Restriction on deduction for specified domestic transactions removes arm's length deduction and subjects payments to disallowance rules.
The Finance Bill 2017 amends section 40A to withdraw automatic deductibility for payments under specified domestic transactions made at Arm's Length Price; such payments are now subject to the disallowance rules of section 40A(2). The amendment also alters the proviso to clause (a) of sub section (2) consequential to the transfer pricing provision, aligning domestic specified transaction treatment with the transfer pricing framework and applying retrospectively as provided in the Bill.

Restriction on cash payments: non banked payments above the prescribed limit are nondeductible and may be taxable.
Amendment lowers the cash payment threshold for deductibility from twenty thousand rupees to ten thousand rupees per person per day and requires payments above that limit to be made by account payee cheque, account payee bank draft, or electronic clearing through a bank account; amounts paid otherwise will be disallowed as deductions or deemed to be profits and gains of business or profession. Consequential changes to related sub provisions are also proposed, effective 1 April 2018 for the relevant assessment year.