Centralised processing centre authorised to receive and decide charitable registration applications and issue or cancel unique registration numbers.
The Central Board of Direct Taxes authorises the Director of Income Tax (Centralized Processing Centre), Bengaluru to receive applications for provisional registration, registration, provisional approval or approval; to pass orders granting provisional registration or approval; to issue Unique Registration Numbers (URN); and to cancel approvals and URNs under the relevant Income tax Rules, with effect from the date of notification.

Double Taxation Agreement allocates taxing rights, limits withholding on cross border income, and provides MAP and information exchange.
The Central Government notifies that the Agreement between India and Iran for avoidance of double taxation and prevention of fiscal evasion on income taxes has entered into force and shall be given effect in India. The Agreement applies to residents and to taxes on income, establishes residence and permanent establishment rules (including thresholds for construction and services), allocates taxing rights for business profits, immovable property, dividends, interest, royalties and fees for technical services with limited source taxation subject to effective-connection exceptions, and provides mutual agreement, exchange of information and a principal-purpose entitlement-to-benefits rule; the Protocol clarifies fiscal year definitions and implementation details.

Revision of tax audit report allowed where post-filing payments require recalculation of disallowances, revised report to be furnished timely.
A new sub-rule permits revision of the tax audit report by furnishing a revised auditor's report, signed and verified, before the end of the relevant assessment year where payments made after initial filing necessitate recalculation of disallowances under provisions governing deductible expenditures and timing of deduction. Concurrently, Form 3CD is amended to require disclosures about opting for specified taxation regimes, detailed reporting of undervalued property transfers with a tabular format, adjustments to written down value including exclusion of goodwill, and a restructured schedule for brought forward losses and depreciation reflecting adjustments linked to opting into alternative tax regimes.

Cessation of Settlement Commission office holders to cease on notified date, with limited compensation entitlement.
The amendment inserts a proviso in rule 7 providing that any person appointed as Chairman, Vice-Chairman or Member holding office immediately before a date to be notified shall, on and from such date, cease to hold such office and shall be entitled to claim compensation not exceeding three months' pay and allowances for premature termination of their term. The amendment is retrospective to 1st February, 2021 pursuant to a Finance Bill provision that the Settlement Commission shall cease to operate on or after that date.

Renaming to National Faceless Assessment Centre updates statutory nomenclature under Income-tax Act and takes effect April first.
An amendment substitutes the expression National e-Assessment Centre with National Faceless Assessment Centre in the notification issued under the exercise of powers conferred by sub-section (6C) of section 250 of the Income-tax Act, thereby altering the official nomenclature used in the statutory scheme for centralised electronic assessment and operates to change terminology wherever the prior expression appeared.

Faceless Appeal Scheme renames National e-Assessment Centre to National Faceless Assessment Centre and updates scheme terminology.
The amendment substitutes clause (xviii) in the Faceless Appeal Scheme, 2020 to define the National Faceless Assessment Centre as the body previously termed National e-Assessment Centre or as referenced elsewhere, and directs that every occurrence of "National e-Assessment Centre" in the principal scheme be replaced by "National Faceless Assessment Centre", with the amendment taking effect on the stated commencement date.

Prescribed Income tax Authority designation enables NaFAC officer to issue assessment notices under the income tax assessment provision.
The Assistant Commissioner of Income-tax/Deputy Commissioner of Income-tax (NaFAC) at Delhi is authorised as the Prescribed Income-tax Authority to issue the notice under sub-section (2) of section 143 of the Income-tax Act in respect of returns furnished under section 139 or in response to notices under sub-section (1) of section 142 or sub-section (1) of section 148; the notification is effective from 1 April 2021.

Authorisation of Regional Faceless Assessment Centres to exercise concurrent income-tax powers and delegate to subordinate officers.
Designated Principal Commissioners of Income-tax of the Regional Faceless Assessment Centre (Verification Unit) are authorised under section 120 (sub-sections (1), (2) and (5)) read with section 133C and rule 12D to act as Prescribed Authority with concurrent powers for specified territorial areas, persons, cases or incomes; Principal Commissioners may delegate these powers in writing to Additional/Joint Commissioners, who may further delegate to Deputy/Assistant Commissioners or Income-tax Officers within the Schedule's territorial and subject-matter limits based on information held by the Directorate of Income-tax (Systems).

Regional Faceless Assessment Centres exercise concurrent Assessing Officer powers for faceless assessments nationwide, subject to specified exclusions.
The Central Board of Direct Taxes directs specified Income tax Authorities of Regional Faceless Assessment Centres (ReFACs) to exercise, concurrently, the powers and functions of Assessing Officers to facilitate faceless assessment proceedings under Section 144B in respect of all persons, incomes and cases within India, excluding those covered by Notification No. 57/2014 and Notification No. 70/2014; a Schedule lists the ReFACs and their headquarters. The notification is effective 1 April 2021.

Faceless assessment jurisdiction extended: NaFAC authorities empowered to act as Assessing Officers for specified cases nationwide.
The Central Board of Direct Taxes directs that the Income-tax Authorities of the National Faceless Assessment Centre specified in the Schedule shall exercise the powers and functions of an Assessing Officer concurrently to facilitate conduct of Faceless Assessment proceedings under section 144B in respect of persons, classes of persons, incomes, classes of incomes or cases across India, excluding those covered by Notification No.57/2014 and No.70/2014.

Income-tax rules: new ITR forms prescribed for AY 2021-22; eligibility expanded to include 194N TDS and deferred tax cases.
The Income-tax (7th Amendment) Rules, 2021 amend Rule 12 effective 1 April 2021 to add persons whose tax has been deducted under section 194N and persons with deferred payment or deduction of tax under employer/payer deferment provisions to the return filing provisos, and substitute revised ITR forms (SAHAJ/ITR 1, ITR 2, ITR 3, SUGAM/ITR 4, ITR 5, ITR 6, ITR 7 and ITR V) in Appendix II for Assessment Year 2021 22 onwards.

Time-limit extension for income-tax and finance-act compliance; notices, sanctions and Aadhaar intimation deadlines moved forward.
The notification modifies prior relief by extending statutory time-limits: for certain Income-tax Act actions-orders under the dispute-resolution provision, issuance of reassessment notices and sanctions to initiate reassessment-the original end date in late March is fixed and the time-limit is extended to the end of April, applying the pre-2021 finance-act versions of the relevant income-tax provisions for reassessment notices and sanctions. The Aadhaar intimation requirement to the prescribed authority is extended to the end of June. Comparable March-to-April extension applies to specified intimation obligations under Chapter VIII of the Finance Act.

Income tax rules amendment mandates electronic Form filings, URN issuance for approvals, and annual donor reporting.
The 2021 amendments revise Rules 2C, 5C, 5F, 11AA, 17A and insert Rules 5CA and 18AB to require prescribed electronic applications (Forms 10A, 10AB, 3CF) for registration/approval/intimation, attach specified self certified documents, verification under section 140, issuance of a sixteen digit URN on grant of approval (Forms 10AC/10AD), cancellation procedures for false or incomplete filings after hearing, and system administration by the Principal Director General/Director General of Income tax (Systems). Rule 18AB mandates annual electronic donor reporting in Form 10BD and donor certificates in Form 10BE with timelines and correction procedures.

Determination of taxable proportion for payments to non-residents: certificate allows withholding based on assessed chargeability and DTAA.
Rule 29BA requires the payer to file Form 15E electronically to obtain a certificate under section 195(2) or 195(7) for determining the appropriate proportion of non-salary payments chargeable in the hands of a non-resident. The Assessing Officer must examine chargeability under the Income-tax Act and any applicable DTAA, consider specified financial particulars of the recipient, and may issue a person and period specific certificate determining the taxable proportion for deduction under section 195(1). Procedures, security and document standards for electronic filing and certificate issuance are to be prescribed by the tax systems authority.

Income-tax notification amendment updates North East Region headquarters designation and appellate authority, effective retrospectively to implement administrative order.
This amendment substitutes the Schedule entry for serial number 10 to designate the Principal Chief Commissioner of Income-tax, North East Region, headquartered at Guwahati, and identifies the Commissioner of Income-tax (Appeal) (Central), North East Region, Guwahati, as the relevant income-tax authority; the change is given retrospective effect to implement an administrative office order reallocating an existing post and is certified as not adversely affecting any person's interest.

Statement of financial transactions mandated for pre-filling returns, covering capital gains, dividend and interest reporting.
The amendment to rule 114E adds sub-rule (5A) requiring furnishing of a statement of financial transaction for pre-filling returns, reporting capital gains on listed securities or mutual fund units, dividend income, and interest income in such form, frequency and manner as specified by the Principal Director General/Director General of Income Tax (Systems) with Board approval; it lists classes of reporting persons for each transaction and supplies related definitions.

Perquisite valuation and reporting: revised Form 12BA, Form 16 Part B and Annexure II strengthen employer disclosure obligations.
The notification substitutes Form No.12BA and revises Part B of Form No.16 and Annexure II of Form No.24Q to require employers to itemize and value perquisites and profits in lieu of salary, report amounts recovered, compute perquisites chargeable to tax, declare director/substantial interest status, and provide employer certification that entries are true. The revised formats align gross salary components, exemptions under section 10, deductions under section 16, Chapter VI-A deductions, taxable income and tax liability reporting, and require disclosure of tax deducted and tax paid on behalf of the employee.

Addition of Central Income-tax Commissioner post: new Guwahati position effective retrospectively to implement staff diversion.
Amendment inserts Principal Commissioner / Commissioner of Income-tax (Central), Guwahati as entry (xv) in Schedule I against serial number 9, renumbers subsequent column (4) entries accordingly, and declares the notification to be retrospective with effect from 3rd January, 2020 to give effect to an Office Order for diversion of an existing post.

Application of section 9A: procedural alignment with rule 10VA, with a limited timing exception for transitional filings.
The rules amend rule 10V to provide that applications under the second proviso to sub rule (12) will be governed, mutatis mutandis, by sub rules (3) to (12) of rule 10VA, while creating a temporal exception that exempts sub rule (3) of rule 10VA for applications concerning the specified previous year filed within the prescribed transitional period.

Section 35 approval for research institution enables tax deduction eligibility for scientific and social science research expenditures.
Approval under clauses (ii) and (iii) of sub section (1) of section 35 read with rules 5C and 5E grants M/s Bennett University, Greater Noida the status of a University, College or other institution for scientific research and research in social science and statistical research. The notification deems the approval to apply from the specified assessment year and to continue for the subsequent assessment years listed, and the explanatory memorandum certifies no person is adversely affected by retrospective effect.