D. Widening and deepening of tax base

Rationalization of provisions of section 206AB and 206CCA to widen and deepen tax-base

In order to widen and deepen the tax-base and to nudge taxpayers to furnish their return of income, Finance Act, 2021 inserted sections 206AB and 206CCA in the Act. The said sections provide for special provision for deduction and collection of tax at source respectively, in case of specified persons at higher rates specified therein.

2. “Specified person” has been defined to mean a person who has not filed the returns of income for both the two assessment years relevant to the two previous years immediately preceding the financial year in which tax is required to be deducted or collected, for which the time limit for filing return of income under sub-section (1) of section 139 has expired; and the aggregate of tax deducted at source and tax collected at source in his case is rupees fifty thousand or more in each of these two previous years. Government has provided online utility to taxpayers to check whether the person is specified person or not.

3. Further, the provisions of section 206AB are not applicable in relation to transactions on which tax is to be deducted under sections 192, 192A, 194B, 194BB, 194LBC or 194N of the Act.

4. In order to ensure that all the persons in whose case significant amount of tax has been deducted do furnish their return of income, it is proposed to reduce two years requirement to one year by amending sections 206AB and 206CCA of the Act to provide that “specified person” to mean as a person who has not filed its return of income for the assessment year relevant to the previous year immediately preceding the financial year in which tax is to be deducted or collected, as the case may be, and the amount of tax collected and deducted at source is ₹ 50,000 or more in the said previous year.

5. However, in order to reduce the additional burden on individual and Hindu undivided family (HUF) taxpayers covered under section 194-IA, 194-IB and 194M of the Act for whom simplified tax deduction system has been provided without requirement of TAN, it is proposed that the provisions of section 206AB will not apply in relation to transactions on which tax is to be deducted under the said sections of the Act.

6. In addition to above, it is also proposed to rectify a drafting error in sections 206AB and 206CCA wherein the terms “deductor” and “collectee” respectively were used incorrectly. Further, since the returns are now being furnished electronically, it is also proposed that in place of ‘filing’ of return, the term ‘furnishing’ of return may be substituted.

7. Further, as a consequential amendment in section 194-IB it is also proposed to omit the reference of section 206AB from sub-section (4) of the said section.

8. These amendments will take effect from 1st April, 2022.

[Clauses 57, 61 and 63]