Sections 139 to 156
Circular No. 307 was issued by the Central Board of Direct Taxes on 23 June 1981. Its subject is Sections 139 to 156.
Goes back to the old practice on supplying return forms. Circular No. 296, dated 31-3-1981, as amended by Circular No. 297, dated 10-4-1981, had required the Department to send two copies of the return form on its own to every assessee on its register with income above the taxable limit; that direction is superseded. Forms will continue to be supplied across the counter at Income-tax Offices and through selected post offices, may be sent in bulk to the head of a department or the public relations officer of an organisation for distribution to salaried employees, and are to be sent expeditiously by post to any assessee who asks for one.
The Commissioners' Conference of 1981 pointed out that practitioners already take forms in bulk for their clients, that posting forms to every assessee would cost much labour and money and often duplicate what was already available, and that wrong forms might be sent; an income-tax practitioners association also asked for the instruction to be modified.
SECTIONS 139 TO 156
Procedure for assessment
SECTION 139 l RETURN OF INCOME
Sending blank return forms by post to all taxpayers existing on registers of department - Instructions in Circular Nos. 296 and 297 withdrawn
1. Reference is invited to Board’s Circular No. 296 [F. No. 220/3/81-IT (A-II)], dated 31-3-1981 as amended by its Circular No. 297 [F. No. 220/3/81-IT (A-II)], dated 10-4-1981 [Annex I and Annex II] in which it was desired that two copies of return forms should be sent by the department on its own to all assessees on the register of the department having income above taxable limit.
2. This matter has been discussed in the Commissioner’s Conference, 1981 and it was pointed out that in addition to supply of return forms across the counters in the Income-tax Offices and their distribution through selected post offices, the return forms are taken in bulk by the income-tax practitioners for their clients. It was also pointed out that sending of return forms to all the assessees on its own may involve a lot of labour and money which in many cases may amount to duplication as well. Further, there is likelihood of sending wrong forms also to the assessees. An income-tax practitioners association has also suggested that the instructions referred to in para 1 should be modified. The matter has therefore, been reconsidered and it is decided to revert to the old practice. It is also decided that return forms may be sent to the head of the department or the Public Relations Officer of an organisation in bulk for supply to the employees of the department/organisation in the case of salaried taxpayers. It is also decided to have the forms supplied expeditiously to any assessee by post on a request having been made in this behalf.
3. This circular supersedes the directions contained in Circular Nos. 296 and 297 referred to above.
Circular : No. 307 [F. No. 220/3/81/(A-II)], dated 23-6-1981.
Only in old correspondence about the supply of return forms; it does not touch any assessment or penalty question.
Source: the Income Tax Department’s own published text — its page for this instrument.
