Circular No. 4/2026

ircu ar • o. /2026

What this is

Circular No. 4/2026 was issued by the Central Board of Direct Taxes on 31 March 2026. Its subject is ircu ar • o. /2026.

What it does

Replaces the Board's 2019 Document Identification Number regime with a fresh set of instructions, and says the 2019 circular ceases to have effect from the date of this one. Every communication — notice, letter, order, draft order, summons — issued by an income-tax authority falling in clauses (aa) to (h) of section 116 to any person outside the department must carry a DIN, and every page of that communication must mention it; the DIN may be carried in the body, in a separate document accompanying it, or in the covering email. Public communications such as press releases are outside the requirement. Where a DIN genuinely cannot be generated — technical failure, an officer working away from electronic access, PAN not migrated or not available, or the functionality missing on the System — the communication may issue without one provided it says on its face that it is issued without DIN and states the exceptional situation, and it must be regularised afterwards.

Why it was issued

The Board records that it is acting under section 119, in view of section 292B and the new section inserted in the Income-tax Act, 1961 by the Finance Act, 2026, and the corresponding provision of the Income-tax Act, 2025, and so is restating how the DIN requirement is to work.

Who it reaches

Assessees receiving notices, orders, summons and letters from income-tax authorities
Assessing Officers and other authorities in clauses (aa) to (h) of section 116
Joint and Additional Commissioners and Directors giving post-facto approval for low-level exceptions
Chief Commissioners and Directors General approving exceptions in other cases

The provisions it speaks to

Left, the provision of the Income-tax Act, 1961 as the instrument itself names it. Right, the section of the Income-tax Act, 2025 that the department’s own concordance maps it to — which is where the same ground is now covered.

Under the 1961 Act	Now
s.116	s.236
s.292B	s.522

The instrument, as the Board published it

The department publishes this one only as a PDF, so the words below were read out of that PDF by machine. That reading can carry its own mistakes — a misread number, a broken line. Check the signed document before you rely on a figure in it.

ircu ar • o. /2026
ew Delhi. dated the 31 arch. 2026
ubj t: efi r ndno b: Doc ment ' dentification umber (DI - eg.
In e. ·erci of powers conferred on the Central Board of Direct Taxes Cthe Board·
y ti n 119 of the Income-tax Act 1961 and in view of the section 292B and tne
amendmen made in th Income-tax ct 1961 (insertion of section 2928A) and also in -e
In me-ta:· A t, 0 5 [ ection 522] by the Finance Act 2026, it is specified that e
uirernent of a computer generated Document Identification umber (DTh1 by any
in ome-tax authority referred to in clause ( aa) to clause (h) of section 116 of the Income-tax
A t, 1961, hall be in the manner laid down in this circular. Accordingly. the Circular. ·o.
19, 019 dated 14.08.2019 on this subject shall cease to have effect from the da e of i e o-""
thi circular.
Referencing b Document Identification umber (D Q by an income-tax orii:y
referred in para above henceforth, shall be in accordance '\ith the follm,ing, namely:-
a) Any correspondence such as notice, letter, order or draft order ummons e .
[hereinafter referred to as communication'] by an income-tax authority reerrerl •
the first para with an person (not being any officer or authority under th Incmrre-1:2...x
Act or any other Im ) shall be required to be referenced b} D bj
to para 2( d) and para 3 •
(b) Referencing b D in such communication hall al o mean and in lu
separate document mentioning D with uch communication or men
the email correspondence or otherwi e;
(c) Where such communication is referenced by D in an: mann r. i
required that e ery page comprising in that ommuni ati n i a}~
D •

(c) Where such communication is referenced by DIN in any manner, it is required that every page comprising in that communication also mentions DIN;

(d) A public communication shall not be required in such manner, for example communication in nature of press release, questions etc.

3. In certain situations, it may not be possible to reference communication. Communication in such situation can be issued as an exception. Such situations illustratively are:-

(a) Where there are technical issues in communication electronic mode;

(b) Where communication regarding enquiry, intimation etc. is required by an income-tax authority for discharging official duties, in a situation where access to electronic means for referencing DIN is not possible (for example where such authority is outside the office); or

(c) Delay in PAN migration, PAN is lying with non-jurisdictional officer; or

(d) Where PAN base is not available; or

(e) Where the functionality to issue communication is not available in the System.

4. All such communications as referred in para 3 above, shall state that it is issued without DIN in view of the stated exceptional situation. Further, all such communications shall require post-facto approval, within a period of 15 days of the date of issue of such communication, by a competent authority based on reasons to be recorded in writing by the issuing income-tax authority.

5. For the purpose of para 4 above,—
(i) the competent authority for communication issued by an income-tax authority below the rank of Joint Commissioner/Joint Director shall be Joint Commissioner / Joint Director / Additional Commissioner/ Additional Director of Income-tax.
(ii) the competent authority in any other case not covered under clause (i) shall be Chief Commissioner /Director General of Income-tax.

6. The communication issued in the situations specified in para 3(a), 3(b) & 3(c) above shall be, within 15 working days of its issuance, uploaded on the System alongwith appropriate referencing by DIN by the issuing income-tax authority.

Copy to:—
(i) PS to FM/OSD to FM/PS to MoS(F)/OSD to MoS(F)
(ii) PS to Secretary (Revenue)
(iii) Chairman, CBDT & All Members, CBDT
(iv) All Pr.CCIT / Pr.DGIT
(v) All Joint Secretaries/CITs, CBDT
(vi) C&AG
(vii) CIT (M&TP), Official Spokesperson of CBDT
(viii) O/o Pr. DGIT(Systems) for uploading on official website
(ix) Addl. CIT (Database cell) for uploading on the departmental website

What to watch

The 2019 circular is gone from the date of this one, so a DIN point built on the old text needs to be re-argued on this one for anything issued afterwards.
A DIN-less communication is not simply forbidden: this circular builds in an exception route, but that route has conditions — the communication must itself state it is issued without DIN and identify the exceptional situation.
Post-facto approval must come within 15 days of issue, from the competent authority named for that rank, on reasons recorded in writing.
For the technical-failure, no-electronic-access and PAN-migration exceptions the communication must be uploaded on the System with a DIN within 15 working days of issue.

Where you meet it

In any challenge to a notice, assessment order or penalty order that carries no DIN, or where the DIN appears only on the first page of a multi-page order.

On the same provision

Other instruments in this library that name the same provision of the 1961 Act. They are not necessarily still operative, and a later one may have replaced an earlier one without saying so.

Notification No. 100/2016/ F. No. 173/429/2016-ITA-I] / SO 3290(E) — Ministry of Finance 25 October 2016
Notification no. 13/2015 [F.No. 142/09/2013-TPL] / SO 424(E) — [To BE Published in the Gazette of INDIA, Extraordinary, Part II, 10 February 2015
Notification: 72 Date of Issue: 18/9/2013 — Section 120(1) and (2) of the Income-tax Act, 1961 -income-tax Authorities - Jurisdiction of - Notified Assessing Office 18 September 2013

A circular binds the department, not you and not a court. The Board issues a circular to its own officers. An assessee may hold the department to a circular that helps him; the department cannot hold an assessee to one that hurts him, and the Tribunal and the courts decide the law for themselves.

Source: the Income Tax Department’s own published text — its page for this instrument.