in the first notice of demand referred to in sub section (1) of the said section and ending with the day on which the amount is paid.

     These amendments will take effect from the 1st day of October, 2014.

[Clause 62]

Continuity of proceedings: demand remains valid during appeals and interest liability follows subsequent variation orders accordingly. The proposal deems a notice of demand to remain valid during the pendency of any appeal or proceeding in respect of the specified amount, enabling the demand to operate under the continuity principle and validation framework; where earlier orders reduce and later orders increase the amount on which interest was payable, the assessee must pay interest on the increased amount from the day after the original notice period ended until payment.