Guidance Note on Form 6

Form 6 is an Income-tax form used by an assessee claiming deduction under Section 44 or Section 51 of the Income-tax Act, 2025, and is required to be furnished as an audit report certified by an accountant, as mandated under section 44(6) or section 51(7).

Purpose of Form 6: The primary purpose of filing Form 6 is to:

• Furnish an audit report after examination of accounts
• Support claims of deduction under Section 44 (preliminary/project expenditure)
• Support claims of deduction under Section 51 (mineral prospecting and development expenditure)
• Ensure audit-based verification of project costs and expenditure
• Strengthen compliance, transparency, and revenue safeguards

Filing Requirements

(i) Who can file: Any assessee claiming deduction under Section 44 or Section 51 of the Income-tax Act, 2025, other than a company or a co-operative society

(ii) Who must certify the Form: Form 6 must be certified by an accountant as defined under Section 515(3)(b) of the Income-tax Act, 2025 (i.e., a Chartered Accountant in practice with some exceptions).

(iii) When to file: Form 6 must be filed one month prior to the due date for furnishing the return of income for the relevant Tax Year under Section 263(1) of the Income-tax Act, 2025.

(iv) How to file: The Form must be filed electronically through the Income-tax e-Filing Portal and verified using a Digital Signature Certificate (DSC).

Information Required in Form 6

The Form requires the following key information:

(i) Audit Report Section

• Examination of Accounts, Balance Sheet and Profit & Loss Account
• Declaration of true and fair view
• Accountant’s Membership Number
• Unique Document Identification Number (UDIN)
• Firm Registration Number (FRN)

(ii) Section A — Deduction under Section 44

Part A — Particulars of the Assessee

• Name
• PAN
• Address
• Status
• Email ID
• Contact number
• Tax Year

Part B — Business and Deduction Details

• Date of commencement of business
• Nature of deduction (extension or new unit)
• Date of commencement of production/operation
• Qualifying expenditure (feasibility report, project report, market survey, engineering services)
• Legal charges
• Project cost details
• Computation of eligible deduction
• Confirmation of filing Form 5 under Rule 27, if applicable

(iii) Section B — Deduction under Section 51

Part A — Particulars of the Assessee

• Name
• PAN
• Address
• Contact details
• Tax Year

Part B — Mineral and Expenditure Details

• Name of mineral(s)
• Tax Year of commercial production
• Year-wise qualifying expenditure
• Audit date
• Amount of expenditure eligible under Section 51(3) and Section 51(4)

Frequency and Due Date

• Frequency: Form 6 is required to be filed for the first tax year in which the deduction under this section is claimed, under Section 44 or Section 51.
• Due Date: The Form must be furnished one month prior to the due date of filing the return of income for the relevant Tax Year under Section 263(1) of the Income-tax Act, 2025.

Documents Required

• Audited financial statements
• Project / feasibility / engineering reports
• Bills and invoices for qualifying expenditure
• Asset and project cost records
• Mineral prospecting and development records (where applicable)
• Supporting audit working papers
• Proof of PAN and taxpayer identity

Process Flow of Filing

• Assessee compiles financial statements and expenditure records
• Assessee appoints the Accountant on the e-Filing portal for Form 6.
• Accountant certifies the expenditure and the claim as per FN 006
• Accountant uploads Form 6 via their CA login.
• Assessee reviews the uploaded form under the ‘Pending Actions’ worklist.
• Assessee accepts and verifies the Form using DSC/EVC to complete the filing.
• Electronic acknowledgement is generated upon successful verification by the Assessee.
• UDIN has to be generated and updated on the filing portal by the CA

Key Points to Note

• Filing of Form 6 is mandatory for claiming deduction under Section 44 or Section 51
• UDIN is mandatory for audit authentication
• DSC verification is required for valid submission
• Non-filing or incorrect filing may result in disallowance of deduction
• Year-wise expenditure details must be accurately reported where expenses span multiple Tax Years

Outcome Details

• Allowability of Deduction: Form 6 serves as the statutory basis for allowing deductions under Sections 44 and 51.
• System-Based Verification: The filed Form is subject to automated risk checks and backend verification.
• Revenue Assurance: Audit certification strengthens the integrity of deduction claims and minimizes litigation risk.

Challenges and Solutions

The revised Form 6 is designed as a smart e-Form aimed at enhancing compliance through:

• Auto-population of taxpayer details
• Real-time validations and structured data fields
• Standardization of address and identity information
• Integration with audit and deduction workflows

Common Changes across Forms:

• Use of “Tax Year” replacing earlier year references
• Updated section references under the Income-tax Act, 2025
• Strengthened digital verification and audit traceability