Topic
Search assessment under the Income Tax Act, 1961, refers to tax reassessment initiated after a search and seizure by tax authorities, governed by Sections 147, 153A, and 153D.
The ITAT Delhi held that satisfaction recorded after 1 April 2021 invalidates a Section 153C search assessment, mandating reassessment under Section 148 instead. The ruling clarifies the procedural switch introduced by the Finance Act 2021 amendment, directly impacting assessees and tax authorities in search-related proceedings.
ITAT Jaipur rules that penalties in search cases must be levied under Section 271AAB of the Income Tax Act, 1961, not Section 271(1)(c). The ruling clarifies the correct penalty framework for undisclosed income detected during search assessments, impacting taxpayers facing similar proceedings.
The ITAT Delhi has ruled that for non-searched persons under Section 153C, the ten-year assessment block begins when the Assessing Officer receives seized documents - not from the date of the original search. This clarifies jurisdictional limits and protects taxpayers from retrospective assessments based on delayed document transfers, impacting thousands of pending cases involving third-party seizures.
ITAT Delhi rules that assessments for the three years preceding a Section 132 search must be conducted under Section 147, not Section 143(3), invalidating regular assessments in such cases. The decision reinforces statutory interpretation over procedural discretion, impacting tax reassessment proceedings post-search.
ITAT Delhi rules that a combined approval under Section 153D for multiple assessment years renders search-based assessments invalid. The decision reinforces procedural compliance as jurisdictional, impacting all search assessments requiring individual approvals.
ITAT Delhi quashed an assessment order where the JCIT's approval under Section 153D was mechanical, lacked application of mind, and omitted mandatory DIN compliance. The ruling reinforces that digital evidence protocols and natural justice principles must govern search assessments to prevent arbitrary tax proceedings.
ITAT Delhi rules that net profit calculations in search assessments under Section 143(3) must rely on actual figures from seized documents, rejecting uniform gross profit estimates. The decision reinforces that expense deductions require concrete evidence, not presumptive additions, impacting undisclosed income assessments for businesses.
ITAT Delhi holds that search-based assessments must be framed under Section 153A, not Section 143(3), when the last panchnama is dated in the subsequent financial year.
ITAT Delhi holds that failure to appear before CIT(A) in search assessment cases does not justify ex parte orders; remand with cost imposition ensures fair adjudication.
ITAT Delhi holds that unsigned, unwitnessed agreement to sell recovered during search lacks evidentiary value for adding unaccounted cash income under Section 153C.
ITAT Delhi holds that under Section 153A, the Rs.50 lakh threshold for extended assessment applies to cumulative undisclosed income, not per assessment year, clarifying jurisdictional limits.