Amendment in the provisions of section 248 of Income-tax Act and insertion of new section 239A

Withholding tax refund procedure now allows the payer to seek refund from the Assessing Officer, with appellate review.

A new provision allows a person who deducted and bore tax under an agreement, where no deduction was required, to apply to the Assessing Officer for refund; the Assessing Officer may examine the underlying agreement, and the applicant may appeal the Assessing Officer's order to the Commissioner (Appeals). The previous route under section 248 will not apply for payments on or after the appointed date, effecting a procedural shift to assessment stage review.