I-T dept to change the way it communicates, be friendlier
Non-Threatening SMS, Not Scary Notices, To Be First Response
Sidhartha & Rajeev Deshpande TNN
New Delhi:18.08.2019
In a significant change in approach, notices will not be the first response of tax authorities to individuals and companies with regard to queries relating to expenditure or information that may have skipped a taxpayer’s attention or was omitted while filing returns.
The income-tax (I-T) department is set to adopt ‘nonthreatening’ language that asks whether an expense has been accounted for or not rather than the more intimidating officialese that quotes I-T sections under which a notice has been issued. With data mining being systems-driven, authorities are working on ways to ensure the department makes information — such as large-cash deposits or high-value transactions available to taxpayers well in time for filing of tax returns.
This, sources told TOI, can be done using tools such as text messages to taxpayers, much like those related to tax deducted at source (TDS) deposits.
On the lines of reminders for filing returns, messages could point to transactions while stating that they be ignored if accounted for. “We can tell people if TDS is due and if it has been deposited or not so that they can also take it up with the depositor,” explained an official.
Officials advised to approach taxpayers only if they detect major discrepancy
The proposed changes are part of an overall strategy to position the I-T department as a non-adversarial agency amid repeated concerns that authorities often deal with issues in an intrusive and arbitrary manner. On Friday, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman and revenue secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey met senior income tax and indirect tax officers in Ahmedabad, where the minister underlined the need for a mindset change and pushed for faceless assessment by relying on technology.
Some of the proposed changes will also require changes in the current processes and technology so that information on large property transactions, foreign exchange remittances and cash deposits and withdrawals can be made available faster, much like the system for GST. Currently, information from property registration agencies flows after a lag and often a tax demand is raised after two years.
Tax officials are being advised to approach taxpayers only if they detect major discrepancy or find concrete evidence. But even then, the first option should not be to issue a notice. Instead, the idea is to give taxpayers time to rectify the mistake, which may be due to oversight.
Even the language of communication regarding filing of tax returns and verification is proposed to be reviewed so that the department does not intimidate taxpayers. For instance, a simple mail saying “intimation under Section 143
(1)” of the Income Tax Act often spooks taxpayers until they read it to realise that it is about preliminary assessment of all returns. Authorities are revising such communications to see if they can be simpler and do not create any confusion or apprehensions.
Non-Threatening SMS, Not Scary Notices, To Be First Response
Sidhartha & Rajeev Deshpande TNN
New Delhi:18.08.2019
In a significant change in approach, notices will not be the first response of tax authorities to individuals and companies with regard to queries relating to expenditure or information that may have skipped a taxpayer’s attention or was omitted while filing returns.
The income-tax (I-T) department is set to adopt ‘nonthreatening’ language that asks whether an expense has been accounted for or not rather than the more intimidating officialese that quotes I-T sections under which a notice has been issued. With data mining being systems-driven, authorities are working on ways to ensure the department makes information — such as large-cash deposits or high-value transactions available to taxpayers well in time for filing of tax returns.
This, sources told TOI, can be done using tools such as text messages to taxpayers, much like those related to tax deducted at source (TDS) deposits.
On the lines of reminders for filing returns, messages could point to transactions while stating that they be ignored if accounted for. “We can tell people if TDS is due and if it has been deposited or not so that they can also take it up with the depositor,” explained an official.
The proposed changes are part of an overall strategy to position the I-T department as a non-adversarial agency amid repeated concerns that authorities often deal with issues in an intrusive and arbitrary manner. On Friday, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman and revenue secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey met senior income tax and indirect tax officers in Ahmedabad, where the minister underlined the need for a mindset change and pushed for faceless assessment by relying on technology.
Some of the proposed changes will also require changes in the current processes and technology so that information on large property transactions, foreign exchange remittances and cash deposits and withdrawals can be made available faster, much like the system for GST. Currently, information from property registration agencies flows after a lag and often a tax demand is raised after two years.
Tax officials are being advised to approach taxpayers only if they detect major discrepancy or find concrete evidence. But even then, the first option should not be to issue a notice. Instead, the idea is to give taxpayers time to rectify the mistake, which may be due to oversight.
Even the language of communication regarding filing of tax returns and verification is proposed to be reviewed so that the department does not intimidate taxpayers. For instance, a simple mail saying “intimation under Section 143
(1)” of the Income Tax Act often spooks taxpayers until they read it to realise that it is about preliminary assessment of all returns. Authorities are revising such communications to see if they can be simpler and do not create any confusion or apprehensions.
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