Section 429 — Fee for default relating to statement or certificate. Successor to s.234G of the 1961 Act.
Section 429 is in Chapter XIX — Collection and Recovery of Tax, which runs from section 390 to section 430.
Sub-section (1) imposes a fee, without prejudice to the other provisions of the Act, in two cases. Clause (a) covers a research association, University, college or other institution referred to in section 45(3)(a), or a company referred to in section 45(3)(b), that fails to deliver the documents prescribed in section 45(4)(a) within the time prescribed there, or to furnish a certificate as may be prescribed under that provision. Clause (b) covers an institution or fund that fails to deliver a statement under section 354(1)(e) within the time prescribed, or to furnish a certificate as may be prescribed under section 354(1)(g). In either case the person is liable to pay, by way of fee, Rs. 200 for every day during which the failure continues.
Sub-section (2) limits and times the fee: it shall not exceed the amount in respect of which the failure has occurred, and it shall be paid before delivering the statement or before furnishing the certificate referred to in sub-section (1).
The statements and certificates in sections 45 and 354 are what allow a donor's or payer's claim to be verified, so a delay frustrates the reporting system rather than the filer. A daily fee running until the default is cured presses for compliance without a penalty proceeding, and the cap keeps it proportionate to the amount that went unreported.
| What | Figure | The condition on it | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rate of fee | Rs. 200 for every day during which the failure continues | Failure to deliver the prescribed documents or statement within the prescribed time, or to furnish the prescribed certificate, under section 45(4)(a) or section 354(1)(e) and (g) | Sub-section (1), closing words |
| Cap on the fee | Not exceeding the amount in respect of which the failure has occurred | Applies to the aggregate fee computed at Rs. 200 per day | Sub-section (2)(a) |
| When the fee must be paid | Before delivering the statement or furnishing the certificate | Applies to the statement or certificate referred to in sub-section (1) | Sub-section (2)(b) |
The fee runs per day until the failure ends, so its size is a function of delay. The ceiling is measured against the amount in respect of which the failure occurred — not against the fee and not against income — so a small unreported amount limits the fee even after a long delay. The practical condition is clause (b): the fee must be paid before the statement is delivered or the certificate furnished, so curing the default means settling the fee first. "Without prejudice to the provisions of this Act" means paying it does not displace any other consequence.
An institution required to deliver the statement under section 354(1)(e) delivers it 60 days late. The fee is Rs. 200 a day for 60 days, that is Rs. 12000, payable before the statement is delivered. If the amount in respect of which the failure occurred is only Rs. 9000, sub-section (2)(a) caps the fee at Rs. 9000.
You meet this section at the point of curing a late filing: the fee has to be paid before the statement under section 354(1)(e) or the documents under section 45(4)(a) can be delivered, or the certificate furnished. It is payable by the reporting institution or company, not by a donor or payee.
it shall be liable to pay, by way of fee, a sum of Rs. 200 for every day during which the failure continues
not exceed the amount in respect of which the failure referred to therein has occurred
be paid before delivering or causing to be delivered the statement or before furnishing the certificate referred to in sub-section (1)
See the full 1961 to 2025 concordance.